This paper summarizes the World Bank assistance strategy for rural development in the ECA region. The rural sector includes the people; economic; development activities; institutional, economic, and social infrastructure; and natural resources in rural areas and is thus not confined to agriculture....

This discussion paper: a) proposes a new approach of targeted collaboration among different sectors; b) devises new tools or enhances existing ones to facilitate the contributions of different sectors to help relieve health problems; and c) puts theory into practice through a pilot in Ghana. The...

Conserving biodiversity faces complex problems when the natural resources from the land also provide income and substance to its local inhabitants. Finding a balance between biodiversity conservation and the socio-economic development of a community near protected areas is the goal of integrated...

Groudwater is of major importance in providing mains water supply, and is intensively exploited for private, domestic, and industrial use in many urban centers of the developing world. At the same time, the subsurface has come to serve as the receptor for much urban and industrial wastewater and...

Rapid urbanization in developing countries is fueling the demand for automobiles and consequently for rubber tires. Therefore it is a critical period for the industry, where fundamental changes are taking place in the way rubber is produced and marketed for competitive survival. This report...

This technical paper is a review of eight intensified systems of land use on unirrigated farms in developing countries. The study proposes three complementary sets of conditions necessary for farming systems to be sustainable in the long run: public sector policies and investments; private...

The global tea industry reached maturity over a decade ago and is now in a critical period when fundamental changes are taking place in the competitive environment. This paper identifies some of the major strengths and weaknesses of Sri Lanka's tea industry with respect to other major exporters...

Food Safety Issues in the Developing World examines three main issues: what food security is, how it relates to animal and plant health, and how food safety hazards have affected people of the developing world. After raising and answering these important questions this volume makes a case for...

Since 1991 radical changes have taken place in the policy and institutional environment of agriculture in Zambia. This study examines the impact such changes have had on farmers. It highlights farmers'perceptions and priorities regarding constraints on production and quality of agricultural...