Our agrifood systems are facing increasingly complex and compounded challenges, including climate change, food insecurity and environmental degradation. Addressing these interconnected challenges requires robust data and evidence for decision-making. Our agrifood research systems need to generate the data, evidence, knowledge, tools and technologies we need for more efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable agrifood systems. 

FAO’s Science and Innovation Strategy (2022) emphasises the essential role of science, research, data and evidence for accelerating the transformation of our agrifood systems. Accurate and reliable quantitative data on national agricultural research systems and capacities is critical to guide planning and policies, to prioritise investments and to strengthen the national institutions that generate knowledge for agrifood systems development. 

The Agricultural Science and Technology Indicators (ASTI) initiative is a critically important platform that collects, curates and provides internationally comparable statistics on agricultural research and development (R&D) capacities, investments and human resources.   

Máximo Torero, FAO Chief Economist, explained, “Science, research and innovation are essential to agrifood systems transformation and to building resilience against increasingly frequent and intense shocks. ASTI helps identify where countries stand, where R&D gaps remain, and where governments, the private sector and international organizations need to invest to accelerate transformation.” 

National agricultural research systems are critical public assets. Their ability to enhance responses to current and emerging challenges requires sustained investment, skilled researchers and effective institutional structures and processes. However, in many countries, data on agricultural R&D resources remains fragmented and unevenly available, making it challenging to assess research capacity, identify gaps and monitor progress – all of which are critical for evidence-informed planning, policies, investments and actions.  

The ASTI domain on FAOSTAT addresses this by providing harmonised indicators on financial and human resources dedicated to agricultural R&D, particularly on a country-by-country basis for each National Agricultural Research System. 

For over two decades, the ASTI programme was managed by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and served as the global reference for agricultural R&D statistics. Following the discontinuation of the programme at IFPRI, the Statistics Division (ESS), in collaboration with the Chief Scientist Office and the Office of Innovation (OIN), has committed to continuing and improving ASTI’s core data series with the support of Members, leveraging official reporting mechanisms to FAOSTAT.  

On the collaborative nature of ASTI, José Rosero Moncayo, Chief Statistician and Director of ESS, explained, “Revamping the ASTI statistical domain, with our Members and in partnership across FAO divisions, was an expression of the One FAO approach, bringing together complementary expertise and engagement to respond to the diverse data needs of the Organization and its Members. This strategic effort was aimed not only at ensuring the continuity of the world's leading source of agricultural R&D statistics, but also at strengthening FAO's capacity to deliver on its Science and Innovation Strategy." 

The ASTI-team has worked on standardising, harmonising and enhancing the quality, timeliness and completeness of the core datasets by strengthening national capacities, promoting data use and stewardship, and encouraging integration into national statistical systems. 

The adoption of the updated Guidelines for developing Agricultural Science and Technology Indicators by the UN Statistical Commission in early 2026 represents a major milestone. Developed by the UN Committee of Experts on Rural and Agricultural Statistics under FAO's coordination, the Guidelines establish the internationally recognised methodological framework for collecting and reporting agricultural R&D statistics, ensuring consistency and comparability across countries. 

At the country level, ESS collaborates with a network of partners to develop country-specific approaches to collect data from National Agricultural Research Systems and leverage existing data collection mechanisms and data availability. Each institutional arrangement is tailored to each country's governance structure and statistical system.  

For example, in Nigeria, ASTI has been institutionalised within the Agricultural Research Council through a Memorandum of Understanding with the National Bureau of Statistics, integrating ASTI into the national statistical system.  

In other countries, the coordinating institution reflects the national context: the NSO leads the process in many European countries, the Science, Technology and Innovation agency in countries such as Georgia, and the Ministry of Agriculture in Ecuador. 

ESS also partners with regional agricultural research associations to strengthen stewardship and promote the use of agricultural R&D data for planning and policies. For instance, in Africa, ASTI contributes to monitoring agricultural R&D investment under the Kampala Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme Monitoring and Accountability Framework. 

Following the completion of the first global ASTI data collection in 2025, the launch of the new ASTI data domain on FAOSTAT in April marked an important milestone in ASTI’s institutionalisation and transition to FAO. 

The first FAO-led ASTI release in April 2026 covered more than 120 Members, reporting on approximately 316 000 full-time equivalent agricultural researchers and USD 50.4 billion in annual public agricultural R&D expenditure.  

By integrating ASTI into FAO's statistical architecture and providing a centralised platform for internationally comparable data, the initiative strengthens the accessibility, visibility, dissemination and long-term sustainability of agricultural R&D statistics. 

Charles Spillane, Chief Scientist, highlighted that “The ASTI platform is critical for national agricultural R&D planning and policies in an era of compounding challenges where we need to translate agricultural R&D more effectively into positive impacts on our agrifood systems and to accelerate progress towards food security for all. We are committed to the custodianship of the ASTI data and working with our Members to further improve the ASTI data so that it can better support monitoring, planning, policies and impacts. The ASTI data is also essential for implementing FAO's Science and Innovation Strategy, by informing strategic planning at both national and regional levels and supporting our Members in strengthening their national agricultural research and innovation systems. We are committed to building on the initiative by delivering more granular and improved data that modern data analytic approaches can convert to actionable insights for decision-makers tasked with improving the impact of agricultural R&D.”   

The first phase of ASTI's transition to FAO is coming to an end. Building on this foundation, several new developments are underway to further strengthen ASTI by delivering more granular and agriculture-specific R&D statistics, while continuing to consolidate the global and national information systems to better meet the evolving data needs of FAO and its Members and partners. 

Explore the FAOSTAT ASTI-Researchers subdomain here and the FAOSTAT ASTI-Expenditures subdomain here. 

Find the Agricultural Science and Technology Indicators (ASTI) Project website here. 

Read the FAO Science and Innovation Strategy here.