As a field of inquiry, the relationship between research and policy formulation, implementation and evaluation is well established, particularly in the USA and other developed countries. There is a wide-ranging literature available which documents the findings of empirical studies in a variety of disciplinary contexts, and which attempts to theorise and explain the complex interaction of factors that have a bearing on how and the extent to which research influences or impacts on the policy-making process. The focus on these issues within developing country contexts – particularly the African context – is only recently gaining attention.