Macroeconomics, agriculture, and food security: A guide to policy analysis in developing countries
This book by Eugenio Díaz-Bonilla, provides an introduction to policy analysis related to monetary, financial, fiscal, exchange rate, and trade policies as they affect, and are affected by, agricultural and food security issues. Its approach, based on a simplified macroeconomic consistency framework, uses empirical cases to illustrate the problems involved. The author argues that macroeconomic agricultural policies are vital to both developing countries’ and the world’s economy for several key reasons: (1) agriculture accounts for a significant portion of developing countries’ overall domestic production, exports, and employment; (2) agricultural growth reduces poverty more than growth in other sectors; and (3) developing countries play a significant role in world agricultural production and international agricultural trade. The various macroeconomic theories and findings in this book could help policymakers and practitioners in developing countries to come to their own conclusions regarding the design of appropriate strategies to promote economic growth, poverty reduction, and food security. A synopsis of the report and a related blog are also available.