Agricultural productivity and policies in Sub-Saharan Africa:

We analyze the evolution of Sub-Saharan Africa's (SSA's) agricultural total factor productivity (TFP) over the past 45 years, looking for evidence of recent changes in growth patterns using an improved nonparametric Malmquist index. Our TFP estimates show a remarkable recovery in the performance of SSA's agriculture between 1984 and 2006 after a long period of poor performance and decline. That recovery is the consequence of improved efficiency in production, resulting from changes in the output structure and an adjustment in the use of inputs. Policy interventions, including fiscal, trade, and sector-specific policies, appear to have played an important role in improving agricultural performance. Despite the improved agricultural performance, economies in SSA face serious challenges to sustain growth. Among these are the small contribution of technological change to TFP growth in the past, the large tax burden imposed by remaining distortions, and the challenge of population growth.Agriculture, Efficiency, Malmquist index, policy, Technical change, Total factor productivity,

An updated look at the recovery of agricultural productivity in Sub-Saharan Africa:

"We analyze the evolution of Sub-Saharan Africa's agricultural total factor productivity (TFP) over the past 40 years, looking for evidence of recent changes in growth patterns using a nonparametric Malmquist index. Our TFP estimates show a remarkable recovery in the performance of Sub-Saharan Africa's agriculture during the 1984–2003 period after a long period of poor performance and decline. That recovery is the consequence of improved efficiency in production resulting from changes in the output structure and an adjustment in the use of inputs, including an overall net reduction in fertilizer use but increased fertilizer use in most of the best-performing countries. Policy changes African countries conducted between the mid-1980s and the second half of the 1990s together with technological innovations available at that time appear to have played an important role in improving agriculture's performance. As TFP growth in Sub-Saharan Africa is mainly a result of catching up to the frontier, we expect growth to slow in the coming years unless African countries accelerate the incorporation of innovations into the production process and increase the speed of technical change." from authors' abstractAgriculture, Efficiency, Malmquist index, Total factor productivity, Technical change, Development strategies,

Agricultural Productivity and Policies in Sub-Saharan Africa

We analyze the evolution of Sub-Saharan Africa’s agricultural total factor productivity (TFP) over the past 45 years, looking for evidence of recent changes in growth patterns using an improved nonparametric Malmquist index. Our TFP estimates show a remarkable recovery in the performance of Sub-Saharan Africa’s agriculture between 1984 and 2006 after a long period of poor performance and decline. That recovery is the consequence of improved efficiency in production resulting from changes in the output structure and an adjustment in the use of inputs. Policy interventions, including fiscal, trade and sector specific policies, appear to have played an important role in improving agriculture’s performance. Despite the improved agricultural performance, SSA economies face serious challenges to sustain growth. Among these are the small contribution of technical change to TFP growth in the past, the large tax burden imposed by remaining distortions, and the challenge of population growth.agriculture, efficiency, Malmquist index, total factor productivity, technical change, Sub-Saharan Africa, policy, Agricultural and Food Policy, International Development, Productivity Analysis,

Development domains for Ethiopia: capturing the geographical context of smallholder development options

"The choices that smallholder farmers are able to make are strongly conditioned by the geographic conditions in which they live. The importance of this fact for rural development strategy is not lost on policy makers. For example, the government of Ethiopia frequently frames policy discussions by broadly different geographical conditions of moisture availability, recognizing moisture reliable, drought prone and pastoralist areas. These conditions are seen as important criteria for determining the nature, extent and priority of development interventions for different parts of the country. There is considerable evidence, however, that other geographical factors also have important implications for rural development options. This paper uses agroecology, access to markets, and population density to define development domains: geographical locations sharing broadly similar rural development constraints and opportunities. Unlike similar efforts conducted elsewhere, this work is unique in that it seeks to move away from a subjective mapping of factors of theorized importance to a more rigorous definition of development domains on the basis of quantitative data on smallholder livelihood strategies. After selecting variables for mapping, we calibrate our definition for domains in such a way that their explanatory power is maximized across a range of livelihood strategies that figure in the current Ethiopian rural development discourse (market engagement, dependence upon agriculture, etc.)." Authors' AbstractSmallholders, Small farmers, Geographic conditions, rural development strategies, Development policy, Agro-ecology, Market access, Livelihoods, Population density,

Policy options and their potential effects on Moroccan small farmers and the poor facing increased world food prices: A general equilibrium model analysis

"This study evaluates the potential impact of the recent rise in world food prices on the Moroccan economy and possible policy options to respond to it. The study focuses mainly on the poverty effects of such an external shock and the possible policy responses to it. A new social accounting matrix (SAM) and a computable general equilibrium (CGE) model have been developed for this study based on micro-level data in combination with sectoral and economywide data. The CGE model simulations show that while increased world food prices hurt poor consumers, the general equilibrium effect of welfare loss is modest. Agricultural producers gain, and benefits to small farmers are especially large. The simulation of import subsidies shows that while such policy options can temporarily stabilize domestic prices, the benefits to consumers are at the expense of producers. However, the model results indicate that there are win-win options for Morocco if policies are based on a longer-term objective. Direct transfers to poor consumers, combined with increased public investment in agriculture to improve agricultural productivity, is a win-win strategy that the government should consider. Low productivity in staple crop production is the dominant reason for poverty among Moroccan farmers. Improving this productivity can also benefit poor consumers by lowering domestic food prices." from authors' abstractFood prices, Agricultural policy, Social accounting matrix, Computable general equilibrium (CGE), Small farmers,

