|
on Agricultural Economics |
|
Issue of 2014‒04‒11
thirty papers chosen by |
| By: | Holden, Stein (Centre for Land Tenure Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences) |
| Abstract: | This report documents agricultural household models developed for agricultural policy analyses related to the assessment of impacts of agricultural input subsidies and maize technology choices in Malawi. The models have been calibrated to a typology of households in Central and Southern Regions of Malawi based on household survey data collected for the period 2005-2010. Households are assumed to be drudgery averse and rational given their preferences and the resource constraints and imperfect markets they face. The impacts of varying access to resources, input subsidies, off-farm employment opportunities, and prices during the period of study are simulated. The models in particular demonstrate the vulnerability of land-poor households and their dependence on non-farm income for them to meet their basic needs. Access to improved maize varieties and subsidies may facilitate land use intensification and survival on smaller farms. Price shocks in form of higher fertilizer prices and lower tobacco prices contribute to further impoverishment while the costs of the input subsidy program also reached nonsustainable levels during the period of study. The models give insights about some possible avenues for scaling down the subsidy program towards a more sustainable level. Reduction of subsidies from two bags to one bag of fertilizer per household and concentration of targeting towards more land-poor households can be two important mechanisms. Rather than providing free improved maize seeds it may be better to improve the availability of improved seeds in local markets. |
| Keywords: | Agricultural household programming model; Malawi; production systems; market characteristics; impact of input subsidies; fertilizer and tobacco price shocks |
| JEL: | Q12 Q18 |
| Date: | 2014–04–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:nlsclt:2014_005&r=agr |
| By: | Elisa Botella-Rodríguez |
| Abstract: | While the rest of Latin America followed outward-looking policies of agrarian development during the 1990s and early 2000s, Cuba implemented an inward-looking model during this period. In the midst of the most severe crisis in its history, the Special Period, Cuba dramatically shifted from export dependency to inward-looking development. Cuba is a unique case in terms of agricultural development. Cuba’s agricultural development model provoked important transformations in the country’s agriculture sector. It revolutionised food production patterns and decentralised land structures and commercialisation. But did these changes create spaces for private small farmers to increase national food production during the 1990s and early 2000s? And if so, what particular spaces were created? This paper explores these questions concentrating on three key dimensions: 1) income and employment; 2) production and productivity levels; and, 3) small farmers’ contribution to national food security. |
| Keywords: | Cuba, small farmers, inward-looking development, food security, agriculture development, land structures |
| JEL: | N56 O11 Q15 Q18 |
| Date: | 2014–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:seh:wpaper:1406&r=agr |
| By: | Tasso Adamopoulos; Diego Restuccia |
| Abstract: | We assess the effects of a major land-policy change on farm size and agricultural productivity using a quantitative model and micro-level data. We study the 1988 land reform in the Philippines that imposed a ceiling on land holdings and severely restricted the transferability of the redistributed farm lands. We study this reform in the context of an industry model of agriculture with a non-degenerate distribution of farm sizes featuring an occupation decision and a technology choice of farm operators. In this model, a land reform reduces agricultural productivity not only by reallocating resources from large/high productivity farms to existing small/low productivity farms (misallocation effect), but also by distorting farmers' occupation and technology adoption decisions (selection effect). The model, calibrated to pre-reform farm-level data in the Philippines, implies that on impact the land reform reduces average farm size by 34 percent and agricultural productivity by 17 percent. The government assignment of land and the ban on its transfer are key for the magnitude of the results since a market allocation of the above-ceiling land produces only 1/3 of the size and productivity effects. These results emphasize the potential role of land market efficiency for misallocation and productivity in the agricultural sector. |
| Keywords: | agriculture, misallocation, within-farm productivity, land reform. |
| JEL: | O11 O14 O4 |
| Date: | 2014–04–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:tor:tecipa:tecipa-509&r=agr |
