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Publications
Implementation of an indicator-based framework for farm sustainability assessment in Ecuador
07/2025
Cocoa is one of Ecuador’s most emblematic and traditional export products. The cocoa sector is vital to the country's economy and is an essential source of livelihood for many households in rural areas. Cocoa production has grown significantly in the last decade. However, it faces intricate socioeconomic and environmental problems, including poverty, inequality and deforestation, that threaten the sustainability of the cocoa value chain.
Leveraging remittance-based matching grants for investing in agribusiness development – Leaving no migrants behind
09/2024
FAO Agricultural Development Economics Technical Study, No. 35. Insufficient public financing under current fiscal constraints demands more private financing to support investment in agrifood systems. Despite the general enthusiasm for using remittances for development, initiatives face challenges in consistently directing these funds into productive endeavours.
A profile of rural poverty, food security and livelihoods in Guatemala
09/2024
FAO Agricultural Development Economics Technical Study, No. 34. This study was developed in order to portray, with high-quality, representative data, the main characteristics of poverty, food insecurity and vulnerability in rural areas of Guatemala. Under the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Hand-in-Hand (HIH) Initiative in Guatemala, the study aims to identify the broad-based challenges affecting the rural agriculture sector.
Hidden costs of agrifood systems and recent trends from 2016 to 2023
11/2023
Background paper for The State of Food and Agriculture 2023. FAO Agricultural Development Economics Technical Study, No. 31. This background paper to The State of Food and Agriculture 2023 examines the annual hidden costs of agrifood systems across 2016–2023 for 154 countries.
Opportunities for youth in the bioeconomy – Opportunities and barriers for youth employment and entrepreneurship in the emerging bioeconomy sectors
10/2023
FAO Agricultural Development Economics Technical Study, No. 30. This report provides a comprehensive analysis of key challenges and barriers to achieving greater youth inclusion in the bioeconomy. The analysis covers key factors (push/pull factors) that impact youth employment and entrepreneurship opportunities, such as education, vocational training, skills building, technology and business development.
Identifying commodity-specific priority investments in selected districts of Uganda
03/2023
FAO Agricultural Development Economics Technical Study, No. 29. Building on the previous work by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) supporting the identification of priority agricultural sectors and possible locations with high agricultural transformation potential in Uganda, this technical study provides more granular information from Ugandan farmers and district agriculture officers on which investments are needed the most to increase productivity.
Agricultural digitalization and automation in low- and middle-income countries – Evidence from ten case studies
11/2022
Background paper for The State of Food and Agriculture 2022. Digital and automation solutions can solve labour bottlenecks, increase agricultural productivity, resilience and efficiency, and improve environmental sustainability. However, access is limited in low- and lower-middle-income countries, especially for small-scale producers.
Leveraging automation and digitalization for precision agriculture – Evidence from the case studies
11/2022
Background paper for The State of Food and Agriculture 2022. Digital and automation solutions for precision agriculture can improve efficiency, productivity, product quality and sustainability. Nevertheless, barriers to adoption of such solutions – including their cost, lack of knowledge and skills, and the absence of an enabling environment and infrastructure – can prevent producers from realizing these benefits.
Best practices in addressing the major drivers of food security and nutrition to transform food systems
10/2022
FAO Agricultural Development Economics Technical Study, No. 23. Background paper for The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2021. After decreasing for nearly a decade, hunger is once again on the rise. The major drivers behind this reversal – especially in low- and middle-income countries – are conflict, climate extremes and variability, and economic downturns.
Guiding policies and investments to reduce agriculture-led deforestation in Viet Nam - Expanding beef and dairy sectors, while reducing deforestation risks
10/2022
FAO Agricultural Development Economics Technical Study, No. 21. The study unpacks the potential, current and future, linkages between beef and dairy development and deforestation, using Nghe An and Ha Tinh provinces in Viet Nam as case study, where the beef and dairy production increases are important and potential impact on the primary forests is of particular concern.
Lebanon’s agrifood system in times of turbulence – Obstacles and opportunities
10/2022
FAO Agricultural Development Economics Technical Study, No. 20. Lebanon currently faces one of the worst economic crises of this century. The political deadlock, the economic crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic have further intensified the country’s existing economic fragility.
Agricultural transformation – Trends in farm size, crop diversification and mechanization in Nicaragua and Peru
09/2022
FAO Agricultural Development Economics Technical Studies, No. 18. Structural change is a process in which the amount of labour, capital and land dedicated to agriculture (and other sectors) changes over time. In this study, we focus on the cases of Peru and Nicaragua using their two most recently administered agricultural censuses.
The role of small and medium agrifood enterprises in rural transformation – The case of rice processors in Kenya
03/2022
FAO Agricultural Development Economics Technical Study, No. 17. This study looks at the business models of small and medium sized rice processors in Kenya in order to better understand the policy and technical support they need to grow and fulfil their role in agrifood systems transformation.
Productive public investment in agriculture for economic recovery with rural well-being – An analysis of prospective scenarios for Uganda
02/2022
FAO Agricultural Development Economics Technical Study, No. 16. This study highlights how, through a series of scenarios, public investments promoting agricultural productivity in Uganda could drive growth in agrifood production, with favourable impacts on the economy, on well-being and on poverty, especially in rural areas.
Enhancing the inclusiveness of agro-commodity procurement zones in Ethiopia – National poverty profile
12/2021
FAO Agricultural Development Economics Technical Study, No. 15. Identifying the pathways through which agricultural investments can be sustainable and inclusive requires assessments of the poverty, livelihoods and food security situation of the populations likely to be affected by such investments.
The resilience of domestic transport networks in the context of food security – A multi-country analysis
11/2021
FAO Agricultural Development Economics Technical Study, No. 14. Background paper for The State of Food and Agriculture 2021. Transport infrastructure and logistics, not least domestic food transport networks, are an integral part of agrifood systems, and play a fundamental role in ensuring physical access to food.
Progress towards sustainable agriculture – Drivers of change
11/2021
FAO Agricultural Development Economics Technical Study, No. 13. The Progress towards Sustainable Agriculture initiative (PROSA) is a framework that seeks to complement ongoing efforts on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and particularly indicator 2.4.1, to support country-level assessments using data already available at the national level.
Agricultural sector review in Lebanon
06/2021
FAO Agricultural Development Economics Technical Study, No. 12. The Agricultural Sector Review aims to provide an up-to-date picture of the current socioeconomic situation of the agricultural sector in Lebanon and to identify key challenges and evidence-based strategies for policy-making.
Productive public investment in agriculture for economic recovery with rural well-being – An analysis of prospective scenarios for Mexico
05/2021
FAO Agricultural Development Economics Technical Study, No. 11. Mexico's gross domestic product (GDP) contracted unprecedentedly as a result of the COVID-19 crisis. While the primary sector has relatively been the most resilient, the agriculture sector lacks sufficiently strong productive dynamism and has high rates of informal work and low wages.
The role of small and medium agrifood enterprises in food systems transformation
03/2021
FAO Agricultural Development Economics Technical Study, No. 10. The objective of this publication is multifold. First, it aims to learn from small and medium sized agrifood manufacturers about the role they play in food systems transformation in Senegal and the policy reforms required to harness their potential.