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Impact Of Agricultural Market Reforms On Smallholder Farmers In ...

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constraints that farmers and traders face in their production and marketing activities? (5) What<br />

factors and policy changes are still needed to move the reforms forward and make them more<br />

beneficial for small farmers and traders? and (6) What is the appropriate role of the government in a<br />

new liberalized market environment?<br />

Many researchers have investigated the impact of the reforms and recent policy changes in Benin<br />

and Malawi. The most recent research on Malawi includes work by the National Economic Council<br />

(1998), Chilowa (1998), Masters et al. (2000), Kambewa and Kachule (1999), Munyemana and<br />

von-Oppen (1999), O&M Associates (1999), Kleih, Jumbe and Tchale (1999), Westlake (1995),<br />

Peters (1996), and N’gon’gola (1996). For Benin, the reforms and their impact on agriculture have<br />

been the topic of research by Lutz et al (1995), Soulé (1996), Igue and Soulé (1992), Galtier and<br />

Tassou (1998), Senahoun et al (2000), Ahoyo Adjovia and Heidhues (1997), Senahoun et al (1999),<br />

UNDP (1998), and Republic of Benin (1997) (Chapter 2 reviews these studies). Using primary<br />

survery data, this research project represents the most comprehensive attempt to understand the<br />

impact of the reforms on small farmers and traders in both Benin and Malawi.<br />

1.2 Project Research Activities<br />

The project survey activities were divided into several components that are enumerated below.<br />

a) A smallholder farmer survey based on a nationally representative sample of about 800-900 small<br />

farm households. This survey was conducted during the period August – November 1998 in both<br />

countries.<br />

b) A survey of the communities that included the villages where the small farmers selected for the<br />

Small <strong>Farmers</strong> Survey lived. This included 40 communities in Malawi and 90 in Benin. The<br />

community survey was conducted from November 1999 to February 2000.<br />

c) An input and output trader survey comprising about 650-750 private traders and implemented<br />

during the period May to December 1999 in Benin and August 1999 to February 2000 in Malawi.<br />

d) A survey of the main agricultural markets in Benin and Malawi (41 in Malawi and 21 in Benin)<br />

implemented during the same period as the traders’ survey.<br />

e) <strong>In</strong> Benin, it was determined that a survey of village-level farmer organization (groupements<br />

2

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