| By: | Kaminski, Jonathan; Christiaensen, Luc |
| Abstract: | The 2007-2008 global food crisis has renewed interest in post-harvest loss, but estimates remain scarce, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa. This paper uses self-reported measures from nationally representative household surveys in Malawi, Uganda, and Tanzania. Overall, on-farm post-harvest loss adds to 1.4-5.9 percent of the national maize harvest, substantially lower than the Food and Agriculture Organization's post-harvest handling and storage loss estimate for cereals, which is 8 percent. Post-harvest loss is concentrated among less than a fifth of households. It increases with humidity and temperature and declines with better market access, post-primary education, higher seasonal price differences, and possibly improved storage practices. Wider use of nationally representative surveys in studying post-harvest loss is called for. |
| Keywords: | Markets and Market Access,Crops and Crop Management Systems,Food&Beverage Industry,Technology Industry,Environmental Economics&Policies |
| Date: | 2014–04–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:6831&r=agr |
| By: | Gang Liu |
| Abstract: | Reducing food losses and food waste is attracting growing public attention at the international, regional, and national levels, and is widely acknowledged to contribute to abating interlinked sustainability challenges such as food security, climate change, and water shortage. However, the pattern and scale of food waste throughout the supply chain remains poorly understood for developing countries such as China, despite growing media coverage and public concerns in recent years. The data in the literature are either out of date or fragmented. This report presents estimates of food losses and food waste in China, based on literature data, informed estimates, and other publicly available information. |
| Keywords: | China, food waste reduction, municipal solid waste, agricultural losses, food loss, food waste, data, policy information, grain storage, food value chain |
| JEL: | Q18 Q53 Q58 |
| Date: | 2014–04–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oec:agraaa:66-en&r=agr |
| By: | Fabien Santini (European Commission – JRC - IPTS); Fatmir Guri (European Commission – JRC - IPTS); Audrey Aubard; Demetrios Psaltopoulos (Department of Economics University of Patras); Robert Read (Department of Economics Management School Lancaster University); Sergio Gomez y Paloma (European Commission – JRC - IPTS) |
| Abstract: | Farming in the islands of the European Union faces specific challenges due to isolation and small size, which justify specific policy tools in terms of structural and regional polices. The question whether the output of island farming (island agricultural and food products) is of such a specific quality that labelling it as such by ways of an optional quality term in the sense of Regulation (EC) No 1151/2012 is justified or not. Capturing the socio-economic reality of island farming in the EU as well as the labelling strategies pursued by stakeholders on the market demonstrates that a specific labelling rule for island products has benefits in particular for small producers and/or small islands, but that it would better be accompanied by the labelling of the specific name of the island(s) concerned. |
| Keywords: | Sustainable agriculture, Food quality, agricultural products quality policy, food labelling, rural development, Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), island farming, less favoured areas |
| JEL: | Q18 Q13 R11 |
| Date: | 2014–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipt:iptwpa:jrc84949&r=agr |
| By: | Gebreegziabher, Zenebe; Mekonnen, Alemu; Deribe, Rahel; Abera, Samuel; Kassahun, Meseret Molla |
| Abstract: | There have been few attempts to look into the economic impacts of climate change in the context of Ethiopia. Although mixed crop-livestock farming is a dominant farming style, most of the studies on climate change, at least in the context of Ethiopia, have emphasized only crop agriculture and disregarded the role of livestock. In this research, we analyze climate change and agricultural productivity in Ethiopia in its broader sense, inclusive of livestock production. We employ a Ricardian approach, estimating three modified versions of the Ricardian model. Results show that warmer temperature is beneficial to livestock agriculture, while it is harmful to the Ethiopian economy from the crop agriculture point of view. Moreover, increasing/decreasing rainfall associated with climate change is damaging to both agricultural activities. |
| Keywords: | crop-livestock inter-linkages, agriculture, climate change, Ricardian model, Ethiopia |
| JEL: | C31 Q1 Q24 Q54 |
| Date: | 2013–12–14 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rff:dpaper:dp-13-14-efd&r=agr |
| By: | James Mabli |
| Keywords: | SNAP, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Food Security, Geographic Access |
