The FAO needs to help small farmers implement the Chinese economic growth formula in their countries in order to reduce inequalities in food security and nutrition.. In particular, the FAO needs to identify "cash crops" for small farmers. Here are some examples of "cash crops" for small farmers in Uganda
How to grow sunflowers (in Uganda)
How to grow Onions in Uganda
https://www.flawlessconsultsug.org/how-to-plant-and-grow-red-onions-in-uganda.html
https://www.newvision.co.ug/news/1521373/grow-onions-taste-money
Kaduru and his American wife find fortune in Uganda Passion Fruit Farming (note business decisions)
If you are not familiar with the Chinese Economic Growth Formula Joe Studwell's book, "How Asia Works" describes the basic ideas. (see https://www.gatesnotes.com/Books/How-Asia-Works ) Here is a short book review of Studwell's book by Bill Gates in which Mr. Gates describes how he is trying to implement the Chinese Economic Growth Formula in African countries. From Japan to Djibouti - Can the Asian miracle happen in Africa? Can the lessons from Asia’s rise apply on another continent?
https://www.gatesnotes.com/Books/How-Asia-Works
Mr. Gates summarized the Chinese economic growth formula in the following manner:
- Create conditions for small farmers to thrive.
- Use the proceeds from agricultural surpluses to build a manufacturing base that is tooled from the start to produce exports.
- Nurture both these sectors (small farming and export-oriented manufacturing) with financial institutions closely controlled by the government.
China had greater corruption, poverty, and starvation than many countries before 1979. China recovered between 1979 and 1992 by having many farmers grow crops on 1/2 hectare of land using highly labor-intensive household farming techniques. Small farmers can implement the same techniques that were used by the Chinese.
Studwell (p. 329) noted that China’s average GDP growth rate was 9.9 per cent in the twenty-eight years from 1980 to 2008. In addition, Kroeber in “China’s Economy: What Everyone Needs to Know” (p 248) noted that two African countries, Rwanda and Ethiopia, have adopted a more or less explicit policy of imitating the Chinese growth model. Over the past decade, Ethiopia has been the fastest growing economy in Africa, with an average GDP growth rate of 11 percent since 2004. Rwanda is not far behind, at 8 per cent. Kroeber (p 34) also noted that between 1981 and 2011, the number of people in China living in what the World Bank describes as absolute poverty sank from 840 million to 84 million. Here is how Deng Xiaoping implemented these economic reforms in China https://factsanddetails.com/china/cat2/sub7/item79.html
One reason the Chinese economic growth formula has not been implemented in other countries is the difficulty of implementing the first objective that creates conditions in which small farmers will thrive. The policies used by the Chinese to implement the first objective depended heavily on land reform and highly labor-intensive household farming. These policies are described briefly in the following reference http://factsanddetails.com/china/cat2/sub7/item347.html . More detail about the policies used by the Chinese to implement highly labor intensive household farming can be found in the following references (Studwell, “How Asia Works”, Kroeber “China’s Economy: What Everyone Needs to Know”, and Naughton “The Chinese Economy - Transitions and Growth”). These references also describe why it is difficult to implement the Chinese economic growth formula in other countries.
Dr. Paul Rigterink