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The Impact of Food Price Volatility on Consumer Welfare in Cameroon

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  • Gilles Quentin Kane
  • Gwladys Laure Mabah Tene
  • Jean Joël Ambagna
  • Isabelle Piot-Lepetit
  • Fondo Sikod

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to analyse the welfare effects of food price volatility on Cameroonian consumers. Using data from the third Cameroonian Household Consumption Surveys, the price elasticities are obtained from a Quadratic Almost Ideal Demand System model. Price elasticities are then used to evaluate the distributional impacts of food price changes in terms of compensating variation. The paper finds that: (a) poor households are the most affected by food price volatility and (b) the welfare losses from food price volatility depend on the extent of any price hike.

Suggested Citation

  • Gilles Quentin Kane & Gwladys Laure Mabah Tene & Jean Joël Ambagna & Isabelle Piot-Lepetit & Fondo Sikod, 2015. "The Impact of Food Price Volatility on Consumer Welfare in Cameroon," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2015-013, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    • Handle: RePEc:unu:wpaper:wp-2015-013
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    Cited by:

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    2. Ebenezer Lemven Wirba & Francis Menjo Baye, 2016. "Accounting for Urban-Rural Real Food Expenditure Differentials in Cameroon: A Quantile Regression-Based Decomposition," EuroEconomica, Danubius University of Galati, issue 2(35), pages 61-77, November.
    3. Prifti, Ervin & Daidone, Silvio & Miguelez, Borja, 2017. "Impact of increases in food prices on consumer welfare in Lesotho," African Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, African Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 12(1), March.
    4. Krah, Kwabena, 2023. "Maize price variability, land use change, and forest loss: evidence from Ghana," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 125(C).

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