Agricultural market information such as commodity prices, trade volumes and weather conditions, plays an important facilitating role in improving the performance of markets. This research assesses the impact of the agricultural Market Information Service (MIS) on the performance of maize markets...

This paper investigates the spatial integration and efficiency between five central markets in southern Africa. The study uses data on commodity prices, trade flows, and transfer costs from central maize markets in Botswana, Malawi, and South Africa, and two in Mozambique, analyzed using the...

For most countries in southern Africa, food security has been addressed through self-sufficiency, traditionally attained through widespread government involvement in the input and output markets for major food commodities. Food policies through the 1980s have been characterized by input...

Maize is an important staple in Mozambique. It is also a dominant crop produced by smallholder farmers. However, the actual maize yields, currently estimated at 1.4 tons/ha, fall short of potential yields of 5-6.5 tons/ha. With population growth rate increasingly exceeding agricultural (and...

The objectives of this paper are to estimate cost efficiency and investigate factors influencing the cost efficiency of maize-growing smallholders in Mozambique. The data used in this study came from a national random sample of 4,908 smallholder farmers conducted by the Ministry of Agriculture...

The objective of this paper is to investigate factors influencing the adoption of improved maize seed by smallholder farmers in Mozambique. The data used in this study were obtained from a national random sample of 4,908 smallholder farmers conducted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural...

To spur rural development and food security, agricultural education and training in Africa has traditionally focused on increasing agricultural productivity on the farm. More recently, development practitioners and policy makers have broadened their attention to include agribusiness or...

In this paper we introduce a switching error correction model (SECM) estimator that allows for the possibility that price transmission between markets might vary during periods with and without physical trade flows. Applying this new approach to semi-weekly data on tomato markets in Zimbabwe, we...

Freshco, a small producer and distributor of hybrid maize seed and macadamia seedlings, was one of the first private companies to enter the Kenya seed market after its liberalization. Currently, the company produces and markets six high yielding maize varieties that are suited for diverse...