Book Description
This systematic review attempts to answer the question: "What is the evidence for, and nature of, the impact of development interventions on food security in developing countries?." A combination of 38 qualified case studies plus 46 other reviews are used to evaluate the impact of interventions aimed at increasing production, developing value chains, reforming market regulations, and improving land security. Although the subject is rather comprehensive for a review of this size, a few interesting conclusions come out. Increased production in Asia has been the result of increased yield, but also of increased labour productivity that reduced production costs and food prices -- which benefited poor consumers, while farmers compensated their low prices with higher yields and off-farm income. Value chain development increased farm income, but so far there is little indication that most vulnerable people benefited. Market reform had poor results if it simply consisted of reducing trade barriers and reducing government support to agriculture, but had good results when there was a gradual shift of roles from government to (new) institutions and private sector. Land tenure security has encouraged farmer investments, and was an important part of the economic reform in China and Vietnam. The best results were achieved by combinations of interventions, in a context where other pre-conditions were already met.
