Value chain innovations for technology transfer in developing and emerging economies: Conceptual issues,typology, and policy implications

The adoption of modern technologies in agriculture is crucial for improving productivity of poor farmers and poverty reduction. However, the adoption of modern technology has been disappointing. The role of value chains in technology adoption has been largely ignored so far, despite the dramatic transformation and spread of modern agri-food value chains. We argue that value chain organization and innovations can have an important impact on modern technology adoption, not just by downstream companies, but also by farmers. We discuss conceptual issues and provide an empirical typology of institutional innovations through which value chains can contribute to technology transfer to agriculture in developing and emerging countries.     

考虑价格因素的中国全要素生产率计算及其影响因素分析 ——基于Global Cost Malmquist和Tobit模型的实证研究

本文将价格因素引入模型中,基于Global Cost Malmquist指数模型估算全要素生产率,基于全要素生产率分解进一步分析我国的资源错配状况及其来源,并采用Tobit模型对全要素生产率尤其是价格效应的影响因素进行实证分析,研究结果表明:现阶段我国全要素生产率增长存在高估问题,技术进步对我国全要素生产率的正向促进作用日趋显著,由价格扭曲导致的资源错配是现阶段抑制我国全要素生产率进一步提高的主要因素,同时技术进步和价格扭曲加剧了地区全要素生产率差异;对外直接投资、出口贸易和金融发展提高了全要素生产率增长,改善了资源错配,而市场分割和工业占比则起到抑制作用;东部和西部地区的对外直接投资、中部地区的出口贸易以及西部地区的金融发展水平会显著改善地区价格扭曲程度。基于以上研究,提出加快资源配置市场化改革、培育开放的市场化动力、激发金融市场活力、优化产业结构等政策启示。     

新疆农业产业化发展策略研究

推进农业产业化经营,是促进农业转型升级、建设现代农业的必由之路,是提高农业效益、增加农民收入的重要途径,是转变农业发展方式、实施"三化"带动"三农"的重要手段。目前新疆正处在农业产业化加速发展的关键时期和跨越式发展的重要阶段,因此,积极发展农业产业化战略,对新疆农业发展和经济提升有着重要的推动作用。     

Productivity,scale economies and technical progress in the Canadian life insurance industry

The purpose of this paper is to examine the productivity performance of the Canadian life insurance industry. We construct a measure of total factor productivity for life insurance companies and then attempt to determine the main sources of improved productivity during the period 1961–1977 by pooling time-series and cross-section data from 31 firms. We conclude that for the industry as a whole technical progress was by far the most important source of productivity growth, while scale economies, on balance, had a marginally negative impact.     

Viewpoint: Climate impacts on agriculture: Searching for keys under the streetlight

This paper provides a critical assessment of the literature estimating the consequences of climate impacts in agriculture and the food system. This literature focuses overwhelmingly on the impact of elevated CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere, higher temperatures and changing precipitation on staple crop yields. While critically important for food security, we argue that researchers have gravitated to measuring impacts ‘under the streetlight’ where data and models are plentiful. We argue that prior work has largely neglected the vast majority of potential economic impacts of climate change on agriculture. A broader view must extend the impacts analysis to inputs beyond land, including the consequences of climate change for labor productivity, as well as for purchased intermediate inputs. Largely overlooked is the impact of climate change on the rate of total factor productivity growth and the potential for more rapid depreciation of the underlying knowledge capital underpinning this key driver of agricultural output growth. This broader view must also focus more attention on non-staple crops, which, while less important from a caloric point of view, are critically important in redressing current micronutrient deficiencies in many diets around the world. The paper closes with numerical simulations that demonstrate the extent to which limited input and output coverage of climate impacts can lead to considerable underestimation of the consequences for food security and economic welfare. Of particular significance is the finding that humans in the humid tropics are likely more vulnerable to heat stress than are many of the well-adapted crops, such as rice. By omitting the impact of heat stress on humans, most studies of climate impacts greatly understate the welfare losses in the world’s poorest economies.     

Do Multi‐Plant Firms Reduce Misallocation? Evidence from Canadian Manufacturing

Using Canadian plant‐level data, this paper shows that, depending on the industry, the differences in the average plant‐level productivity and cross‐plant allocation of resources between multi‐plant and single‐plant firms account for 1 to 15 per cent of the industry‐level TFP. A large part of this contribution stems from more efficient cross‐plant allocation of resources, measured by the covariance between plant size and productivity, in the pool of plants in multi‐plant firms compared to the pool of plants in single‐plant firms. There is less dispersion in the marginal products of the inputs, and thus less misallocation, in industries in which multi‐plant firms account for a larger share of output. The patterns found in the cross‐plant distribution of productivity and size are also consistent with better allocative efficiency among plants in multi‐plant firms than among plants in single‐plant firms.     

