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Abstract
In countries that are heavily dependent on agriculture for employment and income, underperformance
is not only untenable but also potentially explosive. This is the case in the
countries of eastern and central Africa—Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea,
Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Rwanda, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda—where tens of millions
of people face ongoing poverty, hunger, and malnutrition. This report, the result of a
two-year collaboration between the International Food Policy Research Institute and the Association
for Strengthening Agricultural Research in Eastern and Central Africa, identifies
how eastern and central African countries can stimulate agricultural growth to address these
dire circumstances.
The findings suggest that improved agricultural performance will require investments that
foster productivity growth, strengthen markets, improve rural linkages between the agricultural
and nonagricultural sectors, and promote regional cooperation. Of particular interest is
the identification of the most performance-enhancing commodity subsectors, in an economywide
setting, and the “agricultural development domain” singled out as most promising for
targeted investment.
These results and their implications are being widely discussed and debated in the countries
of eastern and central Africa, in many cases shaping policy and investment strategies.
We hope that the findings, made available through this report, will elicit similar responses in
other regions.