Agricultural progress and poverty reduction. A synthesis report

This report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) compares the role of the agricultural sector in poverty reduction in 25 developing countries that have achieved exceptional progress in reducing poverty, in order to understand why some countries are doing better than others. The report investigates whether agriculture is more important than other sources of earned income in reducing poverty in successful countries, whether such countries are similar in other ways, and which government policy actions have contributed most. The report identifies three main factors that contribute to poverty reduction:

• growth in the agricultural sector,
• remittances,
• growth in non-agricultural labor productivity.

With regard to the role of agriculture, the report finds that the greater share of poverty reduction achieved in the study countries was due to growth in agricultural GDP/worker., that agriculture is the main driver of poverty reduction even for middle income countries. The report investigates the reasons for these findings including the role of public spending and government policies with regard to the agricultural sector, concluding that policy reform and public spending on public goods that benefit the agriculture sector are more effective in reducing poverty than direct cash transfers geared toward the agricultural sector.

OECD - August 2011. Please find the document on line here.