ABSTRACT
The most productive technology policy for increasing innovation in the agricultural sector has probably been public investment in agricultural research. The development of agricultural universities has also produced new technology, but, more importantly, has provided training opportunities for scientists, extension agents, policy makers and bureaucrats. Policies that increase technology transfer and research by the private sector are also important. These include tax policies, property rights, antitrust policies, import policies, government procurement of new technology, regulations on Research and development, and regulations on the use of new technology. The productivity of the Malaysian Rubber Research Institute, which was an important source of technology for all of Southeast Asia, continues to deteriorate. In South Asia that response took the form of government seed supply corporations or input supply corporations. When the demand for High yield varieties wheat and rice expanded rapidly in the late 1960s and early 1970s, India and Pakistan established government-owned seed supply corporations.
