There is a paradigm shift in the agricultural research and development policy of developing countries, primarily driven by scarcity of public funds. The countries with a strong research system like India and China have initiated a number of reforms with an objective to diversify the sources of funding and increase research efficiency. Competitive funding, commercialisation of technologies, strengthened intellectual property rights, facilitating regulations and flexible extension approach are some of the major reforms undertaken. This paper examines the outcomes of these reforms and draws lessons for other developing countries.