Agriculture and small towns in Africa

Dorosh, Paul A.; Thurlow, James

doi:10.1111/agec.12027

Cited by 37 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…Additionally, skills development of agriculturebased enterprises has been recognised as imperative (Meena, Prasad & Singh 2009) particularly as competitive advantage stems from the possession and efficient utilisation of a unique set of assets such as natural resources, skills and knowledge and proximity to inputs and markets (Dorosh & Thurlow 2013;Ortmann & King 2010;Urban & Kongo 2015).…”

Section: Small-scale Agricultural Enterprisesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Human–social capital and market access factors influencing agro-processing participation by small-scale agripreneurs: The moderating effects of transaction costs

Thindisa

Urban

2018

Acta commer.

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Orientation: Participating in the agriculture and agro-processing chain has the potential to enhance the competitive advantage of small-scale agricultural enterprises in South Africa.Research purpose: The study empirically investigated the extent to which agro-processing participation is determined by human and social capital factors, while accounting for the moderating effects of transaction costs.Motivation of the study: Research is required that examines levels of human and social capital of small-scale agripreneurs, as these act as major constraints towards improved competitiveness of agribusinesses.Design: To test the study hypotheses, a structured questionnaire was administered to 166 small-scale agripreneurs at farmer gatherings across regions in South Africa.Findings: Based on the survey results, both human and social capital factors showed a positive and significant influence on agro-processing participation. The findings further highlight the importance of market access and transaction costs to small-scale agripreneurs.Practical implications: Policy-makers need to be aware of how human capital factors such as previous education and experience impact participation in agro-processing activities and help to mitigate transaction costs.Contribution: Study findings are highly relevant to South Africa as agro-processing and value-adding activities are not always scale dependent, and hence, a focus on human and social capital is valuable.

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Section: Small-scale Agricultural Enterprisesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Human–social capital and market access factors influencing agro-processing participation by small-scale agripreneurs: The moderating effects of transaction costs

Thindisa

Urban

2018

Acta commer.

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“…There is great diversity in the characteristics of urban environments. Dorosh and Thurlow (2013) show that the urban population in sub-Saharan Africa is bimodally distributed, with roughly 40% living in major cities with a population exceeding 1,000,000 and 40% in small towns with less than 250,000…”

Section: Unpacking the Effects 61 The Composition Of The Urban Landsmentioning

confidence: 99%

From Corn to Popcorn? Urbanization and Food Consumption in Sub-Saharan Africa: Evidence from Rural-Urban Migrants in Tanzania

Cockx

Weerdt

2017

SSRN Journal

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There is rising concern that the ongoing wave of urbanization will have profound effects on eating patterns and increase the risk of nutrition-related non-communicable diseases. Yet, our understanding of urbanization as a driver of food consumption remains limited and primarily based upon research designs that fail to disentangle the effect of living in an urban environment from other socioeconomic disparities. Data from the Tanzania National Panel Survey, which tracked out-migrating respondents, allow us to compare individuals' dietary patterns before and after they relocated from rural to urban areas and assess whether those changes differ from household members who stayed behind or moved to a different rural area. We find that individuals who relocated to urban areas experience a much more pronounced shift away from the consumption of traditional staples, and towards more high-sugar, conveniently consumed and prepared foods. Contrary to what is often claimed in the literature, living in an urban environment is not found to contribute positively to the intake of protein-rich foods, nor to diet diversity. Though we do not find a strong association with weight gain, these changes in eating patterns represent a clear nutritional concern regarding the potential longer-term impacts of urbanization. Our results however also indicate that the growth of unhealthy food consumption with urbanization is largely linked to rising incomes. As such, health concerns over diets can be expected to spread rapidly to less-urbanized areas as well, as soon as income growth takes off there. Our findings clearly call for more in-depth research that may help to improve health and food and nutrition security as well as correctly predict food demand and adapt trade, agricultural and development policies.

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“…It is starting to attract attention (Sekkat, 2016;Datt, Gibson, Murgai and Ravallion, 2016;Dorosh and Thurlow, 2013;2014). One such country specific exercise, for Tanzania, a country in which the composition of urbanization has some expected and perhaps some striking features, is particularly illustrative.…”

Section: Poverty Gradients and Poverty Reductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Secondary Towns and Poverty Reduction: Refocusing the Urbanization Agenda

Christiaensen¹,

Kanbur²

2016

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Agriculture and small towns in Africa

Abstract: Journal articleIFPRI3; ISI; CRP2DSGD; PIMPRCGIAR Research Program on Policies, Institutions, and Markets (PIM

Cited by 37 publications

References 19 publications

Human–social capital and market access factors influencing agro-processing participation by small-scale agripreneurs: The moderating effects of transaction costs

Human–social capital and market access factors influencing agro-processing participation by small-scale agripreneurs: The moderating effects of transaction costs

From Corn to Popcorn? Urbanization and Food Consumption in Sub-Saharan Africa: Evidence from Rural-Urban Migrants in Tanzania

Secondary Towns and Poverty Reduction: Refocusing the Urbanization Agenda

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