Considering the utility and importance of technical institutions and research centres, close collaboration and effective networking would help in conducting capacity building and poverty alleviation programmes. It would also help in recognizing and addressing the pressing needs and exchanging of experiences for the benefit of rural communities in the AARDO member countries. The strengthening of institutions would help in i) training of trainers; ii) linking projects to those institutions that can support specific training activities and provide inputs according to the needs; iii) exposing local institutions to teaching material and methods, and iv) facilitating networking among research and training institutions and between the institutions and their clients. Following is the list of AARDO's Centres of Excellence:
| S.No |
Name of Institutes / Centres | Country |
| 1 |
Bangladesh Academy for Rural Development (BARD), Comilla, Bangladesh |
Bangladesh |
| 2 |
Rural Development Academy (RDA), Bogra, Bangladesh |
Bangladesh |
| 3 |
Egyptian International Centre for Agriculture (EICA), Cairo, Egypt |
Egypt |
| 4 |
Desert Research Centre (DRC), Cairo, Egypt |
Egypt |
| 5 |
Simon Diedong Dombo University of Business and Integrated Development Studies |
Ghana |
| 6 |
School of Agriculture, University of Ghana |
Ghana |
| 7 |
Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI), India |
India |
| 8 |
National Institute of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj (NIRD & PR), India |
India |
| 9 |
National Institute of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (NIMSME), India |
India |
| 10 |
Central Fertilizer Quality Control and Training Institute (CFQCTI), India |
India |
| 11 |
Central Institute of Agricultural Engineering (CIAE), India |
India |
| 12 |
Indian Institute of Management Lucknow (IIML), India |
India |
| 13 |
Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), India |
India |
| 14 |
Indian Agricultural Statistics Research Institute (IASRI), India |
India |
| 15 |
Central Soil Salinity Research Institute (CSSRI), India |
India |
| 16 |
Chaudhary Charan Singh National Institute of Agricultural Marketing (CCS NIAM), India |
India |
| 17 |
South Indian Textile Research Institute (SITRA), Coimbatore |
India |
| 18 |
Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur (IIT-KGP) |
India |
| 19 |
Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT Madras) |
India |
| 20 |
Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (IIT Delhi) |
India |
| 21 |
Indian Institute of Management, Kozhikode (IIMK) |
India |
| 22 |
CCS- National Institute of Agriculture Marketing |
India |
| 23 |
Shobhit Institute of Engineering & Technology |
India |
| 24 |
Barefoot College International |
India |
| 25 |
ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (CIFT) |
India |
| 26 |
Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur (IITK) |
India |
| 27 |
Vaikunth Mehta National Institute of Co-operative Management (VAMNICOM) |
India |
| 28 |
Rajiv Gandhi National Ground Water Training and Research Institute (RGNGWTRI) |
India |
| 29 |
Institute for Rural Advancement (INFRA), Malaysia |
Malaysia |
| 30 |
Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI) Malaysia |
Malaysia |
| 31 |
National School of Agriculture, Meknes (NAS), Morocco |
Morocco |
| 32 |
Institut Agronomique Et Veternaire Hassan II (IAV HASSAN II) |
Morocco |
| 33 |
Agricultural and Rural Management Training Institute (ARMTI), Nigeria |
Nigeria |
| 34 |
Akhtar Hamid Khan National Centre for Rural Development (AHK-NCRD), Islamabad, Pakistan |
Pakistan |
| 35 |
COMSATS University of Islamabad (CUI), Pakistan |
Pakistan |
| 36 |
International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), The Philippines |
Philippines |
| 37 |
National Chung Hsing University (NCHU) |
R O China (Taiwan) |
| 38 |
Rural Community-International Education and Exchange Centre (RC-IEEC), R. O. Korea |
R O Korea |
| 39 |
PSPS, Yeungnam University, R. O. Korea |
R O Korea |
| 40 |
Food and Agriculture Officers Training Institute (FATI), R. O. Korea |
R O Korea |
| 41 |
International Center for Land Policy Studies & Training (ICLPST), Taiwan, R. O. China |
Republic of China (Taiwan) |
| 42 |
International Cooperation and Development Fund (ICDF), Taiwan, R. O. China |
Republic of China (Taiwan) |
| 43 |
Bahri University, College of Veterinary and Medicines |
Sudan |
| 44 |
The World Vegetable Centre, East and South - East Asia Centre, Thailand |
Thailand |
| 45 |
Mulungushi University (MU), Zambia |
Zambia |
| 46 |
University of Zambia, Lusaka |
Zambia |