Overarching goals in agriculture Overview of Agriculture Framework: Key Framework for Strategy Formulation 3 Frameworks for promotion and investing in Knowledge Key Topics to Consider  Framework of the World Development Report 2008: Agriculture For Development Analysis of Key Initiatives in Agriculture Asian Green Revolution RESOURCES:

Overarching goals in agriculture

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1. Reduce hunger and food insecurity [MDG Target 1c]
2. Ensure intake of adequate nutrition for healthy living
3. Promote sustainability of agricultural system by focusing on sustainable use of land, water, genetic and ecological resources
4. Reduce poverty by ensuring direct and indirect economic benefits to all, including producers, input-providers (public and private agencies in agri-business) and consumers

 

Overview of Agriculture Framework:

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Key Framework for Strategy Formulation

 

Prevalence of hunger and under-nutrition are a function of:

1. AVAILABILITY - is food available?
2. ACCESS - are their direct/indirect barriers to accessing available food?
3. UTILIZATION - are people not utilizing because of certain underlying factors?

 

3 Frameworks for promotion and investing in Knowledge

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Key Topics to Consider 

Here are the topics to be considered. Key questions to ask under each of these sections are available in the following document.^[1]

 

Section1: Natural Resource Inputs

1. Climate, watersheds, water resources and aquatic ecosystems
2. Soil nutrition, erosion and use of fertilizer
3. Bio-diversity, ecosystem services and conservation
4. Energy, climate change and resilience

 

Section2: Agronomic practice

1. Crop production systems and technologies
2. Crop genetic improvement
3. Pest and disease management
4. Livestock

 

Section 3: Agricultural Development

1. Social capital, gender and extension
2. Development and livelihoods
3. Governance, economic investment, power and policy making

 

Section4: Markets and consumption

1. Food supply chains
2. Prices, markets and trade
3. Consumption patterns and health

 

 

Framework of the World Development Report 2008: Agriculture For Development

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Analysis of Key Initiatives in Agriculture

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Asian Green Revolution

 

 

1. Strategic approaches:
• Improved plant architecture and physiology of major food crops (rice/wheat) by promoting the following features:
• Short stiff straw (so that it can hold more weight, without falling down)
• Responsive to fertilizer
• Earlier maturity to allow multiple cropping
• Yield stability (less fluctuation in amount produced)
• Resistance to pests and diseases
• Tolerance to abiotic stresses
• Added better eating quality
• Focused only on major food crops (i.e. rice and wheat) to reach the maximum number of people
• Success was largely favored by improving the following key elements:
• Seed, fertlizer, irrigation, extension, credit, roads, policies (market support and input subsidies), national political leadership
2. Strengths
1. Increased productivity through the use of:
• Improved technology
• Supportive policies and institutions
• Public Investment
2. Household food security and surpluses for sale
3. Food prices lowered
4. Higher real wage rates for rural and urban workers
5. Cereal production doubled between 1970 and 1995
6. Poverty declined from 50-18%; hunger declined from 30-16%
7. Created foundation for structural transformation and economic growth in Asia
3. Weakness:
1. Negative environment impacts due to:
1. Increased use of pesticides and fertilizers
2. Unsustainable use of water
3. Biodiversity suffered as new crops took over traditional plant varieties
2. Inequitable benefits:
1. Only large farmers could afford improved seeds, mechanization displaced laborers, farmers evicted by landlords); but counter-arguments also present^[2]
2. Irrigated vs rain-fed
3. Intra-household distribution
3. Declining profitability as productivity increased
4. Lower grain quality/inferior taste
5. Political/ideological arguments of increased economic dependency on multi-nationals
4. Lessons:
1. Scientific improvement in plant architecture and physiology is important 
2. Reduce the chances of environmental impact 
3. Garner political support 
4. Improve provision of "key elements" of agricultural production  
1. Seed, fertlizer, irrigation, extension, credit, roads, policies (market support and input subsidies), national political leadership
2. Increase investment by governments and donors in the key elements
5. The Asian Green Revolution might not be transferable to Africa if it is not adapted to local and regional needs and if (d) is not emphasized

 

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RESOURCES:

 

Godfray, H. C. J. et al (2010) Food security: The challenge of feeding 9 billion people.

 

Science 327: 812-818.

Pretty, J. et al (2010) The top 100 questions of importance to the future of global agriculture.International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability 8 (4): 219-236 DOI: 10.3763/ijas.2010.0534

Hazell, P. (2009) Think Again: The Green Revolution. Foreign Policy. Sept 22, 2009. (4 pages) http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2009/09/22/think_again_green_revolution?page=0,0

 

Evenson, R.E. and D. Golin (2003) Assessing the impact of the Green Revolution, 1960 to 2000. Science 300: 758-762.

 

World Bank (2007) World Development Report 2008: Agriculture for Development. World Bank.  - Read all of the Policy Briefs

 

Peters, C.J. et al. (2008)  Foodshed analysis and its relevance to sustainability. Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems 24: 1–7, Cambridge University Press, doi:10.1017/S1742170508002433

 

Pinstrup-Andersen, P. (2002) Towards a sustainable global food system: what will it take?

Keynote presentation for the Annual John Pesek Colloquium in Sustainable Agriculture, Iowa State University, March 26–27, 2002. (21 pages)

 

Spielman, D. and R.Pandya-Lorch (2009) Highlights from Millions Fed, Proven Successes in Agricultural Development. IFPRI Manila in August 2007. (165 pages)

 

Pingali, P. (2010) Agriculture renaissance: making “agriculture for development” work in the 21st century.  Chapter 74 in P. Pingali and R.E. Evenson “Handbook of Agricultural Economics”, pp 3867-3894 (Vol. 4).

 

Islam, N. (2008) Reducing Poverty and Hunger in Asia. A compilation of 15 policy briefs from a high-level policy forum on “Agricultural and Rural Development for Reducing Poverty and Hunger in Asia: In Pursuit of Inclusive and Sustainable Growth, organized by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

 

Johnston, B.F. and J. W. Mellor (1961) The Role of Agriculture in Economic Development. The American Economic Review 51:566-593

 

Mellor, J.W. and Johnson, B.F. (1984) The world food equation: interaction among development, employment and food consumption. J. Econ. Lit. 22: 532-574.

 

Timmer, P. (2007) The Structural Transformation and the Changing Role of Agriculture in Economic Development. Wendt Lecture, American Enterprise Institute. (146 pages) http://foodsecurity.stanford.edu/publications/the_structural_transformation_and_the_changing_role_of_agriculture_in_economic_development/