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Measuring distortions to agricultural incentives, revisited*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 October 2008

KYM ANDERSON ,
MARIANNE KURZWEIL ,
WILL MARTIN ,
DAMIANO SANDRI  and
ERNESTO VALENZUELA
KYM ANDERSON*
Affiliation:
School of Economics, University of Adelaide, Australia
MARIANNE KURZWEIL
Affiliation:
African Development Bank, Tunis, Tunisia
WILL MARTIN
Affiliation:
The World Bank, Washington, DC
DAMIANO SANDRI
Affiliation:
John Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD
ERNESTO VALENZUELA
Affiliation:
School of Economics, University of Adelaide, Australia
*
*Correspondence to: Kym Anderson, School of Economics, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5005, Australia. Tel: +61 8 8303 4712, fax +61 8 8223 1460, email: kym.anderson@adelaide.edu.au
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Abstract

Notwithstanding the tariffication component of the Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture, import tariffs on farm products continue to provide an incomplete indication of the extent to which agricultural producer and consumer incentives are distorted in national markets. As well, in developing countries especially, non-agricultural policies indirectly impact on agricultural and food markets. Empirical analysis aimed at monitoring distortions to agricultural incentives thus need to examine both agricultural and non-agricultural policy measures including import or export taxes, subsidies, and quantitative restrictions plus domestic taxes or subsidies on farm outputs or inputs and consumer subsidies for food staples. This paper addresses the practical methodological issues that need to be faced when attempting to undertake such a measurement task in developing countries. The approach is illustrated in two ways: by presenting estimates of nominal and relative rates of assistance to farmers in China for the period 1981–2005; and by summarizing estimates from an economy-wide CGE model of the effects on agricultural versus non-agricultural markets of the project's measured distortions globally as of 2004.

Information

Type
Review Article
Information
World Trade Review , Volume 7 , Issue 4 , October 2008 , pp. 675 - 704
Copyright
Copyright © Anderson, Kurzweil, Martin, Sandri, and Valenzuela 2008

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