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on Agricultural Economics |
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Issue of 2007‒09‒30
nine papers chosen by |
| By: | Zezza, Alberto; Davis, Benjamin; Carletto, Gero; Miluka, Juna |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the impact of international migration on technical efficiency, resource allocation and income from agricultural production of family farming in Albania. The results suggest that migration is used by rural households as a pathway out of agriculture: migration is negatively associated with the allocation of both labor and non-labor inputs in agriculture, while no significant differences can be detected in terms of farm technical efficiency or agricultural income. Whether the rapid demographic changes in rural areas triggered by massive migration, possibly combined with propitious land and rural development policies, will ultimately produce the conditions for more viable, high-return agriculture attracting larger investments remains to be seen. |
| Keywords: | Population Policies,Access to Finance,Agricultural Knowledge & Information Systems,Rural Development Knowledge & Information Systems,Economic Theory & Research |
| Date: | 2007–09–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:4367&r=agr |
| By: | Lambi, Cornelius M.; Molua, Ernest L. |
| Abstract: | This study examines the impact of climate change on crop farming in Cameroon. The country ' s economy is predominantly agrarian and agriculture and the exploitation of natural resources remain the driving force for the country ' s economic development. Fluctuations in national income are due not merely to the decline in world demand for Cameroon ' s traditional agricultural exports or to mistakes in economic policy making, but also to the vagaries of the weather. Based on a farm-level survey of more than 800 farms, the study employs a Ricardian cross-sectional approach to measure the relationship between climate and the net revenue from crops. Net revenue is regressed on climate, water flow, soil, and economic variables. Further, uniform scenarios assume that only one aspect of climate changes and the change is uniform across the whole country. The analysis finds that net revenues fall as precipitation decreases or temperatures increase across all the surveyed farms. The study reaffirms that agr iculture in Cameroon is often limited by seasonality and the availability of moisture. Although other physical factors, such as soil and relief, have an important influence on agriculture, climate remains the dominant influence on the variety of crops cultivated and the types of agriculture practiced. |
| Keywords: | Climate Change,Environmental Economics & Policies,Global Environment Facility,Common Property Resource Development,Economic Theory & Research |
| Date: | 2007–09–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:4364&r=agr |
| By: | Jing Gao (Département des sciences administratives, Université du Québec (Outaouais)) |
| Abstract: | The Agricultural Development Bank of China (ADBC) seeks a complete economic evaluation of the Loaning Funds Program to support private agricultural product processing factories. This paper aims at economically evaluate one loaning project of ADBC : the soybean processing of Huabao Industrial Co. Ltd. |
| Keywords: | Project management, Cost-benefit analysis |
| JEL: | M |
| Date: | 2007–09–17 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pqs:wpaper:042007&r=agr |
| By: | Ricardo Scarpa (University of Waikato); Mara Thiene (University of Padua); Francesco Marangon (University of Udine) |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates preferences for various environment-friendly production systems using 1949 choices from a sample of 240 respondents that chose amongst different types of carrots. The and multi-attribute stated-preference data collection was based on an experimental designed tailored to identify interaction effects between production methods and place of origin we estimate the effect of collective reputations for growers of an Alpine valley known to be completely dedicated to organic production. The implied WTP distributions are positve for organic and integrated pest management and provide evidence of recognition of a collective reputation for environmentally friendly production methods. Marginal utility of income is found to be systematically linked to socio-economic covariates, while unobserved heterogeneity is found for organic and bio-dynamic production methods and for place of origin, but not for integrated pest management. WTP for organic produce from Val di Gresta is found to be around 1-2 euro/kg depending on budget constraints, and not statistically significant for bio-dynamic production. The study confirms the existence of the growers' reputation for EFPMs and provides an empirical estimate of the premium the market awards to such a reputation. |
| Keywords: | Collective reputation; mixed logit; random utility parameters; sustainable agriculture; Choice modeling; Organic methods |
| JEL: | C15 C25 Q26 |
| Date: | 2007–09–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wai:econwp:07/11&r=agr |
| By: | Gautam, Madhur; Dercon, Stefan; Ali, Daniel Ayalew |
| Abstract: | This paper provides evidence from one of the poorest countries of the world that the property rights matter for efficiency, investment, and growth. With all land state-owned, the threat of land redistribution never appears far off the agenda. Land rental and leasing have been made legal, but transfer rights remain restricted and the perception of continuing tenure insecurity remains quite strong. Using a unique panel data set, this study investigates whether transfer rights and tenure insecurity affect household investment decisions, focusing on trees and shrubs. The panel data estimates suggest that limited perceived transfer rights, and the threat of expropriation, negatively affect long-term investment in Ethiopian agriculture, contributing to the low returns from land and perpetuating low growth and poverty. |
