Editing Agricultural policy (section)

=== Poverty reduction ===

[[Policymakers]] working in poverty reduction in the agriculture sector assess, plan, or enact policies aimed to address the needs of persons living in poverty. Agriculture has been a critical driver of [[poverty reduction]] in most developing countries, particularly in rural areas.<ref name="ACIAR">{{cite journal |last1=Grewal |first1=Bhajan |last2=Grunfeld |first2=Helena |last3=Sheehan |first3=Peter |title=The contribution of agricultural growth to poverty reduction |date=2012 |url=https://vises.org.au/documents/2011-Grewal-et-al-Contribution-agriculture-to-poverty-reduction.pdf |access-date=1 April 2023}}</ref> Approximately 80% of the world's impoverished population, who primarily reside in rural areas and earn their livelihood through farming, can benefit from agriculture in terms of poverty reduction, income generation, and food security.<ref name="povertyreduction">{{cite web|url=https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/agriculture/overview|title=Agriculture and Food|access-date=23 April 2023 |date=n.d. |publisher=The World Bank}}</ref> Fostering agricultural development is therefore a crucial element of agricultural policy in a [[developing country]]. In addition, a recent Natural Resource Perspective paper by the [[Overseas Development Institute]] found that good [[infrastructure]], [[education]] and effective information services in rural areas were necessary to improve the chances of making agriculture work for the poor.<ref name="agriculturepoverty">{{cite web |url=http://www.odi.org.uk/nrp/NRP111.pdf |title=Making agriculture work for the poor |access-date=11 November 2016 |year=2007 |publisher=Overseas Development Institute |archive-date=2 December 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071202032010/http://www.odi.org.uk/nrp/NRP111.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

During the 1980s and 1990s, there was a disregard for the agriculture sector among policymakers and investors, only regaining interest when the prices of staple food crops experienced a significant increase in the mid-2000s.<ref name=ACIAR /> As a result of agricultural policy neglect, there has been a scarcity of investment in infrastructure, which has hindered agricultural development and public goods, such as education, research and development and technology. Rural productive sectors and small agricultural enterprises suffer from [[market failure]]s due to policies favouring urban areas and lending policies biased against small-scale agricultural firms. Neglect in implementing agriculture policy has been detected in several developing countries. In Indonesia, since the [[Asian Financial Crisis]] of 1997 to 1998, the government's agricultural policy has been closely concentrated on achieving price stability and self-sufficiency for import-competing commodities, such as palm oil, sugar and rice.<ref name="ACIAR" />

International agencies such as the [[Food and Agriculture Organization]] (FAO), the [[World Bank]], the [[International Fund for Agricultural Development]] (IFAD) and the [[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development]] (OECD), espouse the prioritisation of agricultural endeavours to support poverty reduction.<ref name="ACIAR" /> The impact of agricultural policy on reducing poverty differs across countries and is influenced by a variety of factors, such as the level of government policy support, the degree of public and private investment in agriculture, the different types of agriculture, and the growth rates of agriculture parallel to non-agriculture sectors.<ref name="ACIAR" /> In particular, investment in agricultural research and development has been shown to be highly influential on agricultural GDP growth and poverty reduction.<ref name="ACIAR" /> Government policies play a key role in promoting agricultural activities, such as irrigation systems, roads and telecommunication systems, land reform, power in rural areas, fiscal support for research and development, pricing policies, assistance for new technologies, and markets for agricultural produce.<ref name="ACIAR" /> Agricultural policies have contributed to meeting the goals related to increasing, diversifying, and improving agricultural production.<ref name="CapeVerde">{{cite journal |last1=Corral |first1=Serafin |last2=Díaz |first2=Alayde Serruto |last3=Monagas |first3=Maria del Cristo |last4=García |first4=Eduardo Cuenca |title=Agricultural policies and their impact on poverty reduction in developing countries: Lessons learned from three water basins in Cape Verde.|journal=Sustainability |year=2017 |volume=9 |issue=10 |page=1841 |doi=10.3390/su9101841 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

Agricultural policies aimed at reducing poverty include '''India's Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana''', which offers crop insurance to farmers to protect them from weather-related uncertainties and potential crop failures.{{citation needed|date=June 2023}} This initiative provides farmers with financial aid for crop loss, reducing the risk of falling into poverty. '''Rwanda's Crop Intensification Program''' is another example of such policy, which provides farmers with inputs like fertilisers, improved seeds, and pesticides, as well as training and technical support to help them adopt more efficient farming practices.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Alphonse |first1=Nahayo |last2=Morris |first2=O. Omondi |last3=ZHANG |first3=Xu-hui |last4=LI |first4=Lian-qing |last5=PAN |first5=Gen-xing |last6=Stephen |first6=Joseph |title=Factors influencing farmers' participation in crop intensification program in Rwanda |journal=Journal of Integrative Agriculture |date=2017 |volume=16 |issue=6 |pages=1406–1416 |doi=10.1016/S2095-3119(16)61555-1 |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2095311916615551?ref=pdf_download&fr=RR-2&rr=7bcb9c64b9dac466 |access-date=18 April 2023 |ref=RwandaProgram|doi-access=free |bibcode=2017JIAgr..16.1406N }}</ref> However, for agricultural policies to contribute to poverty reduction, it is essential that they collaborate effectively and cohesively with other sectors, such as tourism, sustainable economy, and industry.<ref name=CapeVerde />