Supply chain differentiation,contract agriculture,and farmers’ marketing preferences: The case of sweet pepper in Thailand

There is an emerging body of literature analyzing how smallholder farmers in developing countries can be linked to modern supply chains. However, most of the available studies concentrate on farm and farmer characteristics, failing to capture details of institutional arrangements between farmers and traders. Moreover, farmers’ preferences have rarely been considered. Here, we address these gaps by analyzing different market channels for sweet pepper in Thailand. Using data from a survey and choice experiment with farmers, we find that there is a general preference for marketing options that do not involve a contract. Additional provision of inputs and credit can increase the attractiveness of contracts. Yet, the most important factor for farmers is to personally know the buyer they deal with, which may be related to issues of trust. Some policy implications are discussed.     

Too small to be beautiful? The farm size and productivity relationship in Bangladesh

This paper examines the agricultural productivity-farm size relationship in the context of Bangladesh. Features of Bangladesh’s agriculture help overcome several limitations in testing the inverse farm-size productivity relationship in other developing country settings. A Stochastic Production Frontier (SPF) model is applied using data from three rounds of a household panel survey to simultaneously estimate the production frontier and the technical inefficiency functions. The ‘correlated random effects’ approach is used to control for unobserved heterogeneous household effects. Methodologically, the results suggest that SPF models that ignore the inefficiency function are likely mis-specified, and may result in misleading conclusions on the farm size-productivity relationship. Empirically, the findings confirm that the farm size and productivity relationship is negative, but with the inverse relationship diminishing over time. Total factor productivity growth, driven by technical change, is found to have been robust across the sample. Across farm size groups, the relatively larger farmers experienced faster technical change, which helped them to catch up and narrow the productivity gap with the smaller farmers.     

Improving the efficiency targeting of Malawi's farm input subsidy programme: Big pain,small gain?

The Farm Input Subsidy Programme (FISP) in Malawi was introduced in the 2005/2006 season against a background of bad weather affecting production and prolonged food shortages. Vouchers are distributed empowering eligible farmers to exchange them for fixed quantities of inputs at subsidized prices. Since its inception, there has been a debate at national level about whether the FISP’s potential has been fully exploited, with policy makers exploring options to improve the programme. Proposals include targeting efficient and productive farmers to maximize returns. In this paper, we evaluate the effectiveness of these proposed changes to the existing FISP design by utilizing two waves of the LSMS-ISA survey merged with climatic data. We estimate how the national demand for agricultural inputs varies according to a variation in the targeting criteria by means of a two-stage demand system. Then, we identify more efficient farmers by means of a stochastic frontier approach. We observe a mismatch between voucher recipients and efficiency, with approximately 60% of vouchers being allocated to the three bottom quintiles of efficiency. This mismatch is observed also at the spatial level with more vouchers going to districts characterized by less efficient production. While concerns on the distributional impacts of the new criteria are discussed together with some suggestions for spatially diversifying the structuring of the policy and incentivizing crop diversification, our results highlight a high substitutability of commercial with subsidized inputs by new eligible farmers. Consequently, simulating the targeting policy variation we obtain an outcome that would lead only to a limited increases in predicted food expenditure ranging from 0.27% to 0.8% and maize production from 0.2% to 1.3. Scope for analysing different adjustments in the functioning of FISP are, thus, proposed to policy makers.     

市场扭曲、跨企业的资源配置与制造业部门的生产率

近年来,在中国制造业部门的各个产业里,不同企业之间的生产率表现出很大的差异,而且,企业的规模分布与生产率分布只有微弱的关联。在这篇文章里,我们讨论了市场扭曲与产业内不同企业之间生产率差异的内在联系。我们的研究结果显示,在几个代表性产业里,市场不完全引起的产业内跨企业的资源配置扭曲解释了企业间基本生产要素的生产率差异和全要素生产率差异的实质性部分,并导致了总量层面40%以上的全要素生产率损失。进一步,我们还发现,地区市场分割和金融市场的不完全是造成产品和要素市场扭曲的重要原因,而企业所有制和政府补贴对跨企业的资源配置没有显著的影响。     

经济转型期间中国工业增长与全要素能源效率

经济转型期间中国工业部门取得了辉煌的增长业绩,在中国工业部门增长的背后是资源和能源的大量消耗。本文从中国工业部门增长的核心入手,剖析中国工业部门35个行业的全要素能源效率。通过构建考虑能源消耗的全要素生产力指数和全要素能源效率的分析框架,本文从四个方面考察了中国工业部门增长与全要素能源效率的关系;一是中国工业部门的生产力与技术变动同全要素能源效率表现之间的关系;二是全要素技术效率与全要素能源效率的比较;三是工业部门的人均增加值与全要素能源效率的U型曲线关系;四是工业部门结构变动与全要素能源效率的关系。     

