SABIIA - Sistema Aberto e Integrado de Informação em Agricultura (Sabiia)

Demeke, Abera Birhanu; Zeller, Manfred.

Ethiopia's agriculture is predominantly rainfed and hence any irregularity in weather conditions has adverse welfare implications. Using panel data, this paper analyzes the effect of rainfall shocks on Ethiopian rural households' food security and vulnerability over time while controlling for a range of other factors. To this end, we generated a time-variant household food security index which is developed by principal components analysis. Based on the scores of the index, households were classified into relative food security groups and their socioeconomic differences were assessed. The exploratory results show that compared to the less secured households, the more secured ones have male and literate household heads, tend to have a greater number of...

DISTRIBUTION, GROWTH AND PERFORMANCE OF MICROFINANCE INSTITUTIONS IN AFRICA, ASIA AND LATIN AMERICA

Palavras-chave: Food security; Principal components analysis; Rainfall; Panel data; Ethiopia; Food Security and Poverty; Research Methods/ Statistical Methods; Q18; C13.

Ano: 2009

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/57994

Lapenu, Cecile; Zeller, Manfred.

How many microfinance institutions (MFIs) exist in the developing world? What are their current performances? In 1999, an International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) team on microfinance conducted a survey on MFIs in Asia, Africa, and Latin America in order to offer a new in-depth analysis on the distribution and performances of MFIs at the international level. A systematic sampling has been adopted through the contacting of international NGOs and networks supporting various MFIs. The information has been complemented by a review of publications and technical manuals on microfinance. The database of MFIs from 85 developing countries shows 1,500 institutions (790 institutions worldwide plus 688 in Indonesia) supported by international...

Maize boom in the uplands of Northern Vietnam : economic importance and environmental implications

Palavras-chave: Financial Economics.

Ano: 2001

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/16446

Keil, Alwin; Saint-Macary, Camille; Zeller, Manfred.

In Vietnam, the demand for meat products has grown dramatically due to rapid economic growth and urbanisation and is expected to further increase in the future. Being the primary source of feed for the country’s livestock and poultry industry, maize has become the second most important crop after rice. While this maize boom has the potential to reduce rural poverty, it promotes the expansion of agricultural cultivation into fragile agro-ecological zones, often leading to deforestation and soil degradation, especially in the uplands. Using empirical evidence from mountainous Yen Chau district in north-western Vietnam, the objective of this paper is to investigate the current economic importance and environmental implications of maize cultivation....

Rural Finance Policies for Food Security of the Poor: Methodologies for a Multicountry Research Project

Palavras-chave: Maize area expansion; Environmental sustainability; Tobit regression; Vietnam; Environmental Economics and Policy; Land Economics/Use; Production Economics.

Ano: 2008

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/92829

Zeller, Manfred; Ahmed, Akhter U.; Babu, Suresh Chandra; Broca, Sumiter; Diagne, Aliou; Sharma, Manohar P..

The objective of IFPRI's multicountry research program on rural financial policies for food security of the poor is to identify policies and institutional arrangements that help the poor integrate themselves into sustainable savings and credit systems such that they have an increased capacity to invest, bear risk, and smooth consumption. The focus of the research on policy and program design and their effects on household investment and consumption requires field data collection at the institutional and household level. This paper presents the underlying conceptual framework and various methodological approaches that have been reviewed and tested by the team at IFPRI and at collaborating institutions. Methodologies are presented for analysis at the...

Determinants of credit rationing: a study of informal lenders and formal credit groups in Madagascar

Palavras-chave: Food Security; Developing Countries; Financial Institutions; Households; Economic Aspects; Financial Economics; Food Security and Poverty.

Ano: 1996

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/97308

Zeller, Manfred.

Previous research on the determinants of credit rationing exclusively focused on the behavior of formal lenders who contract directly with an individual borrower. Based on a household survey in Madagascar, this paper presents an analysis of credit rationing behavior by informal lenders and by members of community-based groups that allocate formal group loans among themselves. The results show that group members obtain and use locally available information about the applicant's creditworthiness in much the same way that informal lenders do. This paper therefore empirically confirms theoretical arguments made that community-based groups have an information advantage over distant formal bank agents.

