Decentralization is expected to lead to greater efficiency in the allocation of public resources, as subnational governments are said to have better information than central government about the needs for and requirements of public services in their jurisdictions, especially in agricultural and rural areas, where information about rural residents' priorities is more limited. This purported benefit of decentralization rests strongly on the assumption that local governments can in fact exercise fiscal discretion to allocate resources.

This paper presents new evidence on the association between gender and poverty based on an empirical analysis of 11 data sets from 10 developing countries. The paper computes income- and expenditure-based poverty measures and investigates their sensitivity to the use of per capita and per adult equivalent units. It also tests for differences in poverty incidence between individuals in male- and female-headed households using stochastic dominance analysis.

A food demand system is proposed, based on demand for energy, variety, and tastes of foods. By specifying utility as an explicit function of these characteristics, the entire matrix of demand elasticities can be derived for n foods and one nonfood from prior specification of just four elasticities, while avoiding any assumption of separability between foods. This framework can explain why poorest groups often are most price-responsive, but also can account for highest price-responsiveness by middle income groups.

This annual trends report for agricultural and rural development indicators is a monitoring and evaluation tool. It can be used to facilitate critical assessment of the progress being made in implementing and achieving the goals of Comprehensive African Agriculture Development Program (CAADP) and other national developmental goals. CAADP aims at helping African countries to achieve high economic growth through agriculture-led development. The agricultural sector in Kenya contributes significantly to the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and employment.

This report presents an analysis of the structural determinants of living standards and poverty in Mozambique, which is based on nationally-representative data from the first national household living standards survey since the end of the civil war: Poverty in Mozambique is predominantly a rural phenomenon and is pervasive, with over two-thirds of the population falling below the poverty line. The degree of regional variation of poverty within the country is striking.

"A dramatic increase over the past fifteen years in domestic pork demand and production in the Philippines has created a potentially profitable opportunity for poor rural and agricultural households. In Southern and Central Luzon, the two biggest markets, however, smallholder pig producers hold only a minority share of total production compared to larger commercial farms. This report seeks to assess the scope for smallholders to remain in business by analyzing the relative profitability of small and large farms.

In late 1985, the International Food Policy Research Institute in collaboration with the Rural Development Studies Bureau of the University of Zambia, the National Food and Nutrition Commission, and the Easter Provice Agricultural Development Project embarked on a major research project in Eastern Province, Zambia. The study sought to obtain a better understanding of the public policies that govern the country's push to increase agricultural production and improve the participation of smallholder farmers in it.

Ethiopia’s economy has experienced rapid growth in recent years. Although growth in agricultural gross domestic product (GDP) from 1998 to 2007 was less rapid than in other parts of the economy, agriculture also performed well, growing faster than the rural population. However, poverty is still severe in Ethiopia and is concentrated in rural areas. To accelerate growth and poverty reduction, Ethiopia’s national strategy affords an important role to agriculture as a source of both growth and development for the broader economy.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:; From Relief to Recovery: Rebuilding Afghanistan; Tribal Strengths Can Help Manage Common Land; The High Price of Gender Inequality; Hungry for Learning: Food for Education Programs

"Kenya’s economy is relatively diverse, with both agricultural and industrial potential. However, the economy has performed poorly over the last decade, and poverty and inequality have risen. This paper examines the impact of alternative growth paths and rural investments on poverty using an economy-wide model. It finds that if Kenya continues along its current growth path, its economy will have to grow by more than 10 percent per year over the coming decade to meet the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of halving poverty by 2015.

Governments and development agencies require accurate information on the impacts of increased mortality rates caused by AIDS on the agricultural sector and rural livelihoods. Several previous studies have estimated the effects of prime-age mortality on afflicted households in relation to non-afflicted households.

Climate is a robust determinant of both agricultural and general economic performance in Kenya and elsewhere in rainfed Sub-Saharan Africa. Frequent droughts and floods have cost the Kenyan economy billions of Ksh, and adverse impacts and costs are expected to rise over time. Drought is by far the most pressing climate-related shock experienced by Kenyan farmers, resulting in declines in crop yields, food shortages, and food price spikes. At the same time, climate change is expected to result in a drier coast while the highlands and northern Kenya are likely to become wetter.