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This book offers an in-depth analyses of value chain policies, past and present in West Africa. The book contains a large number of in-depth case studies of food value chains in particular countries, including traditional export commodities (cocoa, cotton), high value exports (mangoes, horticulture) and the most important staple food value chains (oil palm, rice, maize, sorghum and millet and cassava) in the region. It also contains a large number of private and public initiatives, and thematic analyses relating to the role of the private agro-industry and producer organizations and their role as market agents.
This book provides a thorough introduction to and examination of agricultural value chains in Sub-Saharan Africa. First, the authors introduce the economic theory of agri-food value chains and value chain governance, focusing on domestic and regional trade in (and consumption of) food crops in a low-income country context. In addition to mainstream and heterodox thinking about value chain development, the book pays attention to political economy considerations. The book also reviews the empirical evidence on value chain development and performance in Africa. It adopts multiple lenses to examine agricultural value chains, zooming out from the micro level (e.g., relational contracting in a context of market imperfections) to the meso level (e.g., distributional implications of various value chain interventions, inclusion of specific social groups) and the macro level (underlying income, population and urbanization trends, volumes and prices, etc.).Furthermore, this book places value chain development in the context of a process the authors refer to as structural transformation 2.0, which refers to a process where production factors (labor, land and capital) move from low-productivity agriculture to high-productivity agriculture. Finally, throughout the book the authors interpret the evidence in light of three important debates: (i) how competitive are rural factor and product markets, and what does this imply for distribution and innovation? (ii) what role do foreign investment and factor proportions play in the development of agri-food value chains in Africa? (iii) what complementary government policies can help facilitate a process of agricultural value chain transformation, towards high-productive activities and enhancing the capacity of value chains to generate employment opportunities and food security for a growing population.
This book argues that Africa can feed itself in a generation and help contribute to global food security despite its history of persistent food shortages and the rising threat of climate change. To achieve this, the continent must harness scientific and technological advances, invest in infrastructure, foster higher technical training, and create regional markets. It must also foster a new crop of entrepreneurial leaders dedicated to the continent's economic improvement. This new edition provides ideas on how to place agriculture at the center of the continent's long-term economic transformation. It demonstrates how policy coordination can help realize agriculture's full potential as a motherboard for other economic activities. Incorporating lessons from academia, government, civil society, and private industry, The New Harvest outlines how African countries can work together at regional levels to generate new knowledge and resources, harness technological advancement, encourage entrepreneurship, increase agricultural output, create markets, and improve overall economic performance.
Starch - Evolution and Recent Advances is about the historical, scientific, and technological journey of starch so far, taking into account its traditional roles, uses, and applications as well as the most recent advances in the study of this unique polymer. It is a collective endeavor by a group of editors and authors with a wealth of experience and expertise in research and development, teaching, and quality control and public health. Chapters address such topics as the history, evolution, and health benefits of starch, advances in starch and starch product technology, the application of starch and starch-based polymeric materials in nanotechnology and environmental remediation, and much more.
This paper aims to develop specific strategies for reforming the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria (ARCN) for achieving greater efficiency, effectiveness, impact, and sustainability through its constituent institutions. Based on a two-year consultative and interactive process of internal discussion, external learning, and analysis of various restructuring options, this paper proposes specific interventions for promoting results-based approaches to priority setting, resource mobilization and allocation, effective implementation of research programs, enhanced and timely delivery of results, mon-itoring and evaluation, impact assessment, and improved networking among domestic and international partners. The paper recommends a phased approach to ARCN reforms, beginning with organizational transformation and capacity strengthening at all levels. In addition, issues, challenges, and opportunities for sustainable funding, integration of re-search, extension, education, and the regulatory mandates of ARCN are discussed. Finally, an implementation plan for restructuring ARCN is presented.
This food policy report presents a typology of the diverse livelihood strategies and development pathways for smallholder farmers in developing countries, and offers policy recommendations to help potentially profitable smallholders meet emerging risks and challenges. Main Findings Smallholder farmers in developing countries play a key role in meeting the future food demands of a growing and increasingly rich and urbanized population. However, smallholders are not a homogeneous group that should be supported at all costs. Whereas some smallholder farmers have the potential to undertake profitable commercial activities in the agricultural sector, others should be supported in exiting agriculture and seeking nonfarm employment opportunities. For smallholder farmers with profit potential, their ability to be successful is hampered by such challenges as climate change, price shocks, limited financing options, and inadequate access to healthy and nutritious food. By overcoming these challenges, smallholders can move from subsistence to commercially oriented agricultural systems, increase their profits, and operate at an efficient scale—thereby helping to do their part in feeding the world’s hungry.
