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During the recent food crisis, developing countries responded with a wide variety of policy responses to protect their population. Understanding the policy-making process in developing countries is important to know why such policy responses are made and how various actors and players shape up and influence the policy decision-making. In this paper we develop a framework for analysing the policy process in developing countries and apply it to study the food policy process during the food price crisis in selected countries. A synthesis of policy process analysis in 14 developing countries indicate that policy responses may differ depending on the nature and magnitude of roles of various types of actors and players in the policy process. Political institutions and organizational infrastructure for policy consultations, strategic analysis, knowledge management and monitoring, and timely warning of food crisis and its impact can determine the policy process and its outcomes. Several lessons for improving the policy process are derived from the country studies.

Intro -- Preface -- Contents -- About the Authors -- List of Acronyms -- Chapter 1: Introduction -- References -- Chapter 2: Food Security and Global Agri-Food Trade -- 2.1 Concept of Food Security -- 2.2 The State of Global Food Security -- UN Sustainable Development Goals -- 2.3 The Role of Trade in Providing Food Security -- 2.4 Food Security and Support -- Non-tariff Barriers to Trade -- 2.5 Trade Policy and Food Security -- Trade Reforms and Food Security: Global Evidence -- 2.6 Conclusion -- Appendix 2.1 -- References -- Chapter 3: Competitiveness: Definitions, Theories and Measurement -- 3.1 Definitions of Competitiveness -- The Concept of Mezo-Level Competitiveness -- 3.2 Theories on Competitiveness -- 3.2.1 Micro Level Theories -- 3.2.2 Macro Level Theories -- 3.3 Competitiveness Measurement -- 3.3.1 Micro Level Measures -- 3.3.2 Macro Level Measures -- The Most Competitive Nations in the World -- 3.4 Conceptual Framework -- 3.5 Conclusion -- References -- Chapter 4: Who Feeds the World?: Global Agricultural Trade Patterns -- 4.1 Background -- 4.2 Basic Patterns of Global Agricultural Trade -- 4.3 Global Agricultural and Food Trade by Country and Product -- The Success of Vietnam´s Coffee Exports -- 4.4 Who Feeds the World? -- Classifications Measuring Trade Performance -- 4.4.1 Rich Net Food Net Exporters -- From Transition to the Market: Insights to Agri-Food Trade Patterns of Central and Eastern European Countries -- 4.4.2 Emerging Net Food Exporters -- 4.4.3 Self-Sufficient Countries -- Food Self-Sufficiency and International Trade: An Ongoing Debate -- 4.4.4 Rich Net Food Importers -- 4.4.5 Low Income Net Food Importers -- 4.5 Reasons Behind the Changing Global Food System -- 4.6 Conclusions -- Trade of Commodities Versus Trade of Calories -- Appendices.

The book combines food security and agricultural competitiveness issues and treat them together. It starts with definitions and evolution of both concepts, followed by reviews on global and regional food security challenges. The book identifies global agricultural trade and competitiveness patterns and uses it as a basis for analysing global food security. Further, the book also identifies countries/regions/products groups and develops a typology of agricultural competitiveness, giving policy lessons and recommendations on how to increase national/regional/global agricultural competitiveness to achieve sustainable food security goals. The motivation behind writing such a book are numerous. First, as researchers interested in both food security and agricultural competitiveness issues, we have always found a gap in the scientific literature in treating the two notions together. Second, as lecturers of various agricultural policy and food security related courses, we have many times been faced with questions related to the competitive positions of different countries and the factors lying behind these positions. Third, as economic advisors, we have been faced with the need to provide clear policy recommendations and lessons on how increase competitiveness and associated food security many times. Such a need is mainly coming from developing country policy and decision makers. We think the book is unique in many ways. First, it provides a consistent analysis of global agricultural trade patterns over 25 years. Second, it analyzes and synthetizes the definitions, concepts and measurement methods of competitiveness, covering a major gap in the current literature. Third, it establishes a link between the analysis of global agricultural competitiveness and food security, which is also an understudied area. Finally, the book provides policy lessons to increase a country's agricultural competitiveness and food security by identifying its determinants.

AbstractRecent economic relations including foreign assistance scenario in Africa show expansion of China and India as emerging bilateral partners, competing with traditional countries in Europe and North America. The results of this paper found that the relationship of China and India with Zimbabwe has resulted in several challenges including increasing resource‐backed debt burden, exploitation of the natural resources, and flouting of constitutional, environmental, and labor provisions. The paper recommends that the Zimbabwean government must demand loans and investments that are contracted under clear terms and conditions, with parliamentary oversight and public scrutiny to avoid abuse by the elites.

This chapter focuses on how building and strengthening capacity at the individual and institutional levels can in turn strengthen agriculture– nutrition linkages. It focuses on two specific aspects of capacity. First, it highlights ways in which universities, organizations, and governments are working to improve cross-sectoral educational opportunities for students. Second, it explores how extension and agricultural services could be made more nutrition-sensitive by improving their content or the capacity of extension workers through formal education and training, in turn improving farmers' understanding of agriculture–nutrition linkages within production, on-farm processing, storage, and marketing; and consumers' purchasing decisions (FAO, 2014). Finally, it reflects on lessons that can be learned from efforts to increase capacity at these critical levels. ; PR ; IFPRI2 ; DGO; CPA

In order to analyse the effects of policy reforms, output supply and factor demand responses to input and output prices for Malawian agriculture are estimated in this article in a multiple-output, multiple-input framework. The implications of various structural adjustment policies implemented in Malawi are analysed using the model results for their impact on the smallholder agricultural sector. The results of the analysis indicate that removal of fertiliser subsidy - a major component of market reform policies - does not substantially reduce the production of maize, the major staple food in Malawi. However, when implemented in appropriate sequence along with other output market liberalisation policies and increased investment in infrastructure, such a policy is likely to increase the productivity of smallholder agriculture. (Dev South Afr/DÜI)

Limited capacity for environmental and natural resource policy analysis in developing countries and the limited resources for capacity strengthening call for reorganizing methods of training programs by identifying the factors that would enhance their relevance in meeting the policy capacity needs. This paper, based on a case study of Malawi, aims to provide some pointers for those involved in environmental and natural resource policy analysis training to generate a dialogue that may result in improved training programs. The relevance of the currently offered training courses to environmental and natural resource policy reforms is discussed. The constraints and challenges faced by the organizers of the training courses in redesigning them to meet the constantly changing policy environment in developing countries are presented. It is argued that there is a need for rethinking methods of training in environmental and natural resource policy analysis to meet the changing needs of policy decision-making in developing countries." -- Online Abstract ; IFPRI3; ISI; Capacity Strengthening ; COM ; PR