This study has gathered a considerable amount of information about organisations involved in, and some of the relevant literature about capacity building, but has had little time to analyse it in detail, or to discuss the results with the organisations concerned. More time for analysis, and discussions with a wider group including representatives of some of the organisations would be useful.

Other European and Canadian agencies have been engaged in research capacity-building for a number of years, have valuable experience, and are developing useful guidelines (e.g. ENRECA, SIDA/SAREC, IDRC). More detailed analysis of their literature, and discussions with key staff would be valuable.

Many other European countries have established organisations to identify mechanisms to improve and coordinate capacity-building within existing government development research programmes (RAWOO and KFPE). There may be opportunities for similar organisations in the UK.

DFID spends substantially more than any other bilateral donor on development-related research, yet lags behind many in the analysis of its impact, and the development of more effective and sustainable approaches through strengthening southern capacity. Further research is urgently required to help DFID develop new approaches. This could include an evaluation of the impact of DFID's research programmes on southern research capacity and further investigation of the organisations listed above (and others which may emerge during the process).