The advancement of South America’s agro-pastoral frontier has been widely linked to losses in biodiversity and tropical forests, with particular impacts on the Brazilian cerrado, the Atlantic Forest, and the Amazon. Here I consider an important, yet largely overlooked, driver of South...

School feeding program as a social safety net has been popular in developing countries as an instrument for achieving the Millennium Development Goals. These programs are frequently targeted towards populations that are food insecure and reside in areas with high concentrations of families from...

The increase of the rate of growth in the underdeveloped areas of the world bears today outstanding interest for both developed and underdeveloped nations. For developed societies, if only for an interest in the maintenance abroad of a leadership position, there are the needs for protection of...

Ethnic regionalism may be the most powerful force in Asia today. Yet ethnic boundaries are not plotted on maps and neither are they taken into consideration in most economic analysis. The problem is a serious one and wide. What makes ethnicity such a strong force? If it is such a strong force,...

The industrialization process began in Latin America as a way to promote economic growth, and at the same time to save foreign exchange. Import substitution policies were adopted in almost every Latin American country. High tariffs and other import restrictions were adopted in order to protect...

As low income countries throughout the world search for means to eradicate poverty and human suffering, great attention has focused on the impact that full development of a nation's natural resources can have, in the attainment of a high degree of economic independence. In recent years, a...

In 1978, the American Agricultural Economics Association sponsored a study entitled "Needs and Strategies for Improving Training of Agricultural Economists for Work in International Agricultural Development." Major emphasis was placed on exploring two related topics. First, what can U.S....

Islamic banking is a relatively new and rapidly growing phenomenon, particularly in the Muslim world. Islamic banking prohibits all kinds of financial transactions based on interest. Its primary approach to financing is the mudaraba profit-loss contract, where the financing partner, the bank,...

Dependency and neo-Marxist theorists have exerted a substantial impact upon development economics. Western development analysts are becoming more aware of the important role that social groups and their political struggles play in the development process. However, controversy over some key...

Food legumes in Sub-Saharan Africa play a vital role by being a source of livelihood for millions of people; and offer tremendous potential to contribute to the alleviation of malnutrition among resource-poor farmers. They contribute to the sustainability of cropping systems and soil fertility....