Changes in Ghanaian farming systems: Stagnation or a quiet transformation?
This research was designed to understand better the patterns of agricultural intensification and transformation occurring in Africa South of the Sahara using the Ghanaian case. The paper examines changes in farming systems and the role of various endogenous and exogenous factors in driving the conve...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Artículo preliminar |
| Language: | Inglés |
| Published: |
International Food Policy Research Institute
2016
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/146450 |
| _version_ | 1855517506337243136 |
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| author | Houssou, Nazaire Johnson, Michael E. Kolavalli, Shashidhara Asante-Addo, Collins |
| author_browse | Asante-Addo, Collins Houssou, Nazaire Johnson, Michael E. Kolavalli, Shashidhara |
| author_facet | Houssou, Nazaire Johnson, Michael E. Kolavalli, Shashidhara Asante-Addo, Collins |
| author_sort | Houssou, Nazaire |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | This research was designed to understand better the patterns of agricultural intensification and transformation occurring in Africa South of the Sahara using the Ghanaian case. The paper examines changes in farming systems and the role of various endogenous and exogenous factors in driving the conversion of arable lands to agricultural uses in four villages within two agroecologically distinct zones of Ghana: the Guinea Savannah and Transition zones. Using essentially historical narratives and land-cover maps supplemented with quantitative data at regional levels, the research shows that farming has intensified in the villages, while farmers have increased their farm size in response to factors such as population growth, market access, and changing rural lifestyle. The overall trend suggests a gradual move toward intensification through increasing use of labor-saving technologies rather than land-saving inputs—a pattern that contrasts with Asia’s path to its Green Revolution. The findings in this paper provide evidence of the dynamism occurring in African farming systems; hence, they point toward a departure from stagnation narratives that have come to prevail in the debate on agricultural transformation and intensification in Africa South of the Sahara. We conclude that it is essential for future research to expand the scope of this work, while policies should focus on lessons that can be learned from these historical processes of genuine change. |
| format | Artículo preliminar |
| id | CGSpace146450 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2016 |
| publishDateRange | 2016 |
| publishDateSort | 2016 |
| publisher | International Food Policy Research Institute |
| publisherStr | International Food Policy Research Institute |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1464502025-11-06T05:27:47Z Changes in Ghanaian farming systems: Stagnation or a quiet transformation? Houssou, Nazaire Johnson, Michael E. Kolavalli, Shashidhara Asante-Addo, Collins technological changes economic development households green revolution agricultural transformation intensification farming systems This research was designed to understand better the patterns of agricultural intensification and transformation occurring in Africa South of the Sahara using the Ghanaian case. The paper examines changes in farming systems and the role of various endogenous and exogenous factors in driving the conversion of arable lands to agricultural uses in four villages within two agroecologically distinct zones of Ghana: the Guinea Savannah and Transition zones. Using essentially historical narratives and land-cover maps supplemented with quantitative data at regional levels, the research shows that farming has intensified in the villages, while farmers have increased their farm size in response to factors such as population growth, market access, and changing rural lifestyle. The overall trend suggests a gradual move toward intensification through increasing use of labor-saving technologies rather than land-saving inputs—a pattern that contrasts with Asia’s path to its Green Revolution. The findings in this paper provide evidence of the dynamism occurring in African farming systems; hence, they point toward a departure from stagnation narratives that have come to prevail in the debate on agricultural transformation and intensification in Africa South of the Sahara. We conclude that it is essential for future research to expand the scope of this work, while policies should focus on lessons that can be learned from these historical processes of genuine change. 2016-01-22 2024-06-21T09:07:06Z 2024-06-21T09:07:06Z Working Paper https://hdl.handle.net/10568/146450 en https://hdl.handle.net/10568/150304 Open Access application/pdf International Food Policy Research Institute Houssou, Nazaire; Johnson, Michael E.; Kolavalli, Shashidhara; and Asante-Addo, Collins. Changes in Ghanaian farming systems: Stagnation or a quiet transformation? IFPRI Discussion Paper 1504. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://hdl.handle.net/10568/146450 |
| spellingShingle | technological changes economic development households green revolution agricultural transformation intensification farming systems Houssou, Nazaire Johnson, Michael E. Kolavalli, Shashidhara Asante-Addo, Collins Changes in Ghanaian farming systems: Stagnation or a quiet transformation? |
| title | Changes in Ghanaian farming systems: Stagnation or a quiet transformation? |
| title_full | Changes in Ghanaian farming systems: Stagnation or a quiet transformation? |
| title_fullStr | Changes in Ghanaian farming systems: Stagnation or a quiet transformation? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Changes in Ghanaian farming systems: Stagnation or a quiet transformation? |
| title_short | Changes in Ghanaian farming systems: Stagnation or a quiet transformation? |
| title_sort | changes in ghanaian farming systems stagnation or a quiet transformation |
| topic | technological changes economic development households green revolution agricultural transformation intensification farming systems |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/146450 |
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