CHANGE IN THE GOVERNANCE OF AUSTRALIAN RURAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Abstract: Australian rural research and development underwent a period of sustained organisational and managerial change during the 1980s and early 1990s. The transition from a scattered and disparate research effort prior to 1985, to one which is today highly structured, commodity-specific and strategically oriented, raises a number of issues concerning the processes used, the motivation for the change, and the manner in which that change has been accomplished. This article reviews the reforms that have been made in the sector, and seeks to assess their impact on the stakeholders involved. In so doing it highlights the changing nature of the expectations placed upon the rural research and development community, and raises questions concerning the appropriateness of the reforms and the methods by which they were implemented.