IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jfpoli/v74y2018icp9-22.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Do development projects crowd-out private sector activities? Evidence from contract farming participation in Northern Ghana

Author

Listed:
  • Lambrecht, Isabel Brigitte
  • Ragasa, Catherine

Abstract

Contract farming (CF) is attractive as a possible private sector-led strategy for improving market coordination and smallholder farmers’ welfare. At the same time, governmental and non-governmental development projects aimed at improving farmers’ welfare continue to be organized. It is not uncommon for CF activities and development projects to take place in the same communities. Yet so far there is no evidence on how development projects affect CF activities. We examine factors affecting entry in and exit from different maize CF schemes in Northern Ghana, and focus specifically on the role of development projects. We find that the presence of agricultural development projects in the community is associated with lower scheme entry, but this not the case for non-agricultural projects. CF exit is more strongly associated with maize projects, but not significantly with non-maize or non-agricultural projects. Thus, our findings do not support concerns of a general moral hazard problem arising from the presence of any development project, but indicate possible negative associations of more closely related agricultural or maize projects with maize CF participation.

Suggested Citation

  • Lambrecht, Isabel Brigitte & Ragasa, Catherine, 2018. "Do development projects crowd-out private sector activities? Evidence from contract farming participation in Northern Ghana," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 9-22.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jfpoli:v:74:y:2018:i:c:p:9-22
    DOI: 10.1016/j.foodpol.2017.11.001
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306919217305080
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.foodpol.2017.11.001?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Maertens, Miet & Vande Velde, Katrien, 2017. "Contract-farming in Staple Food Chains: The Case of Rice in Benin," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 73-87.
    2. Catherine Ragasa & Suzanne Thornsbury & Satish Joshi, 2017. "Dynamics of EU food safety certification: a survival analysis of firm decisions," Agricultural and Food Economics, Springer;Italian Society of Agricultural Economics (SIDEA), vol. 5(1), pages 1-25, December.
    3. Jenny C. Aker, 2011. "Dial “A” for Agriculture: A Review of Information and Communication Technologies for Agricultural Extension in Developing Countries - Working Paper 269," Working Papers 269, Center for Global Development.
    4. Catherine Ragasa & Suzanne Thornsbury & Satish Joshi, 2011. "Are Food Certification Costs Misestimated? Exporter‐Perspective on the European Standard," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 62(3), pages 669-689, September.
    5. Richard D. Morgenstern & William A. Pizer & Jhih-Shyang Shih, 2001. "The Cost Of Environmental Protection," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 83(4), pages 732-738, November.
    6. Barrett, Christopher B., 2008. "Smallholder market participation: Concepts and evidence from eastern and southern Africa," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 299-317, August.
    7. Shenggen Fan & Ashok Gulati & Sukhadeo Thorat, 2008. "Investment, subsidies, and pro‐poor growth in rural India," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 39(2), pages 163-170, September.
    8. Deb, Rahul & Suri, Tavneet, 2013. "Endogenous emergence of credit markets: Contracting in response to a new technology in Ghana," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 268-283.
    9. Maertens, Miet & Swinnen, Johan F.M., 2009. "Trade, Standards, and Poverty: Evidence from Senegal," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 37(1), pages 161-178, January.
    10. Singh, Sukhpal, 2002. "Contracting Out Solutions: Political Economy of Contract Farming in the Indian Punjab," 2002 ASAE 3rd International Conference, October 18-20, Jaipur, India 294714, Asian Society of Agricultural Economists (ASAE).
    11. Marcel Fafchamps & Bart Minten, 2012. "Impact of SMS-Based Agricultural Information on Indian Farmers," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 26(3), pages 383-414.
    12. Hope C. Michelson, 2013. "Small Farmers, NGOs, and a Walmart World: Welfare Effects of Supermarkets Operating in Nicaragua," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 95(3), pages 628-649.
    13. T.S. Jayne & David Mather & Nicole Mason & Jacob Ricker-Gilbert, 2013. "How do fertilizer subsidy programs affect total fertilizer use in sub-Saharan Africa? Crowding out, diversion, and benefit/cost assessments," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 44(6), pages 687-703, November.
    14. Bellemare, Marc F., 2012. "As You Sow, So Shall You Reap: The Welfare Impacts of Contract Farming," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 40(7), pages 1418-1434.
    15. Deon Filmer & Lant Pritchett, 2001. "Estimating Wealth Effects Without Expenditure Data—Or Tears: An Application To Educational Enrollments In States Of India," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 38(1), pages 115-132, February.
    16. Irene Brambilla & Guido G. Porto, 2011. "Market structure, outgrower contracts, and farm output. Evidence from cotton reforms in Zambia," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 63(4), pages 740-766, December.