Repayment Performance in Group-based Credit Programs in Bangladesh: An Empirical Analysis

Palavras-chave: Financial Economics.

Ano: 1994

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/50032

Sharma, Manohar P.; Zeller, Manfred.

This paper analyzes the repayment rates of credit groups belonging to three group-based credit programs in Bangladesh: the Association for Social Advancement (ASA), the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC), and the Rangpur Dinajpur Rural Service (RDRS). Hypotheses are drawn from economic theory relating group responsibility, and the resulting monitoring by peers, to a more effective enforcement of contractual obligations as well as to improved ability of the group as a whole to repay loans. Specific tests are performed on the following hypothesized determinants: group size, size of loans, degree of loan rationing, enterprise mix within groups, demographic characteristics, social ties and status, and occurrence of idiosyncratic shocks. Analysis is...

PATHWAYS OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT IN MADAGASCAR: AN EMPIRICAL INVESTIGATION OF THE CRITICAL TRIANGLE OF ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY, ECONOMIC GROWTH, AND POVERTY ALLEVIATION

Palavras-chave: Credit; Research; Methodology; Bangladesh; Financial Economics.

Ano: 1996

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/97302

Zeller, Manfred; Lapenu, Cecile; Minten, Bart; Ralison, Eliane; Randrianaivo, Desire; Randrianarisoa, Jean Claude.

This paper is based on community-level data from 188 villages in rural Madagascar. The survey that was conducted in 1997 made extensive use of long-term recall questions ascertaining changes during the past 10 years in rice yields, wages, population, soil fertility, and other pertinent variables of rural development. We find that—on average for all villages—the yields of irrigated rice, the major food crop, and real agricultural wages declined, while the communities expanded their upland area by nearly a quarter and experienced deteriorating fertility of their upland soils. These patterns are consistent with the wide-held belief that rural areas in Madagascar have witnessed increased poverty, economic stagnation, and a continued degradation of the natural...

Land titling policy and soil conservation in the uplands of Northern Vietnam

Palavras-chave: Community/Rural/Urban Development.

Ano: 2000

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/16456

Saint-Macary, Camille; Keil, Alwin; Zeller, Manfred; Heidhues, Franz; Dung, Pham Thi My.

Up to 25 percent of all anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions are caused by deforestation, and Indonesia is the third largest greenhouse gas emitter worldwide due to land use change and deforestation. On the island of Sulawesi in the vicinity of the Lore Lindu National Park (LLNP), many smallholders contribute to conversion processes at the forest margin as a result of their agricultural practices. Specifically the area dedicated to cocoa plantations has increased from zero (1979) to nearly 18,000 hectares (2001). Some of these plots have been established inside the 220,000 hectares of the LLNP. An intensification process is observed with a consequent reduction of the shade tree density. This study assesses which impact carbon sequestration payments for...

AN OPERATIONAL METHOD FOR ASSESSING THE POVERTY OUTREACH PERFORMANCE OF DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS: RESULTS FROM FOUR CASE STUDIES IN AFRICA, ASIA AND LATIN AMERICA

Palavras-chave: Environmental Economics and Policy; Land Economics/Use.

Ano: 2008

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/92828

Zeller, Manfred; Sharma, Manohar P.; Henry, Carla; Lapenu, Cecile.

Many development projects seek to reach the poorest in the provision of agricultural inputs, extension, credit, education, and many other services. However, low-cost and reliable methods for assessing whether a project reaches the poor are lacking at present. In this paper, we present an operational method that was designed during a two-year research project from 1999-2001 with the support of an international donor-coordination office. The objective of the research was to develop and test a new method that could be later used by development practitioners to assess the poverty level of beneficiaries of development projects that target the poor in relation to the general population in the intervention area. The method constructs a poverty index using...