Value chain based approaches offer tremendous scope for market-based improvements in production, productivity, rural economy diversification, and household incomes, but are often covered by literature that is too conceptual or heavily focused on analysis. This has created a gap in the information available to planners, practitioners, and value chain participants. Furthermore, few references are available on how these approaches can be applied specifically to developing agriculture in Africa. 'Building Competitiveness in Africa s Agriculture: A Guide to Value Chain Concepts and Applications' describes practical implementation approaches and illustrates them with scores of real African agribusiness case studies. Using these examples, the 'Guide' presents a range of concepts, analytical tools, and methodologies centered on the value chain that can be used to design, implement, and evaluate agricultural and agribusiness development initiatives. It stresses principles of market focus, collaboration, information sharing, and innovation. The 'Guide' begins by examining core concepts and issues related to value chains. A brief literature review then focuses on five topics of particular relevance to African agricultural value chains. These topics address challenges faced by value chain participants and practitioners that resonate through the many cases described in the book. The core of the book presents methodological tools and approaches that blend important value chain concepts with the topics and with sound business principles. The tools and case studies have been selected for their usefulness in supporting market-driven, private-sector initiatives to improve value chains. The 'Guide' offers 13 implementation approaches, presented within the implementation cycle of a value chain program, followed by descriptions of actual cases. Roughly 60 percent of the examples are from Africa, while the rest come from Europe, Latin America, and Asia. The 'Guide' offers useful guidance to businesspeople, policy makers, representatives of farmer or trade organizations, and others who are engaged in agro-enterprise and agribusiness development. These readers will learn how to use value chain approaches in ways that can contribute to sound operational decisions, improved market linkage, and better results for enterprise and industry development.
Nigeria has for decades placed enormous emphasis on diversifying its economy beyond oil and into sectors such as agribusiness and manufacturing. Lack of progress on the diversification agenda could be blamed on weak implementation and misalignment of public spending, but it also reflects more profound underlying issues. For example, declarations that any particular sector should drive diversification without offering clarity on specific investment priorities and expected outcomes will not persuade budget holders to allocate development resources. The lack of clarity also deprives policy makers and practitioners of the information, inspiration, and conviction to develop and execute sector plans that could operationalize diversification. Transforming Agribusiness in Nigeria for Inclusive Recovery, Jobs Creation, and Poverty Reduction: Policy Reforms and Investment Priorities aims to provide that clarity by illustrating the potential of the agribusiness sector to accelerate inclusive growth, create jobs, and reduce poverty. Building on an early finding that this sector provides the best prospects for inclusive growth and more and better jobs, the book identifies the specific agricultural value chains with the highest potential to create jobs, reduce poverty, and improve nutrition outcomes. The findings demonstrate, however, that the value chains with the most potential to pursue one policy objective are not necessarily as effective for other objectives, clearly calling for selectivity of value chains, depending on policy objectives. The book also estimates the level of growth required to meet specific jobs targets and finds that the growth burden is lower when on-farm and off-farm segments of agribusiness grow in tandem and higher if either segment stagnates. It concludes that a whole-of-agribusiness approach that emphasizes coordinated investments between on-farm and off-farm segments is needed to enable the sector to meet its potential in creating jobs and generating inclusive growth.
The COVID-19 pandemic exposed the vulnerability of agrifood systems to shocks and stresses and led to increased global food insecurity and malnutrition. Action is needed to make agrifood systems more resilient, efficient, sustainable and inclusive. The State of Food and Agriculture 2021 presents country-level indicators of the resilience of agrifood systems. The indicators measure the robustness of primary production and food availability, as well as physical and economic access to food. They can thus help assess the capacity of national agrifood systems to absorb shocks and stresses, a key aspect of resilience. The report analyses the vulnerabilities of food supply chains and how rural households cope with risks and shocks. It discusses options to minimize trade-offs that building resilience may have with efficiency and inclusivity. The aim is to offer guidance on policies to enhance food supply chain resilience, support livelihoods in the agrifood system and, in the face of disruption, ensure sustainable access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to all.