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This Montpellier Panel report was launched at the World Food Prize in October 2013. It is co-authored by Calestous Juma (Harvard University), Ramadjita Tabo (Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa) and Katy Wilson (Agriculture for Impact).

Why innovation?

Innovation is at the heart of sustainable intensification, helping African smallholder farmers produce more with less impact on the environment while also improving agriculture’s sustainability.  Food production remains well below its potential in Africa. Tackling hunger, malnutrition and poverty while at the same time protecting and improving the environmental base will require human ingenuity, creativity and innovation, especially in the face of severe resource constraints and global warming.

How will it work?

Today the challenges we face and solutions we need are more complex, by an order of magnitude. We will need to go beyond sector silos in academia, business and government, and think more strategically and holistically about how we can cope with inter-connected issues that require integrated approaches and solutions. We need to re-think our research and innovation systems to facilitate multidisciplinary, collaborative research at a range of scales. Rather than a complete set of answers, the report offers a 10-point agenda for further research, dialogue and policy making in the coming years.