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Gender differentials in farm productivity

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  • Alderman, Harold
  • Hoddinott, John
  • Haddad, Lawrence James
  • Udry, Christopher

Abstract

Within many African households, agricultural production is simultaneously carried out on many plots controlled by different members of the household. Detailed plot-level agronomic data from Burkina Faso provides striking evidence of inefficiencies in the allocation of factors of production across the plots controlled by different members of the household. Production function estimates imply that the value of household output could be increased by 10 to 20 percent by reallocating currently-used factors of production across plots. This finding contradicts standard models of agricultural households. A richer model of behavior, which recognizes that the individuals who comprise a household compete as well as cooperate, has important implications for the structure of agricultural production and for the design of agricultural policy.

Suggested Citation

  • Alderman, Harold & Hoddinott, John & Haddad, Lawrence James & Udry, Christopher, 1995. "Gender differentials in farm productivity," FCND discussion papers 6, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    • Handle: RePEc:fpr:fcnddp:6
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Charlier, Erwin & Melenberg, Bertrand & van Soest, Arthur, 2000. "Estimation of a censored regression panel data model using conditional moment restrictions efficiently," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 95(1), pages 25-56, March.
    3. Mina Baliamoune-Lutz, 2007. "Gender Inequality and Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa and Arab Countries," ICER Working Papers 25-2007, ICER - International Centre for Economic Research.
    4. Irene van Staveren, 2013. "How gendered institutions constrain women’s empowerment," Chapters, in: Deborah M. Figart & Tonia L. Warnecke (ed.), Handbook of Research on Gender and Economic Life, chapter 10, pages 150-166, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    5. Fatma El-Hamidi & Ragui Assaad & Ahmed Akhter, 2000. "The Determinants of Employment Status in Egypt," Working Paper 269, Department of Economics, University of Pittsburgh, revised Sep 2006.

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