    17. Minot, Nicholas & Sawyer, Bradley, 2016. "Contract farming in developing countries: Theory, practice, and policy implications," IFPRI book chapters, in: Devaux, André & Torero, Maximo & Donovan, Jason & Horton, Douglas E. (ed.), Innovation for inclusive value-chain development: Successes and challenges, chapter 4, pages 127-158, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    18. Poulton, Colin & Dorward, Andrew & Kydd, Jonathan, 2010. "The Future of Small Farms: New Directions for Services, Institutions, and Intermediation," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 38(10), pages 1413-1428, October.
    19. de Janvry, Alain & Fafchamps, Marcel & Sadoulet, Elisabeth, 1991. "Peasant Household Behaviour with Missing Markets: Some Paradoxes Explained," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 101(409), pages 1400-1417, November.
    20. Jenny C. Aker, 2011. "Dial “A” for agriculture: a review of information and communication technologies for agricultural extension in developing countries," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 42(6), pages 631-647, November.
    21. Johan F. M. Swinnen & Miet Maertens, 2007. "Globalization, privatization, and vertical coordination in food value chains in developing and transition countries," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 37(s1), pages 89-102, December.
    22. Hope C. Michelson, 2017. "Influence of Neighbor Experience and Exit on Small Farmer Market Participation," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 99(4), pages 952-970.
    23. Markus Goldstein & Christopher Udry, 2008. "The Profits of Power: Land Rights and Agricultural Investment in Ghana," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 116(6), pages 981-1022, December.
    24. Narrod, Clare & Roy, Devesh & Okello, Julius & Avendaño, Belem & Rich, Karl & Thorat, Amit, 2009. "Public-private partnerships and collective action in high value fruit and vegetable supply chains," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 34(1), pages 8-15, February.
    25. Roll, Richard, 1986. "The Hubris Hypothesis of Corporate Takeovers," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 59(2), pages 197-216, April.
    26. Colin Poulton & Andrew Dorward & Jonathan Kydd, 1998. "The revival of smallholder cash crops in Africa: public and private roles in the provision of finance," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 10(1), pages 85-103.
    27. Masakure, Oliver & Henson, Spencer, 2005. "Why do small-scale producers choose to produce under contract? Lessons from nontraditional vegetable exports from Zimbabwe," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 33(10), pages 1721-1733, October.
    28. de Janvry, Alain & Fafchamps, M. & Sadoulet, Elisabeth, 1991. "Peasant Household Behavior with Missing Markets: Some Paradoxes Explain," CUDARE Working Papers 198579, University of California, Berkeley, Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics.
    29. Barrett, Christopher B. & Bachke, Maren E. & Bellemare, Marc F. & Michelson, Hope C. & Narayanan, Sudha & Walker, Thomas F., 2012. "Smallholder Participation in Contract Farming: Comparative Evidence from Five Countries," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 40(4), pages 715-730.
    30. Reardon, Thomas & Barrett, Christopher B. & Berdegué, Julio A. & Swinnen, Johan F.M., 2009. "Agrifood Industry Transformation and Small Farmers in Developing Countries," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 37(11), pages 1717-1727, November.
    31. Bellemare, Marc F., 2015. "Contract Farming: What’s In It for Smallholder Farmers in Developing Countries?," Choices: The Magazine of Food, Farm, and Resource Issues, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 30(3), pages 1-4, September.
    32. Key, Nigel & Runsten, David, 1999. "Contract Farming, Smallholders, and Rural Development in Latin America: The Organization of Agroprocessing Firms and the Scale of Outgrower Production," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 27(2), pages 381-401, February.
    33. Ragasa, Catherine & Mazunda, John & Kadzamira, Mariam, 2015. "The national extension policy of Malawi – lessons from implementation:," MaSSP policy notes 23, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    34. Kelly, Valerie & Adesina, Akinwumi A. & Gordon, Ann, 2003. "Expanding access to agricultural inputs in Africa: a review of recent market development experience," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 28(4), pages 379-404, August.
    35. Singh, Sukhpal, 2002. "Contracting Out Solutions: Political Economy of Contract Farming in the Indian Punjab," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 30(9), pages 1621-1638, September.
    36. H. Holly Wang & Yanbing Wang & Michael S. Delgado, 2014. "The Transition to Modern Agriculture: Contract Farming in Developing Economies," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 96(5), pages 1257-1271.
    37. David Boselie & Spencer Henson & Dave Weatherspoon, 2003. "Supermarket Procurement Practices in Developing Countries: Redefining the Roles of the Public and Private Sectors," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 85(5), pages 1155-1161.
    38. Abebe, Gumataw K. & Bijman, Jos & Kemp, Ron & Omta, Onno & Tsegaye, Admasu, 2013. "Contract farming configuration: Smallholders’ preferences for contract design attributes," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 14-24.
    39. Zhiying Xu & William J. Burke & Thomas S. Jayne & Jones Govereh, 2009. "Do input subsidy programs “crowd in” or “crowd out” commercial market development? Modeling fertilizer demand in a two‐channel marketing system," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 40(1), pages 79-94, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Yehia Zahran & Hazem S. Kassem & Shimaa M. Naba & Bader Alhafi Alotaibi, 2020. "Shifting from Fragmentation to Integration: A Proposed Framework for Strengthening Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation System in Egypt," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-25, June.