| JEL: | I0 I1 |
| Date: | 2014–03–30 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mpr:mprres:8083&r=agr |
| By: | Hiro Lee (Osaka School of International Public Policy, Osaka University); Ken Itakura (Graduate School of Economics, Nagoya City University) |
| Abstract: | In this paper we compare welfare effects and the extent of sectoral adjustments under the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) accords using a dynamic computable general equilibrium (CGE) model from the perspective of Japan. The ambitious goals of both organizations, as well as overlapping membership, make comparisons of different scenarios particularly intriguing. Another objective of this paper is to examine the effects of Japan's agricultural policy reforms on its agricultural output. If agricultural reforms, such as phasing out gentan and consolidation of agricultural land, lead to an improvement in productivity of agricultural sectors, then the extent of output contraction of agricultural and processed food sectors in Japan would be reduced significantly except for dairy products. This suggests the importance of carrying out agricultural reforms in Japan for region-wide trade accords. |
| Keywords: | TPP, RCEP, CGE model, Japan, agricultural policy reform |
| JEL: | F15 F17 |
| Date: | 2014–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osp:wpaper:14e003&r=agr |
| By: | James Mabli |
| Keywords: | SNAP, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Food Security, Urban and Rural |
| JEL: | I0 I1 |
| Date: | 2014–03–30 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mpr:mprres:8084&r=agr |
| By: | Raul V. Fabella (School of Economics, University of the Philippines Diliman) |
| Abstract: | This paper revisits the record of CARP over the quarter century of its existence. By 2014, 5.05 million of the 5.37m hectares of the targeted agricultural land shall have been distributed. As a program for land asset equity, it shall have accomplished 99% of its target, whopper of a success for a government program. As a program to advance the economic welfare of farmers, it has accomplished the opposite of its stated goals. Productivity has fallen drastically in coconut and sugar and poverty incidence among agrarian reform beneficiaries in agrarian reform communities stood at 54% in 2011 higher than for farmers in general. CARP and CARPER has created a new class of people: the landed poor. The paper then explores the many design and implementation flaws that has brought this sad result among which are: CARP’s illegalization of the market for land assets (Section 27) sending Coasean bargains underground and the 5-hectare land ownership ceiling leading to the demise of the legal rural financial market and the flight of private capital. It is time to shift from land equity to farm efficiency. The paper argues for the return of the market in rural production: let productive farmers legally cultivate 10 or more hectares as the market dictates; let PSE-registered firms legally operate agro-industrial farms without land ceiling. Poverty reduction requires the shift of resources and manpower from informal to formal sectors. CARP has done the opposite. To echo the architect of the great Chinese Economic Miracle, Deng Xiaoping: It is time to stop redistributing poverty! |
| Keywords: | CARP, agrarian reform, agriculture, Coase Theorem, Philippines |
| Date: | 2014–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:phs:dpaper:201402&r=agr |
| By: | Nyangena, Wilfred; Juma, Ogada Maurice |
| Abstract: | This study investigates the impact of package adoption of inorganic fertilizers and improved maize seed varieties on yield among smallholder households in Kenya. We used a quasi-experimental difference-in-differences approach combined with propensity score matching to control for both time-invariant and unobservable household heterogeneity. Our findings show that inorganic fertilizers and improved maize varieties significantly increase maize yields when adopted as a package, rather than as individual elements. The impact is greater at the lower end of the yield distribution than at the upper end. A positive effect of partial adoption is experienced only in the lower quartile of yield distribution. The policy implication is that complementary agricultural technologies should be promoted as a package, and should target households and areas experiencing low yields. |
| Keywords: | technology adoption, yield, difference-in-differences, Kenya |
| Date: | 2014–02–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rff:dpaper:dp-14-02-efd&r=agr |
| By: | Waage Skjeflo, Sofie (Centre for Land Tenure Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences); Bruvik Westberg, Nina (Centre for Land Tenure Studies, Norwegian University of Life Sciences) |
