Environmental Economics & Policies; Agricultural Research; Banks
& Banking Reform; Rural Development Knowledge & Information
Systems; Rural Land Policies for Poverty Reduction 1 of 1
Summary: Interest in farmland is rising. And, given commodity
price volatility, growing human and environmental pressures, and
worries about food security, this interest will increase,
especially in the developing world. One of the highest
development priorities in the world must be to improve
smallholder agricultural productivity, especially in Africa.
Smallholder productivity is essential for reducing poverty and
hunger, and more and better investment in agricultural
technology, infrastructure, and market access for poor farmers
is urgently needed. When done right, larger-scale farming
systems can also have a place as one of many tools to promote
sustainable agricultural and rural development, and can directly
support smallholder productivity, for example, throughout grower
programs. However, recent press and other reports abou