    2. Ellen Mangnus & A.C.M. (Guus) Van Westen, 2018. "Roaming through the Maze of Maize in Northern Ghana. A Systems Approach to Explore the Long-Term Effects of a Food Security Intervention," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-19, October.
    3. Ola, Oreoluwa & Menapace, Luisa, 2020. "A meta-analysis understanding smallholder entry into high-value markets," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 135(C).
    4. Ola, Oreoluwa & Menapace, Luisa, 2020. "Smallholders' perceptions and preferences for market attributes promoting sustained participation in modern agricultural value chains," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    5. Bellemare, Marc F. & Bloem, Jeffrey R., 2018. "Does contract farming improve welfare? A review," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 259-271.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Lambrecht, Isabel & Ragasa, Catherine, 2016. "Do development projects crowd out private-sector activities? A survival analysis of contract farming participation in northern Ghana," IFPRI discussion papers 1575, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    2. Ragasa, Catherine & Lambrecht, Isabel & Kufoalor, Doreen S., 2018. "Limitations of Contract Farming as a Pro-poor Strategy: The Case of Maize Outgrower Schemes in Upper West Ghana," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 30-56.
    3. Bellemare, Marc F. & Bloem, Jeffrey R., 2018. "Does contract farming improve welfare? A review," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 259-271.
    4. Ba, Hélène A. & de Mey, Yann & Thoron, Sylvie & Demont, Matty, 2019. "Inclusiveness of contract farming along the vertical coordination continuum: Evidence from the Vietnamese rice sector," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    5. Arouna, Aminou & Michler, Jeffrey D. & Lokossou, Jourdain C., 2021. "Contract farming and rural transformation: Evidence from a field experiment in Benin," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 151(C).
    6. Maertens, Miet & Vande Velde, Katrien, 2017. "Contract-farming in Staple Food Chains: The Case of Rice in Benin," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 73-87.
    7. Abebe, Gumataw K. & Bijman, Jos & Kemp, Ron & Omta, Onno & Tsegaye, Admasu, 2013. "Contract farming configuration: Smallholders’ preferences for contract design attributes," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 14-24.
    8. Sylvaine Lemeilleur, 2014. "The role of input vouchers in modernizing the fresh fruit and vegetable market in Turkey," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 45(4), pages 477-487, July.
    9. Ola, Oreoluwa & Menapace, Luisa, 2020. "A meta-analysis understanding smallholder entry into high-value markets," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 135(C).
    10. Delelegne A. Tefera & Jos Bijman, 2021. "Economics of contracts in African food systems: evidence from the malt barley sector in Ethiopia," Agricultural and Food Economics, Springer;Italian Society of Agricultural Economics (SIDEA), vol. 9(1), pages 1-21, December.
    11. Adu-Gyamfi Poku & Regina Birner & Saurabh Gupta, 2018. "Making Contract Farming Arrangements Work in Africa’s Bioeconomy: Evidence from Cassava Outgrower Schemes in Ghana," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-21, May.
    12. repec:oup:apecpp:v:40:y:2018:i:3:p:379-401. is not listed on IDEAS
    13. Neda Trifković, 2014. "Governance Strategies and Welfare Effects: Vertical Integration and Contracts in the Catfish Sector in Vietnam," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 50(7), pages 949-961, July.
    14. Minot, Nicholas & Sawyer, Bradley, 2016. "Contract farming in developing countries: Theory, practice, and policy implications," IFPRI book chapters, in: Devaux, André & Torero, Maximo & Donovan, Jason & Horton, Douglas E. (ed.), Innovation for inclusive value-chain development: Successes and challenges, chapter 4, pages 127-158, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    15. Oreoluwa Ola & Luisa Menapace, 2020. "Revisiting constraints to smallholder participation in high‐value markets: A best‐worst scaling approach," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 51(4), pages 595-608, July.
    16. Ochieng, Dennis O. & Veettil, Prakashan C. & Qaim, Matin, 2017. "Farmers’ preferences for supermarket contracts in Kenya," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 100-111.
    17. Khan, Muhammad Fawad & Nakano, Yuko & Kurosaki, Takashi, 2019. "Impact of contract farming on land productivity and income of maize and potato growers in Pakistan," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 28-39.
    18. Kashi Kafle & Tisorn Songsermsawas & Paul Winters, 2022. "Agricultural value chain development in Nepal: Understanding mechanisms for poverty reduction," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 53(3), pages 356-373, May.
    19. Hisatoshi Hoken & Qun Su, 2018. "Measuring the effect of agricultural cooperatives on household income: Case study of a rice‐producing cooperative in China," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 34(4), pages 831-846, October.
    20. Fanny Widadie & Jos Bijman & Jacques Trienekens, 2021. "Farmer preferences in contracting with modern retail in Indonesia: A choice experiment," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 37(2), pages 371-392, April.
    21. Nguyen Hung Anh & Wolfgang Bokelmann & Ngo Thi Thuan & Do Thi Nga & Nguyen Van Minh, 2019. "Smallholders’ Preferences for Different Contract Farming Models: Empirical Evidence from Sustainable Certified Coffee Production in Vietnam," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(14), pages 1-26, July.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jfpoli:v:74:y:2018:i:c:p:9-22. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/foodpol .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.