| Abstract: | We use recent panel data on Tanzanian farm households to investigate how previous exposure to weather shocks affects the impact of a current shock. Specifically, we investigate the impact of droughts on agricultural outcomes and investments in children's health, measured by their short- and long-term nutritional status. As expected, we find that droughts negatively impact yields, and more so the more severe the drought is. We also find suggestive evidence that the more shocks a household has experienced in the past, the less crop yields are affected by a current shock. This suggests that households are able to learn from their past shock experience, and could imply that households are able to adapt to climate risk. Our results also suggest that the impact of a shock depends on when the household last experienced a shock. In terms of child health, our preliminary results are unable to uncover any clear shock impact on the short-term nutritional status of children, however long-term nutritional outcomes are negatively affected by past shocks. Further analyses using more recent weather data is necessary in order to conclude. |
| Keywords: | Climate risk; income shocks; adaptation; child health; Tanzania |
| JEL: | I12 I13 Q12 Q54 |
| Date: | 2014–04–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:nlsclt:2014_004&r=agr |
| By: | Antoine Leblois (JRC, Ispra - Commission européenne); Philippe Quirion (CIRED - Centre International de Recherche sur l'Environnement et le Développement - Centre de coopération internationale en recherche agronomique pour le développement [CIRAD] : UMR56 - CNRS : UMR8568 - École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales (EHESS) - École des Ponts ParisTech (ENPC) - AgroParisTech); Benjamin Sultan (LOCEAN - Laboratoire d'Océanographie et du Climat : Expérimentations et Approches Numériques - Institut de recherche pour le développement [IRD] - INSU - CNRS : UMR7159 - Université Pierre et Marie Curie (UPMC) - Paris VI - Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle (MNHN)) |
| Abstract: | In the Sudano-sahelian zone, which includes Northern Cameroon, the inter- annual variability of the rainy season is high and irrigation scarce. As a consequence, bad rainy seasons have a detrimental impact on crop yield. In this paper, we assess the risk mitigation capacity of weather index-based insurance for cotton farmers. We compare the ability of various indices, mainly based on daily rainfall, to increase the expected utility of a representative risk-averse farmer. We first give a tractable definition of basis risk and use it to show that weather index-based insurance is associated with a large basis risk, whatever the index considered. It has thus limited potential for income smoothing, a conclusion which is robust to the utility function. Second, in accordance with the existing agronomical literature we find that the length of the cotton growing cycle, in days, is the best performing index considered. Third, we show that using observed cotton sowing dates to define the length of the growing cycle significantly decreases the basis risk, compared to using simulated sowing dates. Finally we find that the gain of the weather-index based insurance is lower than that of hedging against cotton price fluctuations provided by the national cotton company. This casts doubt on the strategy of supporting weather-index insurances in cash crop sectors selling at international market prices without recommending any price stabilisation scheme. |
| Keywords: | Weather, index-based insurance, cash crop, price risk. |
| Date: | 2014 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:halshs-00967313&r=agr |
| By: | Eggert, Håkan; Greaker, Mads |
| Abstract: | The transport sector contributes almost a fifth of the current global emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG), and its share is likely to increase in the future. The US, Brazil, and a number of European and other countries worldwide have introduced various support schemes for biofuels. The advantage of biofuels is that they are easily integrated with the current fossil fuel–based transport sector. However, recent studies question whether the supply of feedstock is sufficient, and to what extent biofuels lead to GHG emission reductions. In addition, studies find that some first generation (1G) biofuels have had a significant impact on food commodity prices. 1G biofuels’ problems can be overcome by a transition to second generation (2G) biofuels. So far, 2G biofuels are much more costly to produce. We therefore ask to what extent targeted support to 2G biofuels is likely to bring costs down. Are current support schemes for biofuels well designed in order to promote the development of 2G biofuels? We find that ethanol made from cellulose using the biochemical conversion process is far from a ripe technology, with several cost-reducing opportunities yet to be developed. Hence, targeted support to cellulosic ethanol might induce a switch from 1G to 2G biofuels. However, we find little evidence that production and use of 1G biofuels will bridge the conversion to 2G biofuels. The production processes are so different that more use of 1G biofuels will have little impact on technological development in 2G biofuels. Hence, to the extent that private investment in the development of 2G biofuels is too low,current support schemes for 1G fuels may block 2G biofuels instead of promoting them. Classification-JEL: separated by commas |
