Agricultural Policies in Developing Countries

Frank Ellis

Cambridge University Press, Jan 30, 1992 - Business & Economics - 357 pages

This book is about agricultural policies in developing countries. It concerns the methods used by governments to change the ecomonic and social framework within which agricultural production takes place: by influencing the prices of farm inputs and outputs, by modifying agricultural institutions, and by promoting new technologies in agriculture. The book is organized around a central set of eight policy chapters, covering topics of price policy, marketing policy, input policy, credit policy, mechanization policy, land reform policy, and irrigation policy. These chapters are preceded by material covering the nature of policy, a framework for policy analysis, and the principles used by economists to undertake agricultural policy analysis. They are followed by chapters that examine the status of women in agricultural policies, and that summarize aspects of food policy not covered in the main policy chapters.

Contents

• Market state and policy: 3
• Market policy and state: 6
• State versus market: 8
• Peasants and policies: 13
• Summary: 14
• Further reading: 16
• Policy analysis Framework: 17
• A critical view: 21
• Concepts in applied welfare economics: 24
• Summary: 26
• Further reading: 28
• Policy analysis Economics: 29
• Revision of elasticities: 31
• Producer and consumer surplus: 35
• World prices and opportunity cost: 46
• Examples of policy intervention effects: 49
• Private economic and social prices: 55
• Summary measures of price policy effects: 57
• Summary: 59
• Further reading: 61
• Agricultural policies: 63
• Introduction: 65
• Price policy: 67
• Objectives of output price policy: 69
• Instruments of price policy: 70
• Criteria for determining price levels: 73
• Impact and effectiveness of price policy: 81
• Lessons of price policy experience: 88
• Price policy and women: 90
• Summary: 91
• Further reading: 93
• Marketing policy: 95
• Concepts in the study of marketing: 96
• Objectives of marketing policy: 100
• Instruments of marketing policy: 101
• Policy analysis of marketing systems: 104
• Lessons of marketing policy experience: 116
• Peasants and marketing: 119
• Marketing policy and women: 120
• Summary: 121
• Further reading: 123
• Reading list: 124
• Input policy: 125
• Objectives of input policy: 126
• Instruments of input policy: 128
• Input policy problems and debates: 131
• Fertilizer policy: 136
• Lessons of input policy: 146
• Input policy and women: 147
• Summary: 148
• Further reading: 150
• Credit policy: 152
• Objectives of old credit policy: 155
• Institutions of old credit policy: 156
• Instruments of old credit policy: 158
• Defects of old credit policy: 160
• New objectives and new instruments: 163
• Institutional innovations: 167
• A note on the pace of change: 168
• Peasants moneylenders and credit policy: 169
• Credit policy and women: 170
• Summary: 171
• Further reading: 173
• Mechanisation policy: 175
• Economic concepts of mechanisation: 176
• Propositions and evidence: 180
• Policy failures and effects: 182
• Sequences and diversity of mechanisation: 184
• Towards consistent mechanisation policies: 186
• Mechanisation and peasants: 188
• Mechanisation policy and women: 189
• Summary: 190
• Further reading: 192
• Land reform policy: 194
• Nature scope and definitions: 195
• Objectives of land reform: 197
• Paths of change in land tenure: 200
• Instruments of land reform: 204
• Problems of implementation: 207
• Lessons from the historical experience: 209
• Current and future relevance: 210
• Peasants and land reform: 212
• Land reform policy and women: 213
• Summary: 214
• Further reading: 217
• Research policy: 219
• Organisation of formal research: 222
• Alternative models: 225
• Farming systems research: 232
• Farmer first research: 237
• Goals and priorities of research: 238
• Economic evaluation of research impact: 242
• Research policy and women: 247
• Summary: 248
• Further reading: 251
• Irrigation policy: 254
• Objectives of irrigation policy: 256
• Irrigation types and choice of technology: 258
• Economic concepts for irrigation policy: 262
• Irrigation management and water charges: 266
• Irrigation in resourcepoor environments: 272
• Irrigation policy and women: 273
• Further reading: 276
• Comparative summary: 278
• Crosscutting themes: 283
• Women and agricultural policies: 285
• Determinants of policy impacts on women: 286
• Comparative summary of policy effects on women: 290
• Towards genderaware agricultural policies: 297
• Summary: 299
• Further reading: 300
• Reading list: 301
• Food policy and food security: 302
• Evolution of concepts: 305
• Food security: 310
• Food policy instruments: 312
• Food aid: 316
• Summary: 319
• Further reading: 321
• Reading list: 322
• Policies in perspective: 323
• Market state and policies: 324
• Framework and methods of analysis: 325
• Agricultural policies: 326
• Women and policies: 333
• Conclusion: 335
• References: 336
• Author index: 349
• Subject index: 353

Bibliographic information

• Title: Agricultural Policies in Developing Countries; Wye Studies in Agricultural and Rural Development
• Author: Frank Ellis
• Edition: illustrated, reprint
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press, 1992
• ISBN: 0521395844, 9780521395847
• Length: 357 pages
• Subjects: Business & Economics / Development / Economic Development; Nature / Natural Resources; Political Science / Political Economy; Political Science / Public Policy / Agriculture & Food Policy; Technology & Engineering / Agriculture / General; Technology & Engineering / Agriculture / Tropical Agriculture