LAUSR

Implementing agricultural innovations is key for coping strategies in the contexts of climate change and food security (Senyolo et al. 2018; Bommarco et al. 2018). The agricultural sector is still the central focus for rural development, especially in remote areas of Sub-Saharan Africa. Links to Small and Medium-size Enterprises (SMEs), among others, are often lacking, due to comparatively high costs for logistics, transport, and communication (Letiche 2010; Meyfroidt 2018; Stephens et al. 2018). Peri-urban and rural areas need specific and tailored livelihood strategies (Fraval et al. 2018). Thus, enabling environments for business models and alternative ecosystem services (Bommarco et al. 2018) are difficult to establish. Low economies of size and scale hinder the establishment of profitable economies (Tomich et al. 2018; Letiche 2010). Nevertheless, manifold implementation models for upgrading agricultural activities do exist and are continuously being tested and adapted in international research projects (Candel 2017). Specific implementation models disseminate innovations despite various structural problems of research and development in Sub-Saharan Africa (Lipton 1988). Among these theoretical models, the main challenge remaining is how agricultural innovations can be disseminated efficiently and effectively through outscaling and upscaling, given varying site conditions and diverse target groups (Senyolo et al. 2018). While pro-poor approaches focus mostly on small-scale farmers, the question of the right setting for agricultural innovations persists. In less favorable areas, typically low-cost innovations are more suitable due to limited capacities (capital), while higher income farmers in favorable production areas might seek higher investments and more revenue through market integration (Tomich et al. 2018). Additionally, at local levels, some farmers are more innovative than others, seeking different agro-ecological transformation strategies (Tittonell 2014). These superior performing farmers are more likely to adopt new techniques, even if they are riskier (Steinke and van Etten 2018). Innovators and catalyzers are key to more efficient and reliable adoption of agricultural innovations (Steinke and van Etten 2018; Below et al. 2015; Uckert et al. 2015). The issue of innovation adoption is an important research topic bridging the gap between Bmaximum yield potential^ and actual yields harvested in farmers’ fields (Foley et al. 2011). Such research should be long term and monitored over time in order to arrive at sustainable improvements. Agricultural innovations should be continually optimized in response to changing conditions (Tomich et al. 2018; Mutabazi et al. 2015, Senyolo et al. 2018, Below et al. 2015). Furthermore, an adequate incentive structure is a necessity for the long-term adoption of successful techniques (Nhantumbo et al. 2016). These applied adoption theories are closely linked and indispensably coupled with outand upscaling methods, which seek efficient and effective horizontal and vertical * Stefan Sieber [email protected]