Hardin, Lowell S.

English

Research Papers in Economics

HELPING  NEEDY  COUNTRIES  DEVELOP  THEIR
AGRICULTURAL  RESOURCES
Lowell  S.  Hardin, Associate  Director
Latin American and Caribbean Program
Ford Foundation
As  will  be  revealed  in the  discussion  which follows,  I  hold  three
convictions  with respect  to  the  U.S.  role  in  helping  needy  countries
develop  their  agricultural  resources.  These  are:
1.  While  many  of  the  major  problems  of  developing  countries
are  structural,  our  obvious  comparative  advantage  in  assist-
ing  these  countries  is  in  the  technical  area.
2.  Success  in  technical  agricultural  assistance  through  research,
education,  and  training  provides  an  entree  for  meaningful
research  and  analysis  in  structural  and  policy  areas.  While
regional  and  international  centers  can  work  in  the  technical
areas  and  gain  acceptance  of  their  findings  across  national
boundaries,  structural  and  policy  matters  have  their  roots
and  their  solutions  within  individual  countries.  Thus,  alter-
natives  for  solutions  of  major  policy  problems  must  come
from  indigenous  institutions.
3.  The United  States has not yet created  appropriate  institutional
arrangements  whereby  the  potential  contribution  of  land-
grant  colleges  and  universities  can  be brought  fully  to  bear
on  development  problems  overseas.
As  a  point  of  departure  so  that  our  propositions  may  be  fitted
into  perspective,  I  list  the  following  factors  which  may  be  limiting
agricultural  resource  development  in  nonindustrial  nations.  This
listing  is  neither  original  nor  discrete.  Categories  of  items  overlap
each  other.  Priorities  differ  among  countries.  You  will  recognize
that  this  draws  upon  the  work  of  Arthur  Mosher,  F.  F.  Hill,  and
others.
Factors  Which  May  Be  Limiting  Agricultural  Resource
Development  in  Nonindustrial  Nations
1.  Stability-political and  economic.  This  may  be  overriding.  It
cannot  be  assumed.
2.  Technology-development,  testing,  dissemination  of  adapted
production  technology.  Important  also  is capability  to  generate
a  sustained  flow  of  such  technology.
133.  Inputs-cost and  availability  of  purchased  items.  Especially
critical  are  such  items  as  fertilizer,  seeds,  chemicals.  The  role
of  the  private  sector  here  is  generally  inadequately  understood.
I  regard  the black  market  in  such  inputs  in  India  as  a  favor-
able  sign.
4.  Incentives for farmers
Product  prices  (real),  level  and  stability,  market  structure
Export  market  fluctuations;  terms  of  trade.  (U.S.  farmers
may  be  sensitive  to  this  point,  too,  as  exports  approach
$7  billion  annually.)
Domestic  markets,  consumer  orientation.  The  industriali-
zation  push  dictates  cheap  food  to  assure  low-cost  labor
in  expanding  urban  areas.  The productivity  route  to lower
food  prices  is  less  well  understood  or  appreciated.
Taxes  on  marketings  as  revenue  source.  Before  we  con-
demn  such  policies,  we  must  conceive  of  alternative
sources  of  essential  public  revenue.
Factor  prices.
Share  of  product  to  owner,  tenant,  laborer-tenure,  one  of
the  most  generally  recognized  institutional  problems.
Level  of living  of rural household-consumer  goods,  services,
education.  Is  it  possible  to have  the  "good  life"  in rural  de-
veloping  countries,  even  if  one  is  financially  successful?
5.  Transportation-a  visible,  yet  important  need  if  a  commercial
marketing  structure  is  to  develop.
6.  Processing and  marketing  facilities.  Involved  here,  again,  is  a
potentially  large  contribution  from  the  private  sector.
7.  Extension education.  Important  when  adaptive  research  has  ad-
vanced  to the  point that useful  knowledge  is  available  to extend.
8.  Education-general  opportunity  to  go  to school;  to capture this
opportunity  for  mobility.
9.  Credit-properly  suited  to  farmer  needs.
10.  Institutions-conducive to  modernization,  growth.
Structural,  policy  "rules  of  game"  under  which  production
and  consumption  take  place.
Resource  ownership,  tenure.
Group  action by farmers-cooperatives,  pressure groups.
14Some  Propositions  for  Consideration  of  Those  Who  Would  Help
1.  Were  time  not  a factor,  principal  assistance  could  be  in  educa-
tion-development  of  the human  resource.  Prospective  urgency
is  such that more rapid  resource  development  is  called  for.  The
key factor  here  is  not  that  thousands  face  starvation.  Famines
have  been  averted  in  recent  years.  But  the  world  now  thinks
that a population-food  problem  exists.  Hence  the  call for action.
2.  Because  it  is  physically  and  financially  impossible  to  assist  on
all fronts,  the  strategic input approach  has  merit-given  analy-
sis  which  can  identify  bottlenecks  amenable  to  solution.  What
are  the  strategic  inputs?  Have  analysts  the  ability  to  identify
them  and  assign  priorities?
3.  Outside  assistance  agencies-U.S.  Government,  universities,
foundations-appear  to  have  comparative  advantage  in:
Graduate  level  training  of  foreign  students  in  the  U.S.
Direct  technical  involvement  in  developing  educational  insti-
tutions  overseas.
Physical  and  biological  research  of  both  adaptive  and  more
fundamental  types if  requirements  of career service,  continu-
ity,  and  relevance are  met.
4.  Outside  assistance  agencies  can over  time  most effectively  influ-
ence  structural  and  policy  change  through  involvement  in  re-
