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How India Can Transform Its Fertilizer Subsidy Program
India is the second-largest user of fertilizer in the world, after China. It offers subsidies on fertilizers to make them affordable to the country's 150 million farmers – and ultimately, to ensure food security. But as Ritesh Rautela and Anurodh Giri at MSC point out, an estimated 65% of this fertilizer does not reach the intended beneficiaries – and the system has faced leakages and uneven usage among recipients. They propose a tech-fueled solution that could benefit both farmers and the Indian government.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Technology
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Leveraging the COVID-19 Crisis for Local Development: How the Pandemic Can Strengthen Public-Private Collaboration in Africa
The COVID-19 pandemic is a massive humanitarian crisis. But as Malado Kaba, the first female Economy and Finance Minister of the Republic of Guinea argues, it could also be an opportunity for the African continent. She explores how public-private partnerships and improved collaboration across industries and sectors could create sustainable change—if governments take the lead in mobilizing private sector and development partners to support locally driven solutions.
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- Agriculture, Coronavirus, Investing
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COVID-19’s Impact on Indian Agriculture: How Data Should Drive Future Policies
The Indian agricultural economy is made up of complex market linkages connecting approximately 263 million agricultural workers to over 1 billion consumers. When COVID-19 locked down the economy, many feared the sector would be crippled, yet these networks seemed remarkably robust – at least at first. However, analysts at IDinsight share data suggesting that agricultural markets may not be as healthy as market figures suggest, and explore policy prescriptions that could strengthen the sector in the long term.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Coronavirus
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Taking Cold Chains Off-Grid: How Solar Powered Cold Rooms Could Dramatically Reduce Food Waste in Sub-Saharan Africa
In sub-Saharan Africa, up to 50% of produce perishes before reaching end customers, largely due to a lack of viable cold chain solutions. Maria Knodt at Energy 4 Impact and Ruth Kimani at CLASP explore how solar-powered cold rooms can address this issue, and highlight some significant technical and business model challenges that could undermine their impact.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Coronavirus, Energy, Finance, Investing, Technology
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When the Economics Don’t Work: Realigning Capital Markets with Development Impact
Agricultural SMEs in Africa face a daunting finance gap, and as Brian Milder, founder and CEO at Aceli Africa points out, current lending approaches aren't enough to fill it. He explores Aceli's solution: taking blended finance a step further by creating a mechanism to align impact with financial sustainability for capital providers across the entire marketplace.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Finance, Investing
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In Defense of Palm Oil: Why We Should Be Supporting the Industry’s Move Toward Sustainability – Not Demonizing It
After reading Jim R. Richards’ NextBillion op-ed “The Ecological Disaster of Palm Oil: Why It’s Time to Embrace Climate-Friendly Alternatives,” Robert Hii at CSPO-Watch.com felt compelled to respond. He argues that Richards' critique of the palm oil industry's ecological damage fails to recognize its impact on local economic growth and poverty reduction, and ignores its substantial moves toward sustainability.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Environment, Technology
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What Corporations and Smallholder Farmers Have in Common: Addressing the Challenge of Land Rights in Emerging Markets
Lucia Maurício farms about 25 acres of land in Mozambique to feed her family. Portucel manages over 32,000 acres of eucalyptus farms nearby, to power its global supply chain. As Mary Hobbs at USAID points out, both require clear and documented land rights to achieve their goals. She explains why land rights are an essential part of reducing poverty among farmers and boosting investment for corporations in sub-Saharan Africa.
- Categories
- Agriculture
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The Ecological Disaster of Palm Oil: Why It’s Time to Embrace Climate-Friendly Alternatives
Palm oil is in so many products that it’s quite hard to avoid. But as Jim Richards at milkadamia points out, tropical forests are being burned at an alarming rate to produce it, contributing greatly to global deforestation – which generates 15% of the planet’s total carbon emissions. He makes a passionate case for the need to switch to palm oil-free products, and discusses some sustainable alternatives.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Environment