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Did Rapid Smallholder-Led Agricultural Growth Fail to Reduce Rural Poverty?: Making Sense of Malawi's Poverty Puzzle

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  • Karl Pauw
  • Ulrik Beck
  • Richard Mussa

Abstract

Disappointment was widespread when rapid economic growth since 2005, coupled with a smallholder-targeted fertilizer subsidy program, failed to significantly reduce poverty in Malawi. Official estimates for 2011 showed a 1.7 percentage point decline in national poverty between 2005 and 2011, while rural poverty increased marginally. In this study we estimate an alternative set of regional poverty lines using a cost of basic needs method that allows the consumption bundle to vary spatially and temporally while ensuring utility consistency.

Suggested Citation

  • Karl Pauw & Ulrik Beck & Richard Mussa, 2014. "Did Rapid Smallholder-Led Agricultural Growth Fail to Reduce Rural Poverty?: Making Sense of Malawi's Poverty Puzzle," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2014-123, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    • Handle: RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp-2014-123
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    File URL: https://www.wider.unu.edu/sites/default/files/wp2014-123.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    5. Ecker, Olivier & Qaim, Matin, 2011. "Analyzing Nutritional Impacts of Policies: An Empirical Study for Malawi," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 39(3), pages 412-428, March.
    6. Ricker-Gilbert, Jacob E. & Mason, Nicole M. & Jayne, Thomas S. & Darko, Francis Addeah & Tembo, Solomon, 2013. "What are the effects of input subsidy programs on equilibrium maize prices? Evidence from Malawi and Zambia," 2013 Annual Meeting, August 4-6, 2013, Washington, D.C. 149259, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    7. Jacob Ricker-Gilbert & Nicole M. Mason & Francis A. Darko & Solomon T. Tembo, 2013. "What are the effects of input subsidy programs on maize prices? Evidence from Malawi and Zambia," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 44(6), pages 671-686, November.
    8. Pauw, Karl & Thurlow, James & Bachu, Murthy & Van Seventer, Dirk Ernst, 2011. "The economic costs of extreme weather events: a hydrometeorological CGE analysis for Malawi," Environment and Development Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 16(2), pages 177-198, April.
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    Cited by:

    1. Mason, Nicole & Tembo, Solomon, 2015. "Do input Subsidies Reduce Poverty among Smallholder Farm Households? Panel Survey Evidence from Zambia," 2015 Conference, August 9-14, 2015, Milan, Italy 212233, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    2. Mussa, Richard, 2015. "A regression based model of average exit time from poverty with application to Malawi," MPRA Paper 65204, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Mussa, Richard, 2017. "Poverty in Malawi: Policy Analysis with Distributional Changes," MPRA Paper 75980, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Lunduka, Rodney & Ricker-Gilbert, Jacob & Shively, Gerald & Jayne, Thom, 2014. "Redefining the goals and objectives of the Farm Input Subsidy Program (FISP) in Malawi," Food Security Collaborative Policy Briefs 234945, Michigan State University, Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics.
    5. Jeffrey Chiwuikem Chiaka & Lin Zhen, 2021. "Land Use, Environmental, and Food Consumption Patterns in Sub-Saharan Africa, 2000–2015: A Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(15), pages 1-16, July.
    6. Mason, Nicole M. & Tembo, Solomon T., 2014. "Do input subsidies reduce poverty among smallholder farm households? Evidence from Zambia," 2014 Annual Meeting, July 27-29, 2014, Minneapolis, Minnesota 170617, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    7. Griffin Mulula & Hannah M Dunga & Steven Henry Dunga, 2017. "The Effect of Farm Input Subsidy Program on Food Poverty Dynamics in Malawi," Journal of Economics and Behavioral Studies, AMH International, vol. 9(2), pages 131-142.
    8. Franziska Schuenemann & James Thurlow & Stefan Meyer & Richard Robertson & Joao Rodrigues, 2018. "Evaluating irrigation investments in Malawi: economy†wide impacts under uncertainty and labor constraints," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 49(2), pages 237-250, March.
    9. Mussa, Richard, 2017. "Poverty and Inequality in Malawi: Trends, Prospects, and Policy Simulations," MPRA Paper 75979, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    10. Westberg, Nina Bruvik, 2015. "Exchanging fertilizer for votes?," Working Paper Series 12-2015, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, School of Economics and Business.
    11. Mussa, Richard, 2017. "To Err is Human: Inconsistencies in Food Conversion Factors and Inequality in Malawi," MPRA Paper 75981, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. Ulrik Beck & Karl Pauw & Richard Mussa, 2015. "Methods matter: The sensitivity of Malawian poverty estimates to definitions, data, and assumptions," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2015-126, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    13. Ulrik Beck & Karl Pauw & Richard Mussa, 2015. "Methods matter: The sensitivity of Malawian poverty estimates to definitions,data, and assumptions," WIDER Working Paper Series 126, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    14. Mussa, Richard, 2015. "A joint analysis of correlates of poverty intensity, incidence, and gap with application to Malawi," MPRA Paper 65205, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    15. Mason, Nicole M. & Tembo, Solomon T., 2015. "Do Input Subsidy Programs Raise Incomes and Reduce Poverty among Smallholder Farm Households? Evidence from Zambia," Food Security Collaborative Working Papers 198702, Michigan State University, Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics.
    16. Mussa, Richard, 2017. "Contextual Effects of Education on Poverty in Malawi," MPRA Paper 75976, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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