Research 

Program Objectives

Research lies at the core of FSS’ program activities. The research program has three major objectives:

• Enhancing public awareness of policy-related development issues;
• Contributing to informed policy/decision-making processes;
• Catalyzing development processes by generating fresh empirical data and critical analyses.

Research Orientation

FSS is committed to creating a policy-research nexus through original research on emerging challenges, successes and prospects of national development endeavors. While ensuring that all its research is conducted using standard scientific methods of investigation, FSS, nevertheless, strives to ascertain the policy relevance of its research in terms of the key issues it raises, the field data it generates, the critical analyses it provides and the recommendations it puts forward

Focus Areas

During the last five years, the main themes of FSS research have been rural and urban poverty, decentralization, higher education, environment, and civil society. Previous research has covered gender, democracy, land tenure, and resettlement.

FSS conducts research by using its own staff and other independent researchers drawn particularly from among its members. Whenever resources are available, FSS also supports young scholars by offering them small grants to conduct policy-oriented research under the supervision of senior researchers.