Targeting agricultural research and extension for food security and poverty alleviation: A case study of fish farming in Central Cameroon

Over 5 years of participatory on-farm research, market access, profitability, farming systems productivity and economic sustainability were compared on 100 small-scale farms in Central Cameroon. Integration technology based on the use of agricultural by-products as fishpond inputs was the driver for intensification. Over all farms, fishpond productivity increased from 498 kg to 1609 kg fish/ha (2145 kg/ha/yr). During the project period, the number of active fish farmers increased from 15 to 192 (including 55 farms which participated only through information exchange). Over all farms, net returns from aquaculture increased by 5 times over pre-project levels. Productivity, intensity and profitability increased more significantly in periurban areas with good market access, compared to rural areas. Among farmers with good market access, average net income from the aquaculture enterprise rose from $118 up to $1485. Research-Extension Team (RET) support cost an average of $61,300 per year. Over 5 years, rural farmers recaptured 23% of the relevant RET investment compared to 442% by periurban farmers. Likewise, increase in production attributable to RET intervention was higher for periurban (253%) compared to rural (11.3%) fish farmers. Within 3 years of the end of extension support, rural farmers had returned to pre-project production levels, whereas periurban farms had better maintained their productivity and profitability. Findings indicate that, in areas with little or no access to markets, the number of fishponds and fish farmers can be increased and yields improved, increasing local food supplies, but sustainability in the absence of extension subsidies is questionable. To achieve either of the two principal goals for the sector, food security and/or poverty alleviation, investments need to be made in improving the availability of quality technical assistance to targeted farmers and finding means of reducing social conflict arising from perceived inequalities in the accrual of the benefits of development.     

Animal health inputs,endogenous risk,general infrastructure,technology adoption and industrialized animal agriculture

This paper develops a microeconomic model of concentrated animal feeding operations that admits roles for all of animal health inputs, genetic profile choices and the pertaining economic infrastructure. The basic model emphasizes how time on feed, feed density and biosecurity choices interact, as well as how these choices respond to (i) input prices, and (ii) attributes regarding animal productivity parameters that might be influenced by policy choices such as animal welfare strictures and restraints on use of medication. We show that ostensibly substituting inputs in protecting against animal health risks may in fact be complements, and that the model’s production choices come as a complementary package. We then extend the model to endogenize the choice of animal genetics. A finding is that innovations in general infrastructure encourage herd owners to choose more feed efficient, but less hardy, animals. Higher feed conversion efficiency then induces the use of denser feed rations, accelerated finishing and greater levels of biosecurity actions at farm perimeters. Our theory provides a coherent framework for explaining associations among inputs and outcomes that are linked with confined animal agriculture. It also explains how animal protein supply chain technology adoption and performance can differ according to a region’s state of infrastructure, why responses to a change in infrastructure may be large, and why public sector efforts to reduce production risk may beget private sector effort to do so.     

资源错配、结构变迁与中国经济转型

本文在分析和分解各地区及三次产业资源误置程度的基础上,通过在传统的增长核算框架内引入错配系数的方法,重新测算了我国在资源误置条件下的经济增长,并将除去资源错配因素后的实际技术进步分解为结构变迁效应和净增长效应,得到了资源错配、结构变迁和经济转型间的关系。研究还发现:要素流动障碍和资源误置因素的存在不仅影响经济短期的产出总量及其产出比例,也影响经济的长期产出组合方式(生产前沿面),我们若消除所有错配年份的错配因素,则在这些年份中,可使我国GDP增长率平均每年提高0.90个百分点。     

The evolution of hog production and potential sources for future growth in China

Following reforms to the market, China’s hog industry has developed rapidly, however, with social and economic transitions, China’s hog industry is facing challenges which might restrict long-term growth in production. This paper analyzes the changes in regional scale, organization, input factors, and technological progress for China’s hog production over the last few decades. The paper seeks to reveal the sources of hog production growth and provide some suggestions for future development of the hog industry. To achieve these aims, the paper uses stochastic frontier production functions and the Malmquist index to measure total factor productivity (TFP) in the hog industry and decompose TFP into technical efficiency; technological progress; scale efficiency; and allocative efficiency using data for 25 provinces from 1980 to 2008. The results show firstly that; the TFP of hog production increased by 64.3% from 1980 to 2008, and allocative efficiency and scale efficiency improvements played a key role in this TFP growth. In contrast, technical efficiency and technical progress have changed little over this period. Secondly, TFP’s contribution to output was 39.7%, it being less than that of factor inputs to output. Thirdly, the results suggest that the growth of China’s pork production depends mostly on the increase in the quantity of factor inputs, especially feed. As a consequence, the key to ensuring long-term and stable development of China’s hog production would seem to involve focusing on enhancing total factor productivity and changing the pattern of production growth.     

