@article{Thirtle:31719,
      recid = {31719},
      author = {Thirtle, Colin G. and Piesse, Jenifer and Gouse, Marnus},
      title = {Agricultural technology, productivity and employment:  Policies for poverty reduction},
      journal = {Agrekon},
      address = {2005-03},
      number = {346-2016-15919},
      pages = {23},
      year = {2005},
      abstract = {This paper begins by arguing that agricultural economics  has an important contribution to make to the economic  transition of the new democratic South Africa. Policies are  required to reduce unemployment, poverty and inequality,  but does the work of agricultural economists provide the  policy makers with the information necessary to make the  correct choices?  In this context, we update our recent  work on technology, efficiency and productivity in South  African agriculture, for both the commercial and  smallholder sub-sectors. For the commercial sector, this  means extending the total factor productivity index and  estimates of the demand for labour. For the smallholder  sector, there are new results on the impacts of GM cotton  and white maize on output and employment. However, this  piecemeal approach treats the two sectors as entirely  separate, when they are actually interdependent. Thus, a  Ricardian model of dualistic agriculture is used to explain  the historical development of dualism in agriculture,  especially how the native agriculturalists were  impoverished by the colonists. Then this model is adapted  to resemble the Harris-Todaro model of urban unemployment  is order to represent the present dual agricultural sector.  This allows the current policy options to be compared,  although real data is needed to estimate the relationships  and so the full analysis remains incomplete.},
      url = {http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/31719},
      doi = {https://doi.org/10.22004/ag.econ.31719},
}