China's Agricultural Research System and Reforms: Challenges and Implications for Developing Countries

The expansion of the real output of major food and agricultural productions in China ranks as one of the nation's great achievements. Publicly funded agricultural research has been key to the impressive performance (Huang et al. 2003). Expenditures grew rapidly from the early 1960s to the middle 1980s and the number of agricultural researchers increased throughout (Fan and Pardey 1992). The rising research investment resulted in a steady stream of productivityincreasing technology.