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Publications
The impact of markets and policy on incentives for rice production in Rwanda
03/2018
The prioritization of rice as a strategic food and cash crop in Rwanda has paid dividends, with production increasing by one-third during 2010–2015. However, production expansion has failed to keep pace with growing consumption demand.
Institutions, economic freedom and structural transformation in 11 sub-Saharan African countries
01/2018
Good institutions are a fundamental pre-requisite to successfully achieve structural transformation in growing developing countries. Sub-Saharan Africa is experiencing a rapid growth but a weak and slow structural transformation process, which is mainly characterized by the reallocation of labour from agriculture to low skilled services.
The relationships between food security and violent conflicts – The case of El Salvador
12/2017
The relationships between food security and violent conflicts are conditioned, mediated and influenced by the specific context in which they take place. El Salvador is a peculiar case in that over three decades it has faced two different types of violence consecutively (the civil war and widespread post-war violence), which have had different impacts on food security.
The relationships between food security and violent conflicts – The case of Colombia
12/2017
The relationships between food security and violent conflicts are conditioned, mediated and influenced by the specific context in which they take place. In the case of Colombia, the main mechanism whereby the armed conflict has had a negative effect on food security is the mass forced displacement generated by the dispute over and control of rural territories by the armed actors.
Impacts of modifying Malawi’s farm input subsidy programme targeting
09/2017
In this paper, we evaluate the impact of this proposed change to the existing FISP design and implementation mechanisms by utilizing two waves of the Living Standards Measurement Study - Integrated Surveys on Agriculture (LSMS-ISA) survey merged with historical climate data.
The 2012 crisis in Mali and its implications on resilience and food security
07/2017
This paper looks at datasets from Mali in order to econometrically measure the impact of conflict – namely, the 2012 Tuareg rebellion and insurrection of Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) – on resilience to food insecurity for the population in northern Mali. The findings of this paper show that these conflicts have had a strong impact, which must be adequately addressed with supportive interventions.
On the costs of being small – Case evidence from Kenyan family farms
07/2017
We analyze allocative efficiency of major input factors for farmers in Kenya. Marginal value products are estimated for land, labor, inorganic fertilizer and seeds, at the farm household level and compared with marginal costs as approximated by their prevailing market prices.
Assessing the policy environment for cash crops in Malawi – What could hinder the achievement of the National Export Strategy objectives?
06/2017
This paper examines the main issues affecting producers of export crops in Malawi that could compromise the attainment of the National Export Strategy (NES) 2013-2018 targets.
Linking farm diversification to household diet diversification – Evidence from a sample of Kenyan ultra-poor farmers
02/2017
This paper provides new empirical evidence on the nexus between farm production diversification and household diet diversity in East Africa. Starting with a conceptual framework for the pathways from agriculture to nutrition, we use data collected from a sample of ultra-poor, labor constrained families living in five rural districts of Kenya.
Diversification under climate variability as part of a CSA strategy in rural Zambia
11/2016
This paper aims at presenting empirical evidence from Zambia to better understand the linkages between climatic shocks, livelihood diversification and welfare outcomes with the goal of highlighting potential policy entry points to incentivize the types of diversification aimed at improving food security and resilience to climate shocks.
The Global Agriculture Perspectives System (GAPS) Version 1.0
09/2016
This document provides a full description of FAO’s partial equilibrium modelling system known as GAPS, which has been developed by FAO to study the development of global food markets in the long-term and to assess how socioeconomic fluctuations, climate change and investment pay-offs may affect future global food demand.
Can smallholders double their productivity and incomes by 2030?
09/2016
This paper assesses past trends in agricultural land and labour productivity, as a test whether it is feasible to meet the SDG target 2.3, namely doubling productivity and incomes of smallholders within a 15-year time span, if history were to serve as a guide.
Diversification strategies and adaptation deficit – Evidence from rural communities in Niger
04/2016
This paper provides fresh empirical evidence on the adaptation process to face climate changes through the analysis of original cross-sectional data collected at household-level in Niger.
Smallholder productivity under climatic variability – Adoption and impact of widely promoted agricultural practices in Tanzania
04/2016
Food security in Tanzania is projected to deteriorate as a result of climate change. In spite of the Government’s efforts to promote agricultural practices that improve productivity and food security, adoption rates of such practices remain low.
A dynamic analysis of resilience in Uganda
03/2016
Resilience is, nowadays, one of the keywords in the policy debate on development. Measuring resilience and how it varies over time is dramatically important for policy makers and people living in...
Welfare impacts of climate shocks – Evidence from Tanzania
01/2016
Sub-Saharan Africa remains the world’s most food-insecure region characterized by high levels of child mortality and poverty and low levels of human and physical capital.
Agricultural transformation of middle-income Asian economies – Diversification, farm size and mechanization
11/2015
The agricultural sector of Asian middle-income countries is changing rapidly in line with an overall structural transformation of the economy brought on by economic growth. This paper discusses the changes in China, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam related to mechanization, farm size and crop and product diversification.
Can budget support to the cotton sector be used more efficiently? An assessment of the policy support measures in Mali and Burkina Faso
10/2015
In Burkina Faso and Mali, cotton is the most important cash crop, given its high contribution to the GDP and to the export sector revenue.
Livelihood diversification and vulnerability to poverty in rural Malawi
09/2015
Climate variability, associated with farm-income variability, is recognized as one of the main drivers of livelihood diversification strategies in developing countries.
An in-depth review of the evolution of integrated public policies to strength family farms in Brazil
08/2015
From 2003, the Zero Hunger Program and subsequently, in 2011, the Brazil Without Poverty Plan, marked a deliberate convergence of the purposes and actions focused on farmers and family farmers in Brazil.