Agricultural Resources Information System (AgRIS): An e ...

P.Kumar and T.Woodhead (2002) 12 portrays that works of Nobel
Laureate, Professor Amartya Sen have clearly demonstrated
that during years when non-agricultural rural employment
increases, rural poverty declines, and that the converse also
holds. On-farm, off-farm, and on-off-farm rural employment is
essential to combat rural poverty and to secure adequate
livelihood within the households of smallholders and land-less
agricultural labourers. Rural Non-Farm (RNF) Income is very
important to food security and risk management.
1.9 Land access is highly correlated with poverty. Poverty, low
agricultural productivity and natural resources degradation are
severe interrelated problems in Less-Favoured Areas (LFAs) 13 .
Small Farms are often more efficient producers than large farms
in developing countries, and the right kinds of investments in
many LFAs can yield favourable economic returns while directly
benefiting the Poor (Peter Hazell and Lawrence Haddad, 2001) 14 .
Many expected benefits arising from rapid agricultural growth in
Favoured Areas (FAs) have been confirmed through empirical
12 R.B.Singh, P.Kumar and T.Woodhead (2002): “Smallholder Farmers in India: Food Security and Agricultural
Policy”, FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (Bangkok, Thailand), March 2002, RAP publication:
2002/03
13 Less-Favoured Areas (LFAs) include lands that have low agricultural potential as well as areas that may have high
agricultural potential but have limited access to infrastructure and markets.
14 Peter Hazell and Lawrence Haddad (2001) : “Agricultural Research and Poverty Reduction”, 2020 Brief 70
(August 2001), International Food Policy Research Centre (IFPRI), Washington D.C
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