Effect of contract farming on productivity and income of small holders: The case of tea production in north-western Vietnam

Palavras-chave: Poverty; Targeting; Evaluation; Principle component analysis; Food Security and Poverty; International Development.

Ano: 2003

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/25907

Saigenji, Yoshiko; Zeller, Manfred.

This paper examines potential of contract farming as a rural development tool by revealing its effect on productivity and income of small holders in tea production in north-western Vietnam. In the present research, three economic analyses are applied. First, the technical efficiency of tea production is estimated by using stochastic frontier model. The results show that contract farming achieved significantly higher technical efficiency compared to non-contract farming. Second, logit model is investigated to determine the influential socio-economic characteristics of households for contract participation. The model indicates that social relationship of households, such as the membership in the communist party, play an important role in contract...

ACCESS TO CREDIT AND ITS IMPACT ON WELFARE IN MALAWI

Palavras-chave: Contract farming; Tea; Vietnam; Community/Rural/Urban Development; Crop Production/Industries; Food Security and Poverty; Productivity Analysis; C21; D24; O12; Q12.

Ano: 2009

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/51681

Diagne, Aliou; Zeller, Manfred.

Tipo: Report

Palavras-chave: Financial Economics; Public Economics.

Ano: 2001

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/16530

Agricultural Commercialization in the Uplands of Northern Vietnam: How to Achieve Both Poverty Reduction and Environmental Sustainability Goals?

Keil, Alwin; Saint-Macary, Camille; Zeller, Manfred.

Income growth and urbanization in developing countries have enlarged markets for highvalue agricultural commodities. However, there are concerns that lacking access to physical, financial, and human capital, as well as infrastructure and institutions limit the ability of the poor to participate in and benefit from such commercial agricultural activities. There may further be a trade-off between wealth enhancing effects of intensive commercial agriculture and adverse long-term effects on farmers’ livelihoods due to natural resource degradation. This study provides empirical evidence on these crucial issues and derives related policy recommendations using the example of Vietnam. Here, economic growth has boosted the demand for animal products and,...

Drought impacts and related risk management by smallholder farmers in developing countries: evidence from Awash River Basin, Ethiopia

Palavras-chave: Agricultural commercialization; Maize cultivation; Sustainability; Tobit regression; Vietnam; Landwirtschaftliche Kommerzialisierung; Maisanbau; Nachhaltigkeit; Tobit-Regression; Vietnam; Agribusiness.

Ano: 2011

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/114487

Murendo, Conrad; Keil, Alwin; Zeller, Manfred.

Climate risk studies have largely neglected household coping and adaptation strategies. In this paper we analyze drought impacts, drought risk management, and resulting drought resilience in Awash River Basin of Ethiopia based on socio-economic data collected from 43 randomly selected Peasant Associations. We find that severe drought periods have led to a significant depression of crop yields and to widespread death of livestock in the past. Drought periods have drastically increased the proportion of food insecure households and lengthened the duration of food insecurity in the area. Since, with climate change, drought periods are predicted to become more frequent in this region in the future, the problem of food insecurity is likely to become even more...

Sustainable rural development: What is the role of the agri-food sector?

Palavras-chave: Drought; Drought risk management; Ethiopia; Environmental Economics and Policy; Production Economics; O13; Q12.

Ano: 2010

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/114750

Just, Flemming; Emmanuel, Adinyira; Oteng-Seifah, Samuel; Theophilus, Adjei-Kumi; Theophilus, Ernst-August; Cimpoies, Dragos; Zhemoyda, Oleksandr V.; Portyanko, Mariya; Danilowska, Alina; Danilowska, Anna; Kosodiy, Roman; Mishenin, Eugeniy; Bokusheva, Raushan; Sannikova, Marina; Heidelbach, Olaf; Jia, Xiangping; Heidhues, Franz; Zeller, Manfred; Baker, Derek; Abildtrup, Jens; Hedetoft, Anders; Milczarek, Dominika; Malak-Rawlikowska, Agata; Falkowski, Jan; Barussaud, Emilien; Raymond, Richard; Poletto, Ana; Margarian, Anne; Fock, Achim; Fock, Karin; Pufahl, Andrea; Grajewski, Regina; Sholpan, Sholpan; Sannikova, Marina; Fahrmann, Barbara; Maciejczak, Mariusz; Was, Adam.

