Development Economics The Role of Agriculture in Development

by Junankar, P. N. (Raja)

• ISBN13: 9781137555212
• ISBN10: 1137555211
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2016-03-14
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan

Summary

Informal labour markets are prevalent in developing countries and these provide poor conditions of work and living for a large majority of the population. The papers in this book study economic development from the perspective of social justice and economic efficiency; exploring the role of land tenure and productivity in Indian agriculture. Junankar discusses the efficiency of small farms versus large farms, and the role of share-cropping tenancy. He provides a critique of neoclassical economics that assumes farmers maximize profits in competitive markets and argues that social and institutional conditions limit the conditions under which farmers operate in developing countries. Development Economics raises issues of poverty, inequality and mobility of agriculturists.

Junankar proposes different taxation principles on agricultural producers that would lead to a more efficient and equitable system; and this collection of essays also highlights the role of microfinance in helping the empowerment of women in poor countries.

Author Biography

Raja Junankar studied at the London School of Economics, and has a Ph.D. from the University of Essex, UK. He has held research and teaching appointments in Australia, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, India, and the United States of America. He has published several books and refereed papers in leading national and international journals. He is an Emeritus Professor, University of Western Sydney and Honorary Professor, UNSW Australia.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. Land Tenure, Agricultural Productivity, and Taxation
2.1 Land Tenure and Indian Agricultural Productivity
2.2 Land Ceilings as a Tax on Agriculture
2.3 Review of Palanpur: The Economy of an Indian Village
2.4 Agricultural Taxation in Less Developed Countries
3 Poverty, Mobility and Inequality
3.1 Poverty in India
3.2 The Green Revolution and Inequality
3.3 Mobility and Inequality in Indian Agriculture
4 Do Farmers in Developing Countries Maximise Profits?
4.1 Tests of the Profit Maximisation Hypothesis
4.2 Do Indian Farmers Maximize Profits?
4.3 Neoclassical Economics and Indian Agriculture
4.4 The Response of Peasant Farmers to Price Incentives
5 Informal Labour Markets
5.1 The Informal Labour Market in India
6 Microfinance and Women's Empowerment
6.1 Factors influencing women's empowerment on microcredit borrowers