The purpose of this study is to assess
agriculture's competitiveness in Colombia. During the
past 12 years, Colombia's agricultural sector has
performed poorly, resulting in the continuation of extensive
rural poverty. Improving the sector's competitiveness
is the only sure and lasting way to improve its growth
performance and reduce poverty. Thus, the main objectives of
this study are to assess: (a) the sector's current and

This report addresses key structural,
institutional, and sectoral policy impediments to achieving
a higher, and sustained economic growth in the sector, and
poverty reduction in rural areas of Iran. It focuses mainly
on an assessment of agricultural development outcomes, a
discussion of the agricultural policy agenda, and provides
recommendations for future policy dialogue between the Bank,
and the Government of Iran. On examining development

The aim for this study was to assess the
impact of irrigation activities in the Brazilian Semi-Arid
(BSA) Region, and to analyze to what extent irrigated
agriculture in this region has contributed to the reduction
of poverty levels and regional inequalities, income growth
and distribution, and the creation of quality jobs, with the
aim of contributing to the establishment of guidelines for a
regional development strategy. The study indicates that,

This review aims to provide the
Government of Madagascar with a situation assessment and
insights and guidance on how to position the rural and
environment sector as an engine for inclusive and
sustainable economic growth. The review has cast the
analytical net quite widely with the aim to come up with a
comprehensive overview of the sector. In view of the
intimate linkages between rural development and the

This report discusses the affects of
rapid economic growth and increased urbanization on the
environmental quality of the Dominican Republic's
natural resource base (e.g., water resources
management--water quality, quantity and watershed management
and solid waste collection and disposal have become major
environmental concerns). It notes that the lack of
systematic data limits an accurate and detailed assessment

This Policy and Strategy Paper
contributes to an ongoing policy debate-within the Bank but
also with its client governments-about the role of tree
crops in various production systems, and as key commodities
in the trade portfolio of various African nations. It
attempts to answer the following questions: a) What is the
role of tree crops in a rural development strategy focused
on smallholders? B) Under what conditions can small-holder

Farming households that differ in their
ability, or willingness to take on risks are likely to make
different decisions when allocating resources, and effort
among income-producing activities, with consequences for
productivity. The authors measure voluntary, and involuntary
departures from efficiency for rice-producing households in
Bicol, Philippines. They take advantage of a panel of
household observations from 1978, 1983, and 1994. The

What are linkages between rural
infrastructure investments, and household welfare? In the
past, most of the evaluations to assess the effectiveness of
a project, focused on physical outputs, and success of
project implementation. In recent years, more attention has
been given to the impact of investments, particularly its
effect on the poor, both in economic, and non-economic
terms. The author presents findings from a survey of the

This review aims to provide the
Government of Madagascar with a situation assessment and
insights and guidance on how to position the rural and
environment sector as an engine for inclusive and
sustainable economic growth. The review has cast the
analytical net quite widely with the aim to come up with a
comprehensive overview of the sector. In view of the
intimate linkages between rural development and the

This study aims to assess the extent to
which reforms have actually been implemented, the impact
they have had on the rural population, and the challenges
which, as a consequence, need to be addressed by the new
administration. This report is organized as follows: Section
1 describes Mexico's rural economy. It reviews the
broad context of macro, trade, and sector-level reforms, the
strengths and weaknesses of both the productive and