| Keywords: | biofuels, ethanol, cellulose, second generation |
| Date: | 2013–12–27 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rff:dpaper:dp-13-18-efd&r=agr |
| By: | Pauw, Karl; Thurlow, James |
| Abstract: | Prioritizing public investments requires information on relative returns that are difficult to derive from disparate evaluation studies. This paper presents a .hybrid. approach that combines ex post evaluation data with an economy-wide model for experimen |
| Keywords: | rural investment, impact evaluation, agricultural growth, poverty |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp2013-060&r=agr |
| By: | Fortmannm Lea; Salas, Paula Cordero; Sohngen, Brent; Roe, Brian |
| Abstract: | Implementation arrangements for Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation can be seen as contracts that could address some of the inherent problems with forest carbon credits that often lead to high transaction costs -- measuring, monitoring, and verification. Self-enforcing contracts, where it is in the best interest of the environmental service providers to comply with the contracts, may be one way to reduce these costs if providers have incentives to uphold their end of the contract. While the literature on Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation is extensive, there is little information available to guide policy makers or investors on what form such contracts should take. After providing an overview of the current status of Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation and its role as a tool for reducing carbon emissions on an international scale, the paper describes key issues regarding implementation and reviews the literature on contracts from the related area of Payments for Ecosystem Services programs, which face similar challenges. The remainder of the paper reviews various contractual mechanisms from agricultural and forestry related projects that have been proposed or are being used in practice and discusses the various implications associated with their design and implementation. |
| Keywords: | Climate Change Mitigation and Green House Gases,Environmental Economics&Policies,Climate Change Economics,Debt Markets,Environment and Energy Efficiency |
| Date: | 2014–04–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:6829&r=agr |
| By: | Pascual, Unai; Garmendia, Eneko; Phelps, Jacob; Ojea, Elena |
| Abstract: | Forest loss and degradation remains a leading environmental problem. The long history of sustainable forest management has often failed to meet expectations.constrained by funding, governance, capacity and competing interests. Initiatives from the climate |
| Keywords: | sustainable forest management, foreign aid, official development assistance, climate change finance, REDD+, forestry sector governance |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp2013-054&r=agr |
| By: | Singerman, Ariel; Lence, Sergio H.; Kimble-Evans, Amanda |
| Abstract: | Cointegration is tested between organic and conventional corn and soybean markets in several locations throughout the U.S. using a unique data set. Organic prices are found to behave like pure jump processes rather than diffusions. A simple specification for pure jump processes is introduced and used with Monte Carlo methods to compute appropriate critical values for unit-root and cointegration tests. Findings indicate that no long-run relationship exists between organic and conventional prices, implying that price determination for organic corn and soybean is independent from that for the conventional crops. This suggests that organic corn and soybean prices are driven by demand and supply forces idiosyncratic to the organic market. For each crop, cointegrating spatial relationships are found between prices at the main organic markets. However, such relationships are generally weaker than the ones for the corresponding conventional prices, implying that organic markets are more affected by idiosyncratic shocks than conventional markets. |
| Keywords: | cointegration; jump price process; organic crops; organic production; price analysis |
| JEL: | Q13 Q18 |
| Date: | 2013–11–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:isu:genres:37467&r=agr |
| By: | Babu, Suresh Chandra |
| Abstract: | During the recent food crisis, developing countries responded with a wide variety of policy responses to protect their population. Understanding the policy-making process in developing countries is important to know why such policy responses are made and |