| Keywords: | Common Property Resource Development,Forestry,Municipal Housing and Land,Rural Development Knowledge & Information Systems,Urban Housing |
| Date: | 2007–09–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:4363&r=agr |
| By: | Richard Yao (University of Waikato); Pamela Kaval (University of Waikato) |
| Abstract: | Non-market valuation (NMV) is recognized as an essential tool in policy decision making worldwide. In this paper, we investigate the history of NMV, specifically in relation to New Zealand (NZ), by compiling and analyzing all available published studies. Results show a significant increase in the number of studies, specifically those requested by government agencies, following the passage of the NZ Resource Management Act of 1991. Studies were found to be concentrated in three major areas: outdoor recreation, environmental conservation/management, and travel time savings. These three areas covered eight environmental commodities, the value of which totaled NZ$72 billion, or 50% of NZ GDP, with the highest valued commodity being biodiversity services. While our analysis yielded many positive results, we did discover, however, a severe lack of studies in many areas including pest control, water resources and outdoor recreation. |
| Keywords: | non-market valuation; New Zealand; consumer surplus; Resource Management Act |
| JEL: | B4 Q2 Q26 |
| Date: | 2007–09–19 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wai:econwp:07/17&r=agr |
| By: | Danny Campbell (Queen’s University Belfast); W. George Hutchinson (Queen’s University Belfast); Riccardo Scarpa (University of Waikato) |
| Abstract: | : Data from a discrete choice experiment on improvements of rural landscape attributes are used to investigate the implications of discontinuous preferences on willingness to pay estimates. Using a multinomial error component logit model, we explore differences in scale and unexplained variance between respondents with discontinuous and continuous preferences and condition taste intensities on whether or not each attribute was considered by the respondent during the evaluation of alternatives. Results suggest that significant improvements in model performance can be achieved when discontinuous preferences are accommodated in the econometric specification, and that the magnitude and robustness of the willingness to pay estimates are sensitive to discontinuous preferences. |
| Keywords: | discontinuous preferences; heteroskedastic mixed logit; discrete choice experiments; multinomial error component logit model; rural landscape; willingness to pay; |
| JEL: | C13 C15 C25 C99 Q26 |
| Date: | 2007–09–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wai:econwp:07/18&r=agr |
| By: | Bown, Chad P.; Hoekman, Bernard |
| Abstract: | Poor countries are rarely challenged in formal WTO trade disputes for failing to live up to commitments, reducing the benefits of their participation in international trade agreements. This paper examines the political-economic causes of the failure to challenge poor countries and discusses the static and dynamic costs and externality implications of this failure. Given the weak incentives to enforce WTO rules and disciplines against small and poor members, bolstering the transparency function of the WTO is important to make trade agreements more relevant to trade constituencies in developing countries. While our focus is on the WTO system, our arguments also apply to reciprocal North-South trade agreements. |
| Keywords: | developing countries; dispute settlement; enforcement; trade agreements; WTO |
| JEL: | F13 |
| Date: | 2007–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:6459&r=agr |
| By: | David M. McEvoy; John K. Stranlund |
| Abstract: | Although the theoretical literature on the performance of voluntary approaches to environmental protection has progressed quite far in the last decade, no one has rigorously addressed the obvious point that even voluntary emissions control policies must be enforced. This paper examines the consequences of the need for costly enforcement of voluntary environmental agreements with industries on the ability of these agreements to meet regulatory objectives, the levels of industry participation with these agreements, and the relative efficiency of voluntary and regulatory approaches. We find that enforcement costs that are borne by the members of a voluntary emissions control agreement limit the circumstances under which an agreement can form in place of an emissions tax. However, if an agreement does form, member-financed enforcement induces greater participation than if compliance with the agreement could be enforced without cost to its members. Moreover, a voluntary emission control agreement with an industry can be a more efficient way to achieve an environmental quality objective than an emission tax, but only if: (1) the members of an agreement bear the costs of enforcing compliance with the agreement; (2) there exists member-financed agreements that reach the government’s environmental quality target while leaving the members of the agreement at least as well off as they would be under an emissions tax, and (3) the enforcer of the agreement has a significantly better monitoring technology or a higher sanction available to it than the government. Key Words: |
| Date: | 2007 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:apl:wpaper:07-15&r=agr |