Agricultural Growth and Sustainability: Conditions for Their Compatibility in the Rainfed Production Systems of West Asia and North Africa

1
Agricultural Growth and Sustainability
Conditions for Their Compatibility in the
Rainfed Production Systems of West Asia and North
Africa

2
Introduction

• The region of West Asia and North Africa (so
  called WANA) is characterized by
• High population growth rates
• Large and rapidly increasing food deficits
• Highly variable income levels both within and
  between countries
• Limited natural resources, particularly arable
  land and water
• Notice that
• All the lands can be divided into 3 main
  categories
• Higher potential areas
• the Barely and the Steppe Zone
• the Highlands.

3
Conditions of recent Agricultural Growth in WANA

• The 1970s were good times(price rises)
• Consequences
• Increased Government spending
• Rapid urbanization
• Labor migration
• Rising incomes
• Changes in terms of types of food desired
• Fundamental ideas
• Strong growth in physical output and consequently
  in agricultural GDP
• Input subsidies, support prices, availability of
  credit encouraged farmers investments
• A different examination must be done for the most
  disadvantaged rural populations.

4
The Higher potential zone

• From 1960s to 1990s its function has been to
  provide urban populations with food and
  industrial crops
• Main features
• Small farmers with access to irrigation have
  invested in glass or plastic houses for the
  production of High value horticultural crops for
  the growing urban market.
• The intensification has had a negative impact on
  the Resource Base(rapid depletion of groundwater
  aquifers).
• Research has shown that
• It is necessary to introduce new technical
  strategies1)the use of technical inputs,2)
  research on disease management,3)genetic
  improvement of principal crops,4)improvements in
  soil water use efficiency.

5
The Barely and Steppe Zone

• The region has experienced a substantial increase
  in animal numbers in the 1970s and 1980s and
  consequently a shortfall in animal feed.
• WHY?
• Increased demand for animal products
• Government policies that tend to allow high
  prices for livestock products
• Low opportunity costs for small producers
• As a consequence there have been many changes in
  traditional livestock production systems
• In the past movements of transhumant flacks
  regulated by seasonal forage availability
• Modern system instead are characterized by
  vehicular transport of animals
• Possible consequence for the natural resource
  baseDESERTIFICATION

6
The Highlands I

• Populations in highland regions tend to be
  dispersed and isolated from major economic
  centres
• Historically they have received little attention
  from urban-dominated central Governments
• Because of their relative physical, political and
  economic isolation, the less-favoured regions
  receive fewer Government services, such as roads,
  water supplies and electricity
• Possible solution the de-intensification
  strategy
• Deployment and use of agricultural labor

7
The Highlands II

• Considerations
• Migrations for poor farmers in highland Yemen,
  eastern Turkey and elsewhere led to a much better
  quality of life for families remaining at home
  and receiving remittances
• The main activity is still production of
  traditional cereal crops
• High elevation areas with cold winters and a
  limited growing season share a common problem
  with steppe lands in the limited range of
  enterprises that the environment allows
• Possible strategies
• Identify the opportunities for sustainable
  agricultural development
• Give high priority to livestock production,
  traditionally of importance in these areas

8
Conclusions

• Small producers have been surprisingly persistent
  despite frequent predictions of larger firms due
  to
• Sharply rising opportunity cost of labor
• Intensification and commercialization of
  production over the past generation
• Economic success of small-producers can cause
  resource degradations
• Possible solutions
• Adaptive Research
• Exploration of policy alternatives

9

• Giuseppe Ruggiero
• Italia
• giusepperuggie_at_hotmail.com