The successful development and diffusion of improved maize seed in Zambia during the 1970s–80s was a major achievement of African agriculture but was predicated on a government commitment to parastatal grain and seed marketing, the provision of services to maize growers, and a...

This analysis explores smallholder demand for hybrid maize seed by subsidy receipt. We test the hypothesis that the hybrid maize subsidy in Zambia is selectively biased due in part to its delivery mechanism and the self-selection of farmers who are able or choose to exercise their claim. Our...

Under the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) the African Union proposes 6 percent annual growth in agricultural production, of which more than half is to come from productivity growth. However, the recent rate at which new varieties (including hybrids) are being...

Future directions of food supply and demand will be determined by the interaction of various market forces (such as prices, population, and income) as they will be affected by decisions and policies of farmers, national governments, and international donors. Considering all these factors, an...

Meeting world food needs in the year 2020 will depend even more than it does now on the capabilities and resources of women. Women are responsible for generating food security for their families in many developing countries, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa. Women not only process, purchase,...

This paper introduces a modeling method which simulates a village's response to population and market pressure. The method combines a linear programming model with a biophysical model of soil condition and plant growth. The linear programming model simulates farmers' plans aggregated at the...

AIDS is a human tragedy and a major health problem. The scale of the disease is so large that it now raises questions about the impact of AIDS on the future development path of many of the world's poorest developing countries. Through its effects on population levels and growth rates and on...

Empirical evidence and microeconomic theory suggest that, in many settings, farm household production and consumption decisions are "non-separable." Non-separability may have important policy implications, including lack of response or threshold effects when incentives change. This paper extends...

In most countries in sub-Saharan Africa at present, the majority of the population is engaged in agriculture, with economies in the very early stages of structural transformation - the process whereby a predominantly agrarian economy is transformed into a diversified and productive economy...