search,  education,  and  training  (versus  direct  involvement  in
policy-making  bodies  of  foreign  countries).  We  have  to  reflect
here  on  our  own  experience.  Who  makes  policy  in  the  U.S.?
Just  as  we  do  not  delegate  this  to foreign  advisors  or  experts,
so  do developing  nations  properly reserve  for  their own  citizens
the  key  policy-making  roles.
5.  The  productivity  of  outside  assistance,  in  terms  of  short-run
net  additions  to world  food  supplies,  might  be  greatest  in  tem-
perate-like  areas.  For  example,  total  agricultural  output  of
Argentina in  1962-64  is estimated  to  be only  14  percent  above
1935-40  levels  (crop  output  up  4  percent,  livestock  up  25  per-
cent).
6.  While  significant  opportunities  do  exist  in  Africa  and  in  South
America  to bring new lands  into  cultivation,  principal  advances
in agricultural  output  are  likely  to come  by  increasing  the  pro-
ductivity  of  both  the  land  now  under  cultivation  and  the peo-
ple  now  on  the  land.  Roughly  two-thirds  of  the  crop  output
15increases  in Latin  America  during  the  last  decade  came  from
acreage  expansion.
7.  Direct  transfer  of  agricultural  technology,  policies,  and  institu-
tions,  even  to  temperate-like  areas,  is  limited.  Indigenous  con-
tinuing  adaptive  and  primary  research,  analysis,  and  education
are  necessary.
Extension  production education efforts  in the absence of high-
payoff,  research-generated,  tested  technology  is  often  disap-
pointing.  When  a payoff  of 2  or  3 to  1 is  fairly  sure,  change
appears  to  take  place.
Given  their  environment  and  knowledge,  producers  usually
have  a rational  reason  for  performing  as  they  do.  F.  F.  Hill
puts  it  this  way:  "Even  though  the  farmer  may  be  illiterate,
he  can  figure."
8.  Trade  and  agricultural  policies  of  industrialized  nations  are
not optimum  if our  goal is  acceleration  of resource  development
in  less  industrialized  nations.  For example:
Domestic  self-sufficiency  via  subsidized  or  protected  high-
cost  domestic  production  (sugar).
Importation  of  raw  materials  rather  than  manufactured  or
semi-manufactured  products.
Import  quotas  or  threat  of  same  (beef).
Food  aid  on  concessional  basis  a  deterrent  to  indigenous
production.
Improving  U.S.  Effectiveness  in  Helping  Needy
Nations  Develop  Their  Resources
1.  Insert  the  variable  of  impact upon  developing  countries into
analysis  of  U.S.  trade  and  agricultural  policies,  recognizing
that  in  any  given  situation  other  considerations  may  be  over-
riding.
2.  Stress  educational  assistance  for  human  resource  development.
Most  developing  countries  have  a  substantial  pool  of  capable
manpower  and  underutilized  natural  resources.  Expanded  re-
search  and  training  opportunities,  indigenous  institutions  ori-
ented  toward  problem  identification  and  solution,  are  needed.
Quality  training  in  agricultural  sciences  to  M.S.  level  and
beyond,  in  the  countries.  A  few  good  institutions  which  ap-
16proximate  international  standards  of  excellence  are  of  high
priority.
International  or national research and  training centers focused
on  food  production  problems.  The  success  of  the  Interna-
tional Rice  Research  Institute  does  not suggest this  approach
as the  only  model.  But  it,  and  a  few  more  carefully  planned
centers,  may  be  important  in  the  world's  kit  of  agricultural
development  tools.
Research,  analysis  within  countries  on structural,  policy prob-
lems in  alternative-consequences  framework.  Here  my plea  is
that the research  be  narrowed  to obtain  understanding  of  es-
sential building blocks.  Neither  the  freshly trained  Ph.D.  citi-
zen of the  country nor the  mature foreign  technician can  start
at the  global  level.  Yet this  is  the tendency.  Those  of us  who
would  be  advisors  must  earn the  right  to  be  heard.  This  re-
quires personal,  sustained  submersion  in root problems  where
they  are.
3.  Structure  assistance to provide for sustained  collaboration-dec-
ades,  not years-by North American institutions,  including AID,
U.S.  Department  of  Agriculture,  colleges  and  universities,  pri-
vate  foundations.
U.S.  academic,  educational  community  decide  what  type  of
involvement  it wants.  Are  there  frontiers  of ignorance  which
sustained work  overseas can help to push back?  Is  such work
deserving  of  approval  by  one's  "sophisticated"  academic
peers?  If  so,  some  changes  are  called  for  at  home.
Articulation  of  capabilities,  desires  to  electorate,  U.S.  Con-
gress  for  appropriate  legislation,  fundings.  This  is  a  direct
challenge  to  U.S.  policy  education.  Nationally,  no  consensus
seems  to  exist.
4.  Reorient  policies  of  international  lending  agencies  to  empha-
size  loans  for  building  and  equipping  research  and  training
centers;  rapid  development,  perhaps  with  private  sector,  of  in-
put  and  marketing  industries.
5.  Improve  communications,  understanding  of  who  is  doing  what,
insights  into  strategic  inputs.  In  the  Manhattan  project  and  in
our  space  effort  the  U.S.  mounted  coordinated  efforts  directed
toward  defined  objectives  and  has  demonstrated  her  ability  to
perform.  In  the  population-food  problem,  we  have  yet to  give
our  efforts  similar  focus or direction.
17

HELPING NEEDY COUNTRIES DEVELOP THEIR AGRICULTURAL RESOURCES

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

Research Papers in Economics