In this study, we estimate production costs and elasticities of factor substitution for Zimbabwean smallholders, using a dual (cost function) approach with detailed data on prices paid and received by each of 65 farms across six survey sites over two years. We find that 95% of observed farm...

This study integrates biophysical simulation data with a farm household model of intertemporal optimization, to investigate changing crop-livestock management practices in the Sudano-Guinean zone of Mali. Over a 15-yr time horizon we find that free grazing on the commons remains more attractive...

This study links intertemporal optimization to a biophysical crop growth model finding that agricultural intensification does not dramatically degrade soils in southern Mali. Productivity growth can be sustained through adoption of new techniques, particularly with policy reforms to reduce...