| Keywords: | policy process, food crisis, analytical framework, case studies, lessons |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp2013-070&r=agr |
| By: | Lehmijoki, Ulla (University of Helsinki); Palokangas, Tapio K. (University of Helsinki) |
| Abstract: | In this document, we consider the effects of a land reform on economic and demographic growth by a family-optimization model with sharecropping, endogenous fertility and status seeking. We show that tenant farming is the major obstacle to escaping the Malthusian trap with high fertility and low productivity. A land reform provides peasant families higher returns for their investments in land, encouraging them to increase their productivity of land rather than their family size. This decreases fertility and increases productivity in agriculture in the short and long runs. The European demographic history provides supporting evidence for this. |
| Keywords: | land reforms, population growth, status seeking, sharecropping |
| JEL: | O41 J13 N33 |
| Date: | 2014–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp8054&r=agr |
| By: | Samuel Kobina Annim (Department of Economics, University of Cape Coast, Ghana); Katsushi S. Imai (School of Social Sciences, University of Manchester (UK) and RIEB, Kobe University (Japan)) |
| Abstract: | The empirical literature of household savings tends to treat savings as "a black box" defined as annual income minus consumption. This paper takes a unique approach to reconstruct the cash and asset balances using the detailed household transaction data of farm households in rural India and generates the long monthly and seasonal panel data. We have found that households - both the poor and the relatively affluent in terms of landholding classes - cope with temporary shocks quite well using crop inventory, currency and capital assets, rather than livestock, as buffer. The importance of portfolio adjustment in smoothing consumption is also confirmed by the system equation in which both portfolio and production decisions are made endogenous. It is concluded that not only the level but also the diversification of household assets are important for buffering consumption. |
| Keywords: | Diversified diet, Livestock, Ethnicity, Height-for-age, Weight-for-Age and Weight-for-Height, Lao PDR |
| JEL: | I12 I18 Q18 |
| Date: | 2014–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:kob:dpaper:dp2014-17&r=agr |
| By: | Li, Ziran; Jacobs, Keri; Artz, Georgeanne M. |
| Keywords: | Cooperatives; equity; capital constraint |
| Date: | 2014–03–28 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:isu:genres:37451&r=agr |
| By: | Siddig Umbadda; Ismail Elgizouli |
| Abstract: | Although agriculture is important for the livelihood of most Africans, especially the poor, donors did not accord it a high priority. Both volume and share of aid earmarked for agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa not only remained low, around five per cent, |
| Keywords: | agriculture, foreign aid, effectiveness, upscaling, transferability, sustainable |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp2013-081&r=agr |
| By: | Sina Xie; Orachos Napasintuwong (Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics,Faculty of Economics,Kasetsart University,Thailand) |
| Abstract: | China, Thailand, and Vietnam are key players in world rice market in terms of production and trade. In the past few decades, rice policies in these three countries have changed significantly resulted in changes in production, exports and influences in the world market. This paper reviews major rice policy reforms in China, Thailand and Vietnam during past five decades. It is observed that although each country has practiced different policies at different periods, with the economic development, individuals and market forces have played more important roles in domestic market while government interventions still exist and it is important for the government to invest in rice breeding technology and infrastructure construction. It was found that China and Vietnam have benefited from farm system reforms, the adoption of hybrid rice and the investment in irrigation while liberalization of rice export premium and provision of credits in 1980s have helped Thailand to become the largest rice exporter. |
| Keywords: | rice, policy, China, Thailand, Vietnam |
| JEL: | Q17 Q18 |
| Date: | 2014–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:kau:wpaper:201403&r=agr |
| By: | Alem, Yonas; Colmer, Jonathan |
