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How Costly is it for Poor Farmers to Lift Themselves out of Subsistence?

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  • Olivier Cadot
  • Laure Dutoit
  • Marcelo Olarreaga

Abstract

The main objective of this paper is to provide estimates of the cost of moving out of subsistence for Madagascar's farmers. The analysis is based on a simple asset-return model of occupational choice. Estimates suggest that the entry (sunk) cost associated with moving out of subsistence can be quite large |somewhere between 124 and 153 percent of a subsistence farmer's annual production. Our results make it possible to identify farm characteristics likely to generatee large gains if moved out of subsistence, yielding useful information for the targeting of trade-adjustment assistance programs.

Suggested Citation

  • Olivier Cadot & Laure Dutoit & Marcelo Olarreaga, 2005. "How Costly is it for Poor Farmers to Lift Themselves out of Subsistence?," Cahiers de Recherches Economiques du Département d'économie 05.09, Université de Lausanne, Faculté des HEC, Département d’économie.
    • Handle: RePEc:lau:crdeep:05.09
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    Cited by:

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    2. Negash, Martha & Swinnen, Johan F.M., 2013. "Biofuels and food security: Micro-evidence from Ethiopia," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 963-976.
    3. Céline Carrere & Christopher Grigoriou, 2011. "Landlockedness, Infrastructure and Trade:New Estimates for Central Asian Countries," CERDI Working papers halshs-00556941, HAL.
    4. Grigoriou, Christopher, 2007. "Landlockedness, infrastructure and trade : new estimates for central Asian countries," Policy Research Working Paper Series 4335, The World Bank.
    5. Mekonnen, Tigist, 2017. "Impact of agricultural technology adoption on market participation in the rural social network system," MERIT Working Papers 2017-008, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    6. Narayanan, Sudha, 2014. "Profits from participation in high value agriculture: Evidence of heterogeneous benefits in contract farming schemes in Southern India," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 142-157.
    7. Christopher GRIGORIOU & Céline CARRERE, 2008. "Landlockedness, Infrastructure and Trade:New Estimates for Central Asian Countries," Working Papers 200801, CERDI.
    8. Ebata, Ayako & Velasco, Pamela & von Cramon-Taubadel, Stephan, 2015. "Distance to market and farm-gate prices of staple beans in rural Nicaragua," GlobalFood Discussion Papers 197540, Georg-August-Universitaet Goettingen, GlobalFood, Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    threshold regression; switching regression; unknown sample separation; Madagascar; subsistence; entry costs;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F10 - International Economics - - Trade - - - General
    • O12 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development
    • O19 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - International Linkages to Development; Role of International Organizations

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