No Thumbnail Available

Comparative Advantages of selected Syrian agro-food commodity chains: implications for policy formulation

Assistance for Capacity Building Through Enhancing Operation of the National Agricultural Policy Centre

Year of publication 2004

Pages 50

Author South-South and Resources Mobilization Division

Product type Book (stand-alone)

Edition 1

Synopsis (short abstract) The assessment of the comparative advantages of a given productive system encompasses a broad range of conceptual works emanating from cost-benefit analysis and the theory of international trade. The basic concept is that an economic activity in a given country has a comparative advantage as far as it can compete with alternative source of supply through import without benefiting from any specific support from the rest of the economy under the form of transfer of resources. The comparative adva ntage of productive systems is measured through the computation of several accounting entities and ratios that have been gradually developed through applied research. In the eighties these different methods have been consolidated into one method named the Policy Analysis Matrix (PAM), three lines by three columns table containing all the different accounting values and derived ratios needed for the analysis of the comparative advantage. This analytical framework has been widely used to assist in decision making to monitor trade liberalization process in European, South-East Asian and Sub-Saharan countries from the eighties onward.

Language English

Also available in:
No results found.

Related items

Showing items related by metadata.

  • Thumbnail Image
    Document
    Global Agro-food Value Chains: new evidence from SSA 2016
    Also available in:
    No results found.
    In the past twenty years, production has been increasingly unbundled and shared across many countries at different levels of development. The common perception is that Africa, contrary to Latin America, Asia, and China in particular, has not been able so far to intercept the main changes in trade patterns nor enter massively into global production networks. By using the EORA Input-Output Tables and applying for the first time to this data the gross exports decomposition method provided by Wang e t al. (2013), we analyze the Global Value Chain participation and position of Sub-Saharan African countries with a focus on global agro-food chains. Results show that, despite the low trade shares at the global level, SSA agricultural sector is deeply involved in GVC participation and the relevance of its international linkages is increasing over time, although still limited to upstream (likely unprocessed) production stages of the chain. Furthermore, we show that the demand pull for SSA agricul tural production is not regional but mainly driven by the EU and emerging countries.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Booklet
    Background Notes on Sustainable, Productive and Resilient Agro-Food Systems: Value chains, human capital, and the 2030 Agenda
    A Report to the G20 Agriculture Deputies July 2019
    2019
    Also available in:
    No results found.
    Agricultural production more than tripled between 1960 and 2015, owing in part to productivity-enhancing technologies and a significant expansion in the use of land, water, and other natural resources for agricultural purposes. Today, more than ever, agriculture faces multiple and complex challenges. It has to provide sufficient, safe, and nutritious food to meet boosting demand by a growing and progressively more prosperous population, and ensure food security for all. Prepared to support the G20 Presidency of Japan and the G20 Agriculture Deputies, these three background notes provide an overview on the following interlinked issues: (i) the policy challenges for strengthening the participation of farmers into modern value chains and promoting value addition, inclusion, sustainability and rural economic growth; (ii) the need for a transformation in the skillset of agricultural workers and a renewed focus on human capital development in agriculture, and (iii) the contribution of agriculture to the realization of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Project
    Building Capacity of MOSS-Supported Beneficiaries in the Targeted Governorates through Stimulating Agriculture and the Agro-Food Value Chain - TCP/EGY/3804 2025
    Also available in:
    No results found.
    Egypt faces significant food security challenges, particularly in Upper Egypt, where 49 percent of residents cannot cover their own basic needs. Most landowners possess less than one feddan, and financial support from the Ministry of Social Solidarity (MOSS) has gradually become insufficient in meeting the basic needs of food-insecure residents due to rising food prices. In response, the MOSS sought FAO assistance to support the nationally led Fostering Opportunities in Rural Southern Areas (FORSA) project, which aimed to economically empower recipients of financial support and smallholders by transforming them into independent producers through various income-generating activities to enhance the agrifood value chain. The horticulture sector in Egypt remains highly fragmented. On one hand, large-scale farms, located in newly reclaimed desert areas, are highly productive, run by professionals, and equipped with modern facilities so that they meet international standards and have robust marketing connections. On the other, smallholders, who farm 90 percent of horticultural land, usually run small, fragmented plots and face numerous challenges such as a lack of planning and inadequate packing and storage facilities, leading to poor product quality and diminished market competitiveness.
Show more

Users also downloaded

Showing related downloaded files

No results found.