| Abstract: | Uncertainty about the future is an important determinant of well-being, especially in developing countries where financial markets and other market failures result in ineffective insurance mechanisms. However, separating the effects of future uncertainty from realised events, and then measuring the impact of uncertainty on utility, presents a number of empirical challenges. This paper aims to address these issues and provides supporting evidence to show that increased climate variability (a proxy for future income uncertainty) reduces farmers' subjective well-being, consistent with the theory of optimal expectations (Brunnermeier & Parker, 2005 AER), using panel data from rural Ethiopia and a new data set containing daily atmospheric parameters. The magnitude of our result indicates that a one standard deviation (7%) increase in climate variability has an equivalent effect on life satisfaction to a two standard deviation (1-2%) decrease in consumption. This effect is one of the largest determinants of life satisfaction in rural Ethiopia. |
| Keywords: | separated by commas |
| JEL: | C25 D60 I31 |
| Date: | 2014–03–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rff:dpaper:dp-14-03-efd&r=agr |
| By: | Michida, Etsuyo; Ueki, Yasushi; Nabeshima, Kaoru |
| Abstract: | This paper sheds light on the important role played by global supply chains in the adaptation to product-related environmental regulations imposed by importing countries, with a focus on chemicals management. By utilizing a unique data collected in Penang, Malaysia, we depict the supply chain structures and how differences among firms in participation to global supply chain link to differences in chemical management. We found that firms belonging to a supply chain are in a better position to comply with these regulations because information and requirements are transmitted through global supply chains. In contrast, those firms that are neither exporters nor a part of a global supply chain lack the knowledge and information channels relevant to chemical management in a product. |
| Keywords: | Malaysia, Environmental protection, International trade, Industrial standards, Foreign investments, Global supply chain, FDI, Product-related environmental regulation, REACH, RoHS |
| JEL: | F18 O14 |
| Date: | 2014–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:jet:dpaper:dpaper453&r=agr |
| By: | Ornella Wanda Maietta (DISES and CSEF, University of Naples Federico II.; CSEF, University of Naples) |
| Abstract: | The objective of the paper is to determine the role that R&D networking, through the collaboration of firms with universities, plays among the determinants of product and process innovation in the Italian food and drink industry and how geographical proximity to a university affects both R&D university-industry collaboration and innovation. The data are sourced from the 7th (1995-1997), 8th (1998-2000), 9th (2001-2003) and 10th (2004-2006) waves of Capitalia survey data. The approach is a triprobit analysis in which the dependent variables are R&D collaboration with a university, process and product innovation; the independent variables are firm, territorial and university characteristics. |
| Keywords: | product and process innovation, university-industry interaction, geographical distance, food and drink industries |
| JEL: | O31 D21 R1 |
| Date: | 2014–03–29 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sef:csefwp:358&r=agr |
| By: | Navarra, Cecilia; Vallino, Elena (University of Turin) |
| Abstract: | In this paper we deal with the relationship between the intervention of a development NGO or an external donor and the performance of village organizations (local NGOs) in Developing Countries. We utilize a large dataset of village organizations in rural areas of Senegal and Burkina Faso. We argue that the kind of relationship established with northern NGOs may have effects on the governance mechanisms of the local village organizations and that differences in the foundation of the VO and/or of the partnership can partially explain outcomes and membership structures of the VO itself. Our results go in the direction of possible diverging effects of an NGO intervention in the village (or partnership) according to the degree of proactivity and initiative that the VO displays. |
| Date: | 2014–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:uto:dipeco:201407&r=agr |
| By: | Michida, Etsuyo |
| Abstract: | This paper focuses on EU chemical regulations, RoHS and REACH, and shows these EU regulations have driven Asian countries to introduce regulations that are similar yet modified versions to the EU regulations. Asia as the world manufacturing center has extensive production networks where parts and components of a final good are traded across borders. We discuss how product-related environmental regulations could impact on firms' activities then show that if Asian countries with complex supply chains introduce different product related chemical regulations without coordinating with neighboring countries, it could work as trade barrier for manufacturing activities in the region. |
| Keywords: | Asia, Europe, Environmental protection, Manufacturing industries, Industrial standards, Environmental policy, International trade, Product-related environmental regulation, Trade, RoHS, REACH |
| JEL: | F18 O2 |
| Date: | 2014–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:jet:dpaper:dpaper451&r=agr |