Emerging medium-scale tenant farming, gig economies, and the COVID-19 disruption: Evidence from commercial vegetable clusters in Ethiopia

Emerging medium-scale tenant farming, gig economies, and the COVID-19 disruption: Evidence from commercial vegetable clusters in Ethiopia PDF Author: Minten, Bart
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 25

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Book Description
Driven by the fast spread of private irrigation pumps, there has been a rapid expansion of intensive vegetable cultivation in the central Rift Valley in Ethiopia, making it the most important commercial vegetable production cluster in the country. Supporting that “quiet revolution” has been an inflow of migrant laborers – paid through daily, monthly, or piecemeal contracts, with few employment benefits attached to them – and a gig economy as widely-used contractors organize, among others, mechanized land preparation, the digging of wells and ponds, seedling propagation, and loading of trucks. Almost 60 percent of the irrigated area is cultivated by medium-scale tenant farmers relying on short-term rental contracts. It seems that gig economies characterized by flexible contract arrangements implemented by outside contractors, which are increasingly fueling sophisticated sectors in developed countries, are important in these commercial agrarian settings in Africa as well. We further find that the COVID-19 pandemic has led to significant disruptions of this model, as seen by more limited access to services and the unavailability or high price increases in factor markets, especially for labor. We further note large but heterogenous price changes in output markets. The pandemic seems especially to have had important effects on the medium-scale tenant farmers as they depend relatively more than smallholders on outside inputs, labor markets, and these gig economies. However, on the other hand, they benefit more than smallholders from favorable output markets for vegetables.

Emerging medium-scale tenant farming, gig economies, and the COVID-19 disruption: Evidence from commercial vegetable clusters in Ethiopia

Emerging medium-scale tenant farming, gig economies, and the COVID-19 disruption: Evidence from commercial vegetable clusters in Ethiopia PDF Author: Minten, Bart
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 25

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Book Description
Driven by the fast spread of private irrigation pumps, there has been a rapid expansion of intensive vegetable cultivation in the central Rift Valley in Ethiopia, making it the most important commercial vegetable production cluster in the country. Supporting that “quiet revolution” has been an inflow of migrant laborers – paid through daily, monthly, or piecemeal contracts, with few employment benefits attached to them – and a gig economy as widely-used contractors organize, among others, mechanized land preparation, the digging of wells and ponds, seedling propagation, and loading of trucks. Almost 60 percent of the irrigated area is cultivated by medium-scale tenant farmers relying on short-term rental contracts. It seems that gig economies characterized by flexible contract arrangements implemented by outside contractors, which are increasingly fueling sophisticated sectors in developed countries, are important in these commercial agrarian settings in Africa as well. We further find that the COVID-19 pandemic has led to significant disruptions of this model, as seen by more limited access to services and the unavailability or high price increases in factor markets, especially for labor. We further note large but heterogenous price changes in output markets. The pandemic seems especially to have had important effects on the medium-scale tenant farmers as they depend relatively more than smallholders on outside inputs, labor markets, and these gig economies. However, on the other hand, they benefit more than smallholders from favorable output markets for vegetables.

Vegetable value chains during the COVID- 19 pandemic in Ethiopia: Evidence from cascading value chain surveys before and during the pandemic

Vegetable value chains during the COVID- 19 pandemic in Ethiopia: Evidence from cascading value chain surveys before and during the pandemic PDF Author: Hirvonen, Kalle
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 48

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Book Description
We combine in-person survey data collected in February 2020 (i.e., just before the pandemic was declared) with phone survey data collected in March 2021 (i.e., one year into the pandemic) and August 2021 (i.e., approximately 18 months into the pandemic) to study how vegetable value chains in Ethiopia have coped with the COVID-19 pandemic. Focusing on the major vegetable value chain connecting farmers in East Shewa zone to consumers in Addis Ababa, we applied a cascading survey approach in which we collected data at all levels of the value chain: vegetable farmers, urban wholesalers, and retailers.

Food marketing margins during the COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence from vegetables in Ethiopia

Food marketing margins during the COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence from vegetables in Ethiopia PDF Author: Hirvonen, Kalle
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 16

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Book Description
It is widely feared that the COVID-19 pandemic will lead to a significant worsening of the food security situation in low and middle-income countries. One reason for this is the disruption of food marketing systems and subsequent changes in farm and consumer prices. Based on primary data in Ethiopia collected just before the start and a few months into the pandemic, we assess changes in farm and consumer prices of four major vegetables and the contribution of different segments of the rural-urban value chain in urban retail price formation. We find large, but heterogeneous, price changes for different vegetables with relatively larger changes seen at the farm level, compared to the consumer level, leading to winners and losers among local vegetable farmers due to pandemicrelated trade disruptions. We further note that despite substantial hurdles in domestic trade reported by most value chain agents, increases in marketing – and especially transportation – costs have not been the major contributor to overall changes in retail prices. Marketing margins even declined for half of the vegetables studied. The relatively small changes in marketing margins overall indicate the resilience of these domestic value chains during the pandemic in Ethiopia.

