agriculture importance

Markets, Chains and Sustainable Development
Strategy & Policy paper 4

The role of agriculture in economic development

GERDIEN MEIJERINK & PIM ROZA

April 2007

Markets, Chains and Sustainable Development
Strategy & Policy Papers

Key words:
Rural livelihoods, small farms, globalisation

Recommended Citation:
Meijerink, G. & P. Roza. 2007. The role of agriculture in development. Markets, Chains and Sustainable
Development Strategy and Policy Paper, no. 5. Stichting DLO: Wageningen. Available at: http://www.boci.wur.nl/UK/Publications/ About the author(s):
Gerdien Meijerink is an economist and Pim Roza is a political scientist at the Agricultural Economics
Research Institute (LEI) of Wageningen University and Research Center.

© Copyright Stichting DLO, 2007
Readers are encouraged to use, quote or reproduce material from the Markets, Chains and
Sustainable Development Strategy & Policy Papers. In the case of reproduction Stichting DLO, as copyright holder, requests due acknowledgement and a copy of the publication. The papers are not for commercial purposes or gain in any way.

ISBN

978-90-8585-151-6

Available online at: http://www.boci.wur.nl/UK/Publications/
Free electronic distribution

Table of Contents
Table of Contents ___________________________________________________________ 3
The role of agriculture in economic development _________________________________ 1
1.

Introduction _______________________________________________________________ 1

2.

Agriculture and economic growth _____________________________________________ 2

3.

Drivers of change ___________________________________________________________ 6

4.

Economic development and pro-poor growth ___________________________________ 10

5.

Linkages between agricultural and non-agricultural sector _______________________ 14

6.

Inclusion and exclusion: the role of small farms _________________________________ 19

7.

Discussion

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