In developing countries poverty is generally measured with expenditure data. Such data are difficult and costly to obtain and it is generally recommended to collect them every 3-5 years. In between surveys, however, there is...

Countries in the ACP region will face significant challenges in the years to come as they try to step up economic growth, deal with increasingly integrated world markets and meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs),...

This paper presents the construction of a spatially explicit, nationally disaggregated measure of poverty over time in Costa Rica. The paper first describes the two possible methods considered for the construction of a poverty map:...

We review claims about the potential for carbon markets that link both payments for carbon services and poverty levels to ongoing rates of tropical deforestation. We then examine these effects empirically for Costa Rica during...

We summarize existing theoretical claims linking poverty to rates of deforestation and then examine this linkage empirically for Costa Rica during the 20th century using an econometric approach that addresses the irreversibilities in deforestation. Our...

The Food Security and Agricultural Projects Analysis Unit (ESAF) of FAO has undertaken a number of pilot studies to develop a methodology for understanding why certain groups of people are vulnerable to becoming food insecure....

Rapid economic and income growth, urbanization, and globalization are leading to a dramatic shift of Asian diets away from staples and increasingly towards livestock and dairy products, vegetables and fruit, and fats and oils. While...

Using an ethnographic approach, this study explores small-scale farmers’ perceived transaction costs in relation to maize seed acquisition in the Central Valleys of Oaxaca. These farmers have different needs and require seed of diverse maize...

Agriculture and livestock are key components of the livelihoods of the poor. Livestock make a substantial contribution to household livelihoods’ and currently sustain the livelihoods of an estimated 700 million rural poor in developing countries....

Adequate public research capacity is key to the appropriate development of biotechnology, including genetically modified (GM) crops. While commercial crops can be introduced without intensive local research (i.e. insect resistant GM cotton), introducing products of...