Ahead of the Uruguay Round accord of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in December of 1993, numerous developing countries, especially in Latin America, embarked on a process of unilateral trade liberalization. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, bound tariffs were instituted,...

The impact of risk on agriculture and the alternative ways of dealing with it has captured the attention of economists and policy makers for a long time. In recent years, the issue has gained renewed interest. Many countries have started policy reforms aimed at liberalizing domestic markets,...

Small farmers and "minifundistas" tend to be among the poorest segment of the rural population in Latin America. However, preliminary work albeit rather sketchy, suggests that there is a great heterogeneity within the rural poor with respect to income, education, access to services, security of...