The purpose of the study was to examine past, present and future roles of Sector-Wide Approaches (SWAps) in Agriculture and Rural Development (A&RD) within the broader context of changes in development assistance. The objectives of the study were: (i) to establish whether, and in what ways, A&RD SWAps are delivering against their stated goals; and (ii) to identify critical lessons about the way in which development assistance supports the A&RD sector and what can be done differently to enhance the contribution of A&RD to long term growth and poverty reduction.