Entrepreneurial Motivations

Entrepreneurial Motivations PDF Author: Marco Valeri
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3031544358
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 211

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Book Description


COVID-19 and global food security: Two years later

COVID-19 and global food security: Two years later PDF Author: McDermott, John
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN: 0896294226
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 200

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Book Description
Two years after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the health, economic, and social disruptions caused by this global crisis continue to evolve. The impacts of the pandemic are likely to endure for years to come, with poor, marginalized, and vulnerable groups the most affected. In COVID-19 & Global Food Security: Two Years Later, the editors bring together contributions from new IFPRI research, blogs, and the CGIAR COVID-19 Hub to examine the pandemic’s effects on poverty, food security, nutrition, and health around the world. This volume presents key lessons learned on food security and food system resilience in 2020 and 2021 and assesses the effectiveness of policy responses to the crisis. Looking forward, the authors consider how the pandemic experience can inform both recovery and longer-term efforts to build more resilient food systems.

Medium-scale livestock farms in Asia’s rapidly transforming food systems

Medium-scale livestock farms in Asia’s rapidly transforming food systems PDF Author: Ebata, Ayako
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 26

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Book Description
Academic and policy debates on agriculture emphasize a bimodal typology of ‘small-scale’ and ‘large-scale’ farms. In this article, we draw attention to the role and distinct characteristics of medium-scale monogastric livestock farms in the Global South, drawing on an empirically grounded typology of scale that incorporates three linked components: (1) Social and economic organization of production; (2) Technological choice and environmental impacts, and; (3) Food system linkages and spillovers. We review national livestock sector policy documents from three Asian countries - Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Vietnam - with reference to the typology, and compare assumptions embedded in the policies with the characteristics of farm scale revealed by the typology. Our analysis indicates that current policy goals are not well aligned with the characteristics of medium-scale livestock farming in the region. This disconnect presents a missed opportunity to enhance the livestock sector’s contributions to rural economies, nutrition security, food safety, and environmental performance. We conclude with examples of how policies could maintain and enhance medium-scale monogastriclivestock farms’ contributions to sustainable intensification, public health, and livelihoods.

Small and medium enterprises and nutrition: understanding linkages, seizing opportunities

Small and medium enterprises and nutrition: understanding linkages, seizing opportunities PDF Author: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org. [Author]
ISBN: 925138634X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 84

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Book Description
Multiple actors should be mobilized to ensure that agrifood systems help meet nutrition and sustainability objectives. [Author] Among these, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) engaged in the supply of food are of crucial importance as they constitute the bulk of agrifood enterprises in most countries. [Author] However, there are still few examples of policies, programmes and initiatives aimed specifically at leveraging SMEs due, inter alia, to the novelty of the debate and to the limited understanding of their specific needs and challenges. [Author] Based on a literature review, complemented with FAO's experience in capacity development for SMEs, this publication is targeted at programme developers, experts and technical advisors to policymakers. [Author] Its objectives are: a) to improve the understanding of the linkages between topics that are traditionally dealt with separately; and b) to promote the inclusion of an SME perspective in nutrition and agrifood system policies, programmes and strategies. [Author]

Fractures and resilience of agri-food value chains in the context of COVID-19: A review of recent evidence

Fractures and resilience of agri-food value chains in the context of COVID-19: A review of recent evidence PDF Author: Stoian, D.
Publisher: CIFOR
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 32

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Book Description


The rapid rise in domestic value chains of nutrient-dense foods (fruits, vegetables, and animal products) in Sub-Saharan Africa: Policy implications

The rapid rise in domestic value chains of nutrient-dense foods (fruits, vegetables, and animal products) in Sub-Saharan Africa: Policy implications PDF Author: Reardon, Thomas
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 23

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Book Description
Despite African consumers under-consuming nutrient dense fruits and vegetables (FV) and animal products (AP), and the farm production and supply chains of these products are fraught with constraints that keep them from operating optimally, we find abundant recent evidence of dynamism in these sectors. To wit: (1) consumption of these products in levels and shares is already substantial and growing rapidly; (2) supply of these products is growing rapidly, just not yet much faster than population growth; (3) supply growth is manifested in a number of countries by dynamic “meso booms” with diffusion of farming and growth in midstream ("Hidden Middle") value chain segments; these booms are “grass roots” driven, without subsidy or management by government or NGOs or large companies. We reviewed recent survey-based evidence of these booms and discussed the drivers. The policy implications are the need for governments to invest in the conditions we found to be enabling these booms, that is, roads and wholesale markets and electrification and other infrastructure hard and soft.

Analysis of food demand and supply across the rural–urban continuum for selected countries in Africa

Analysis of food demand and supply across the rural–urban continuum for selected countries in Africa PDF Author: Dolislager, M.J.
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.
ISBN: 9251384754
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 102

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Book Description
This background paper to The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2023 analyses a key element of agrifood systems transformation: the change of patterns in food supply and demand. Several studies have discussed this topic, but the current one takes an innovative perspective of analysis, considering these changes with a spatial perspective using the urban rural catchment areas (URCA) approach to analyse changes in food expenditure across the rural–urban continuum, using Living Standards Measurement Studies (LSMS) of 11 African countries. The analysis is preceded by a literature review of agrifood value chains transformation stages, drivers and current situation, focused in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), and is followed by a macro review of food supply around the world and a “macro-meso” review of the supply of wheat and rice in two African countries. The conclusions shows that most food is purchased in all households across the rural–urban continuum, even in rural areas, breaking with the “myth” of rural subsistence farming in Africa. In addition, the results show a diffusion of the consumption of processed foods, including in a lesser extent highly processed foods, all across the rural–urban continuum, and not only in rural areas. From a food supply perspective, the low global availability of foods that are part of a healthy diet, as fruits, vegetables and legumes, nuts and seeds calls for increasing efforts for producing more nutritious foods in all countries of the world.