Suchergebnisse

There is a continuing need to use recent and consistent multisectoral economic data to support policy analysis and the development of economywide models. Updating and estimating input-output tables and Social Accounting Matrices (SAMs) for a recent year is a difficult and a challenging problem. Typically, input-output data are collected at long intervals (usually five years or more), while national income and product data are available annually, but with a lag. Supporting data also come from a variety of sources; e.g., censuses of manufacturing, labor surveys, agricultural data, government accounts, international trade accounts, and household surveys. The traditional RAS approach requires that we start with a consistent SAM for a particular period and "update" it for a later period given new information on row and column sums. This paper extends the RAS method by proposing a flexible entropy difference approach to estimating a consistent SAM starting from inconsistent data estimated with error, a common experience in many countries. The method is flexible and powerful when dealing with scattered and inconsistent data. It allows incorporating errors in variables, inequality constraints, and prior knowledge about any part of the SAM (not just row and column sums). Since the input-output accounts are contained within the SAM framework, updating an input-output table can be viewed as a special case of the general SAM estimation problem. The paper presents the structure of a SAM and a mathematical description of the estimation problem. It then describes the classical RAS procedure and the entropy difference approach. An example of the entropy difference approach applied to the case of Mozambique is presented. In addition, an appendix includes a listing of the computer code in the GAMS language used in the procedure. ; Non-PR ; IFPRI1 ; TMD

In this study, a dynamically recursive general equilibrium model of Morocco is used to examine alternative trade and domestic policy scenarios involving the implementation of the EU Association Agreement for the period 1998-2012. The model has a detailed treatment of the agricultural and rural economy in Morocco. The results for the trade liberalization scenarios indicate that tariff unification has small aggregate effects whereas the removal of non-tariff barriers has strong positive aggregate effects: factor incomes and household welfare expand considerably more rapidly than for the base. However, trade liberalization disfavors the rural poor, especially in rainfed areas. We simulate the introduction of complementary domestic policies with a non-distorting transfer program that fully compensates the owners of rainfed resources and skill upgrading for the rural labor force. The results indicate that, if combined with at least one of these complementary domestic policies, trade liberalization can lead to a win-win outcome: the welfare of all household groups increases significantly more rapidly than if status-quo policies are followed. ; Non-PR ; IFPRI1 ; TMD

After protracted and difficult negotiations, agreement was recently reached on the dimensions of a South African-EU free trade deal. Because of South Africa's prominence in the sub-region, implementation of this agreement will have an impact not only on South Africa, but on all the SADC economies. This paper traces how this impact may be felt over time, using a multi-region model constructed to focus on the determination of sectoral and geographic trade patterns. By separatelymodeling South Africa and the rest of southern Africa, the model can be used to evaluate how alternative SADC regional trade strategies can influence how the EU deal affects the region's economies; by distinguishing among major trading partners (EU, North America, East Asia), the simulations can help illuminate how the trade deal will likely affect current trade patterns The empirical results lead to a number of conclusions: (1) trade creation dominates trade diversion for the region under all FTA arrangements; (2) the rest of southern Africa benefits from an FTA between the EU and South Africa — the recently signed bilateral agreement is not a "beggar thy neighbor" policy; (3) the rest of southern Africa gains more from zero-tariff access to EU markets than from a partial (50 percent) reduction in global tariffs; and (4) the South African economy is not large enough to serve as a growth pole for the region. Access to EU markets provides substantially bigger gains for the rest of southern Africa than does access to South Africa. ; Non-PR ; IFPRI1; TMD