Resource Library

"Money on the Move: Payments and Transfer of Money Behavior of African Households" offers an in-depth look at the payment behavior of Sub-Saharan Africans, based on survey results from 11 African nations.

This document, produced under a primer series on social safety nets, assesses the role of food aid in improving food availability and food access. It is based on a synthesis of experiences in four countries:  India, Bangladesh, Ethiopia and Zambia. It concludes that food aid does not have to create negative impacts, particularly if it is tied to the development of infrastructure that supports production and market linkages, avoids creating negative price effects for food producers, and reaches the food insecure.

This paper by the International Livestock Research Institute reviews the available literature on smallholder commercialization. Of particular interest, the paper discusses the arguments for smallholders to scale-up and commercialize existing food crops versus beginning to produce completely new crops specifically for sale. The production of high-value crops typically generates greater returns for producers, but also typically implies greater risks and barriers to entry. In general, commercialization is found to be positive for families, though the impacts vary.

The goal of this study is to enhance food security by identifying actions that could be taken to increase the competitiveness of food staple value chains and raise rural incomes in West Africa.