Dynamic agricultural supply response under economic transformation

China has experienced dramatic economic transformation and is facing the challenge of ensuring steady agricultural growth. This study examines the crop sector by estimating the supply response for major crops in Henan province from 1998 to 2007. We use a Nerlovian adjustment adaptive expectation model. The estimation uses dynamic Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) panel estimation based on pooled data across 108 counties. We estimate acreage and yield response functions and derive the supply response elasticities. This research links supply response to exogenous factors (weather, irrigation, government policy, capital investment, and infrastructure) and endogenous factors (prices). The significant feature of the model specification used in the study is that it addresses the endogeneity problem by capturing different responses to own- and cross-prices. Empirical results illustrate that there is still great potential to increase crop production through improvement of investment priorities and proper government policy. We confirm that farmers respond to price by both reallocating land and more intensively applying non-land inputs to boost yield. Investment in rural infrastructure, human capacity, and technology are highlighted as major drivers for yield increase. Policy incentives such as taxes and subsidies prove to be effective in encouraging grain production.acreage and yield response, dynamic panel model, Generalized Method of Moments (GMM), supply elasticity,

Toward a typology of food security in developing countries:

The recent global food and financial crises have reversed the last decade's progress in reducing hunger and poverty. This paper conducts a factor and sequential typology analysis to identify groups of countries categorized according to five measures of food security—consumption, production, imports, distribution, and agricultural potential—by using indicators from 175 countries. The analysis first identifies five distinct food security groups, characterized by food intake, and then further splits these groups based on the various measures of food production, trade security, and agricultural potential. The results suggest that the general category of “developing countries” is extremely heterogeneous and is not particularly useful if the focus is on issues of food security. The results also indicate that different responses are needed by different types of food-insecure countries to address the food and financial crises.food security, Typology, agricultural potential, factor analysis, Poverty, Hunger, financial crisis, Developing countries, Development strategies,

Mountains, global food prices, and food security in the developing world

This study explores the differences between mountain and non-mountain countries in food security and its determinants. Econometric analysis shows that mountain regions are likely to have lower food security. The findings suggest that people in mountain countries are especially affected by external shocks such as surges in global food prices. The results of regression decomposition indicate that the disparity in food availability we observed between mountain and non-mountain countries can be explained by differences in population size, income, road density, and governance factors as well as by a differential impact of external price shocks. The direct impacts of geographic and agroecological factors seem rather limited.altitude, Developing countries, food security, global food prices, mountain regions,

Food as the basis for development and security: A strategy for Yemen

Yemen has been facing severe development challenges in recent years, but rapidly depleting oil and water resources combined with large population increases and a lack of job-creating growth are making a difficult situation even more complicated. In order to provide opportunities for Yemenis to escape the current situation of widespread poverty and food insecurity, the Government of the Republic of Yemen, under the leadership of the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation, has developed a strategy to help all Yemeni people gain access to sufficient and nutritious foods in order to live active, productive, and healthy lives. The main objectives of the National Food Security Strategy, developed with the support of the International Food Policy Research Institute, are to (1) cut food insecurity by one-third by 2015, (2) reach moderate food security levels—meaning 90 percent of people have enough to eat year-round—by 2020, and (3) reduce child malnutrition by at least one percentage point per year. As a contribution to this process, the authors of this paper identify seven priority actions to help achieve these goals. 1. Leverage the fuel-subsidy reform process to promote food security. 2. Improve the business climate to foster pro-food-secure private investments in promising sectors. 3. Use qat reduction policies to enhance agricultural development. 4. Strengthen food security risk-management practices. 5. Implement the water-sector strategy decisively. 6. Target public investment to the food insecure more accurately and improve service provision, especially in rural areas. 7. Launch high-level awareness campaigns for family planning, healthy nutrition, and women's empowerment. The government, civil society groups, and international partners need to quickly, decisively, and jointly implement these seven actions in order to fulfill the strategic goals. The implementation process is likely to be most effective if conducted in a transparent and inclusive manner with effective follow-up and appropriate monitoring and evaluation mechanisms.food security, Poverty, Economic development,

Institutions and Agricultural Productivity in Sub-Saharan Africa

Agricultural productivity in 41 Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) countries from 1960 to 1999 is examined by estimating a semi-nonparametric Fourier production frontier. Over the four decades the estimated rate of productivity change was 0.83% per year, although the average rate from 1985-99 was a strong 1.90% per year. Former UK colonies exhibited significantly higher productivity gains than others, while Liberia and countries that had been colonies of Portugal or Belgium exhibited net reductions in productivity. We measure a significant reduction in productivity during political conflicts and wars, and a significant increase in productivity among those countries with higher levels of political rights and civil liberties.Sub-Saharan Africa, agricultural productivity, institutions, stochastic frontier, Fourier functional form.