In this book, we have tried to deal with past, present and future research directed at rural development and sustainable agriculture in low-income countries. First, we sketch the current challenges, next we give an historical overview, and then present the state-of-the-art with respect to the most important issues in RDSA. Finally, we capture the most important lessons drawn from the programme, as a stepping stone for an outline of the ways ahead to shape rural development and sustainable agriculture.