Cropping in low-rainfall regions can be risky business. Farms are often characterized by high climatic and spatial variability, while input prices, particularly nitrogen (N) fertilisers, are rising steadily relative to grain prices. Consequently, in anticipation of having a poor season, farmers...

The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) has continued to be fiercely debated between North and South, particularly with respect to its provisions for the agricultural sector. Article 27.3(b) of the TRIPS Agreement requires WTO member countries to offer some...

This paper assesses the implications of large-scale investments in biofuels for growth and income distribution. We find that biofuels investment enhances growth and poverty reduction despite some displacement of food crops by biofuels. Overall, the biofuel investment trajectory analyzed...

Vitamin A deficiency is a major health problem in Africa and in many other developing countries. Biofortified staple crops that are high in pro vitamins A and adapted to local growing environment have the potential to reduce the prevalence of vitamin A deficiency. One such example is the...

In this paper we examine the multiple environmental effects of policies promoting biofuel production from agricultural crops. We develop theoretical and empirical frameworks and provide an integrated economic and ecological modelling approach: an economic model of farmers’ decision making is...

The braconid larval parasitoid Cotesia flavipes Cameron was introduced from Asia into East and Southern African region starting in 1993 to control the invasive exotic maize stemborer Chilo partellus (Swinhoe) (Lepidoptera: Crambidae). A quasi-experiment was constructed using farmers that applied...

The objective of this study is to assess the technical efficient frontier of rice farms using input-oriented data envelopment analysis. The frontier represents the minimum applicable level of efficiency of inputs given the current level of yields, technologies, and managerial ability among the...

In the context of today’s intensive discussion of landscape multifunctionality, one primary objective of the current European Union policy is to support the implementation of multifunctionaly within the EU. In order to assess the economical feasibility of the implementation of a...