Markets and States in Tropical Africa: The Political Basis of Agricultural Policies
Most Africans live in rural areas and derive their incomes from farming; but because African governments follow policies that are adverse to most farmers' interests, these countries fail to produce enough food to feed their populations. Markets and States in Tropical Africa analyzes these and other paradoxical features of development in modern Africa and explores how governments have intervened and diverted resources from farmers to other sectors of society. A classic of the field since its...
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"Interested and well-meaning people in the United States wonder, 'What's the matter with Africa?' Robert Bates's book manages the difficult task of speaking to the specialist and non-specialist alike. It explains the historical, political, and economic roots of Africa's challenges. Best of all, it gives context to why easy prescriptions haven't worked in the past, and some hope for what might work in the future."—Ray Suarez, Senior Correspondent, The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer"Ever since its original publication in 1981, this elegant study has been a clarion call for agrarian reform predicated on market incentives. Bates's perspective transcends the lingering ideological nostrums that still impede progress toward the construction of modern economies in Africa. Based largely on his personal empirical research, this lasting work continues to guide the quest for realistic approaches to the problem of poverty in Africa and other agrarian regions of the world."—Richard L. Sklar, author of African Politics in Postimperial TimesPRAISE FOR THE FIRST EDITION: "[An] analysis of how public policy has fostered Africa's agricultural decline.... [The] description of how that policy has worked—the interests and mechanisms discriminating against the rural sector—is incomparable."—Foreign Affairs
1Policies toward cash crops for export112The food sector : the political dynamics of pricing policies303The food sector : the use of nonprice strategies454The emerging industrial sector625The market as political arena and the limits of voluntarism816Rental havens and protective shelters : organizing support among the urban beneficiaries967The origins of political marginalism : evoking compliance from the countryside106Commonalities and variations : the politics of agricultural policy119App. AInterrelations between food supply, demand and prices133App. BValue received by farmers for export crops136