Technology adoption and value chains in developing countries: Evidence from dairy in India

Adoption of modern technologies in agriculture is crucial for improving productivity and welfare of poor farmers in developing countries. Not much is known about how value chains do (not) affect technology transfer and/or adoption in food chains in developing countries. We analyze farm-level technology adoption in the dairy chain in India, using unique survey data. The dairy chain in India is an important case because the Indian government has promoted development of the dairy sector for its potential for ‘pro-poor’ growth, and because value chain initiatives had strong effects on dairy farm technology in other countries with imperfect markets and growth in demand. We find that despite rapid growth in milk consumption and production, technology adoption in the form of better hygienic practices, better feed and improved livestock was mixed, and low for certain regions and technologies. So far, the role of value chains in the adoption of new technologies seems to be minor.     

Is there a pilot in the chain? Identifying the key drivers of change in the fresh pineapple sector

High-value export-oriented agriculture is today considered as a means of integrating smallholders into the world economy. This paper examines the geographic and organisational changes that have taken place in the fresh pineapple sector over the past 50 years. We begin with a historical analysis of the changes in leadership among producer countries, namely the dethroning of Côte d’Ivoire by Costa Rica. We show that this geographical shift has been accompanied by massive organisational changes: the pineapple sector is increasingly driven by large downstream actors who derive their power from the ability to impose their definition of quality to the whole chain, and from economies of scale and scope. Although varietal innovation plays a key role throughout the period, commercial and logistical innovation are of increasing strategic importance. However, because of the constraints imposed by the concerned supply chains, small farmers risk being excluded or marginalized.     

Ultra-fast broadband access and productivity: Evidence from Italian firms

We study the impact of ultra-fast broadband (UFB) infrastructures on the total factor productivity (TFP) and labor productivity of firms. We use unique balanced panel data for the 2013–2019 period on incorporated firms in Italy. Using the geographical location of the firms, we merge firm-level data with municipality-level information on the diffusion of UFB, which started in 2015. We derive consistent firm-level TFP estimates by adopting a version of the Ackerberg et al.’s (2015) method, which also accounts for firm fixed effects. We then assess the impact of UFB on productivity and deal with the endogeneity of UFB by exploiting the physical distance between each municipality and the closest optical packet backbone node. Our results show an overall positive impact of UFB on productivity. Services companies benefit the most from advanced broadband technologies, as do firms located in the North-West and South of Italy. We further decompose the impact of full-fiber networks from mixed copper-fiber connections and find that the former significantly contribute to enhancing firm productivity. Finally, by exploiting Labor Force Survey data, we provide suggestive evidence that productivity increases from UFB might be related to structural changes at the workforce level.     

Policy coherence and food security: The effects of OECD countries’ agricultural policies

There have been important changes to agricultural policies in many OECD countries over the past decade and the international spill-over effects of support and protection have diminished. Now would be a good time to eliminate remaining distortions and put in place more efficient alternatives, including social safety nets and tools to help farmers manage risk. This would lock in the benefits of reform and simultaneously address charges of policy incoherence. In the context of high food prices, new issues have emerged with potential implications for food security. They include export restrictions, the use of biofuel mandates, and the opportunities and threats presented by increased foreign investment in agriculture. On these issues, as well as in terms of conventional support mechanisms, policies in emerging economies (in particular the BRIICS) are increasingly important. A pro-active agenda for policy coherence would involve not just eliminating policies that distort trade, but also enacting positive measures to increase food availability, for example by raising agricultural productivity, using resources sustainably, and eliminating waste and over-consumption. Across countries, there are important gains to be realised from knowledge sharing, and from multilateral action to provide global public goods – not least smoother functioning of the multilateral trading system.     

Radial and non-radial decompositions of Luenberger productivity indicator with an illustrative application

Viewing slacks as one possible source of inefficiency, and that inputs have differential importance in the production process, this paper develops, based on the directional Russell measure of inefficiency, the non-radial Luenberger indicator. This indicator is then shown as the sum of the individual input-specific Luenberger indicators. The Luenberger indicator and its various input-specific indicators are also then shown as the composite measure of efficiency change and technical change. This decomposition enables the researcher to empirically examine the contributions of each factor input towards the productivity change and its components—efficiency change and technical change. Our proposed decomposition scheme is then empirically illustrated to analyze the eco-productivity performance behavior of the 22 OECD countries during the period 1995-2004. Our results indicate that first, the productivity change estimates yielded from the non-radial Luenberger indicator are different from those yielded from its radial counterpart, when slacks are present; second, most of these countries are found experiencing productivity growth due to technical progress alone; and finally, as regards the order of input-specific contributions towards productivity growth, capital contributes the most, followed by savings in emissions and labor, respectively.