The Role of Technological Innovation and Governance Towards Achieving Food Security Under SDG 2

This study investigates the dynamic impact of technological innovation and institutional governance on the value-added contribution of Malaysia’s agriculture, forestry, and fishery (AFF) sectors. This research addresses a critical literature gap by integrating Schumpeterian Innovation Theory and Institutional Theory to examine how these drivers promote the primary sector by employing the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) approach. The empirical results revealed that while technological innovation provides a highly significant boost to sectoral productivity in the short run, its long-run effect is negative. This suggested a structural contraction consistent with Schumpeterian creative destruction notion. Additionally, governance quality exhibited an initial compliance shock before yielding positive results, though it remains prone to long-term institutional traps. These findings contribute a multi-sectoral integrated framework that challenges the traditional siloed approach to AFF research. The study offers vital implications for policymakers, emphasizing the need for adaptive governance and inclusive innovation strategies to ensure that Malaysia’s path toward modernization does not compromise national food sovereignty.