This volume of proceedings, available both as hard copy and pdf, is an edited compilation of selected contributions to the IAMO Forum 2007, which will be held in Halle (Saale), Germany, at the Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Development in Central and Eastern Europe from 27 to 29 June 2007. We would like to thank all those persons and organisations who contributed to the realisation of the IAMO Forum 2007 and the volume in hand. First of all, we thank all lecturers, whose commitment and papers made both the conference and the publication possible. Furthermore, we appreciate the financial support provided by the Federal Ministry of, Food, Agriculture, and Consumer Protection and the Federal State of Saxony-Anhalt. The conference would not be successful...

DISTRIBUTION, GROWTH AND PERFORMANCE OF MICROFINANCE INSTITUTIONS IN AFRICA, ASIA, AND LATIN AMERICA

Palavras-chave: Agricultural and Food Policy; Agricultural Finance; Community/Rural/Urban Development; Industrial Organization; Labor and Human Capital.

Ano: 2007

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/92324

Lapenu, Cecile; Zeller, Manfred.

Tipo: Report

Palavras-chave: Financial Economics.

Ano: 2001

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/15965

Use of household food insecurity scales for assessing poverty in Bangladesh and Uganda.

Alcaraz V., Gabriela; Zeller, Manfred.

An important dimension of poverty is access to food. Household food security implies access to the food needed for a healthy and productive life. Lack of access to and/or impaired utilization of food contribute to household food insecurity. This study compares the utility of a standardized food security scale for determining the food insecurity status of rural and urban households in Bangladesh and Uganda and for predicting poverty status. The analysis uses data from the IRIS Composite Survey Household Questionnaire (2004), which consists of 1,587 households (approximately 800 households in each country). The coping mechanisms adopted in the presence of food shortage represent the building blocks for development of the scale (7 items). In order to assess...

RURAL FINANCIAL SERVICES FOR POVERTY ALLEVIATION: THE ROLE OF PUBLIC POLICY

Palavras-chave: Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety; Food Security and Poverty.

Ano: 2007

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/7939

Sharma, Manohar P.; Zeller, Manfred.

Tipo: Report

Palavras-chave: Financial Economics.

Ano: 2000

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/16249

Income Sources, Poverty, and Forest Encroachment: Implications for Rural Development Policies in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia

Schwarze, Stefan; Zeller, Manfred; Nuryartono, Nunung.

This paper analyses the determinants of income generating activities of rural households in the vicinity of the Lore-Lindu National Park in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. The focus is on activities which threaten the integrity of the national park (perennial crop production and sale of forest products) and on non-agricultural activities (wage labour and self-employment) which are able to reduce poverty without threatening the national park. The analysis allows to identify factors which are essentially for the design of policies and programmes aiming to promote rural development and to protect the national park. Perennial crop production and activities outside the agricultural sector are particularly important for the less-poor households, whereas the selling...

Determinants of Repayment Performance in Credit Groups: The Role of Program Design, Intra-group Risk Pooling, and Social Cohesion in Madagascar

Palavras-chave: Community/Rural/Urban Development.

Ano: 2006

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/25764

Zeller, Manfred.

Group lending has received much attention in recent years because of its perceived potential in providing financial services to poor households that lack traditional collateral. The analysis in this paper focuses on the effects of program design, community and group characteristics on the repayment performance of groups, using a data set on groups from six different lending programs in Madagascar. The results show that socially cohesive groups pool risks by diversifying the members’ asset portfolio so that their repayment performance is improved even in communities with high-risk exposure.

Agricultural economics and transition: What was expected, what we observed, the lessons learned Proceedings (Volume I / II)

Palavras-chave: Community Participation; Madagascar; Credit; Financial Economics.

Ano: 1996

URL: http://purl.umn.edu/97299

Csaki, Csaba; Forgacs, Csaba; Koester, Ulrich; Liefert, William M.; Banse, Martin; Gay, Stephan Hubertus; McDonald, Scott; M'Barek, Robert; Swinnen, Johan F.M.; Kim, Hanho; An, Donghwan; Hubbard, Lionel J.; Rieger, Laszlo; Szoke, Gyula; Cristoiu, Adriana; Udovc, Andrej; Kagan, Adam; Sassi, Maria; Takacs, Istvan; Takacs, Emese; Cimpoies, Dragos; Ertsey, Imre; Kovacs, Sandor; Przygodzka, Renata; Dziemianowicz, Ryta Iwona; Magda, Robert; Borodina, Elena; Borodina, Alexandra; Gavrilescu, Dinu; Pecze, Denes; Balogh, Peter; Cechura, Lukas; Sayin, Cengiz; Cengiz, M. Nisa; Osanami, Fumio; Szabo, Gabor G.; Karaman, Suleyman; Szekely, Geza; Szczepaniak, Iwona; Szczegolska, Monika; Serova, Eugenia; Pieniadz, Agata; Barmon, Basanta Kumar; Kondo, Takumi; Becvarova, Vera; Levkovych, Inna; Hockmann, Heinrich; Bezlepkina, Irina V.; Kupavych, Alexander; Konig, Gabor; Halmai, Peter; Vasary, Viktoria; Vincze, Maria-Magdolna; Lerman, Zvi; Kolcsey, Andrea; Bokusheva, Raushan; Turtoi, Crina Sinziana; Toma, Camelia; Gavrilescu, Camelia; Davidova, Sophia; Blaas, Gejza; Antonova, Maria; Zeller, Manfred; Deininger, Klaus W.; Savastano, Sara; Carletto, Calogero; Caceres-Clavero, Francisco; Lucena-Cobos, Blanca; Latruffe, Laure; Takacs-Gyorgy, Katalin; Bandlerova, Anna; Sadowski, Adam; Gomez y Paloma, Sergio; Luca, Lucian; Cristoiu, Adriana; Ciaian, Pavel; Pokrivcak, Jan; Drabik, Dusan; Voneki, Eva; Tonini, Axel; Burger, Anna; Szep, Katalin; Majewski, Edward; Raggi, Meri; Viaggi, Davide; Maccarini, Elisa Ricci; Monasterolo, Irene; Vandeplas, Anneleen; Jongeneel, Roelof A.; Novak, Petr; Brasili, Cristina; Meyer, William H.; Kuhne, Bianka; Fanfani, Roberto; Gellynck, Xavier; Molnar, Adrienn; Gagalyuk, Taras; Traikova, Diana; Mollers, Judith; Cochrane, Nancy J.; Kazlauskiene, Natalija; Fekete-Farkas, Maria; Molnar, Jozsef; Szucs, Istvan; Popp, Jozsef; Udovecz, Gabor; Florkowski, Wojciech J.; Fritzsch, Jana; Buchenrieder, Gertrud; Kasarjyan, Milada; Podruzsik, Szilard; Korff, Rudiger; Wilkin, Jerzy; van Leeuwen, Myrna; Bartova, Lubica; Erjavec, Emil; Katona-Kovacs, Judit; Baranyai, Zsolt; Hubbard, Carmen.

Over fifteen years have elapsed since the transition from the centrally planned economic system started in the early 1990’s. During this time agricultural and rural areas of Central and Eastern Europe have undergone profound structural changes with wide variations in the degree of transformation and in the rate of success in creating a competitive market and private ownership based food and agricultural system. By becoming member of the European Union the "transition" in its traditional interpretation has been concluded in ten of the Central East European countries. The transition to market based agriculture, however, is far from completion in Southern and Eastern Europe and especially in the CIS countries. International Association of Agricultural...