Organization and Performance of Cotton Sectors in Africa ... - infoDev
Organization and Performance of Cotton Sectors in Africa ... - infoDev
Organization and Performance of Cotton Sectors in Africa ... - infoDev
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Box 6.1 (Cont<strong>in</strong>ued)This analysis suggests that lower prices (as a share <strong>of</strong> free-on-truck l<strong>in</strong>tvalue) paid by exist<strong>in</strong>g firms have been the major factor encourag<strong>in</strong>g newentry <strong>in</strong> Zimbabwe <strong>and</strong> Zambia. Because economies <strong>of</strong> scale <strong>in</strong> cotton process<strong>in</strong>gare relatively modest (especially where Indian roller g<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g technologyis used), new <strong>in</strong>vestors can enter the sector quickly, even if they have nocapacity or background <strong>in</strong> promot<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>put use <strong>and</strong> farm-level productivity.In addition, government policy sometimes promotes new <strong>in</strong>vestment <strong>in</strong> g<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>gwithout underst<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g the negative consequences this policy can br<strong>in</strong>g.This issue is an emerg<strong>in</strong>g are <strong>in</strong> Zambia, where the government has welcomedsubstantial new <strong>in</strong>vestment. The type <strong>of</strong> regulatory structure suggested earlierwould establish st<strong>and</strong>ards other than the theoretical competitive ideal forevaluat<strong>in</strong>g whether such <strong>in</strong>vestment will be healthy for the sector.for <strong>in</strong>put supply <strong>and</strong> extension (<strong>and</strong> quality control; see chapter 7). As thenumber <strong>of</strong> players rises, extension <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>put credit are the first services to suffer,certa<strong>in</strong>ly <strong>in</strong> quality (<strong>in</strong> Zimbabwe) <strong>and</strong> also <strong>in</strong> the number <strong>of</strong> farmersserved (<strong>in</strong> Zambia). A key question that emerges is whether these systems willbe successful <strong>in</strong> their efforts to establish enforceable rules <strong>of</strong> the game thatallow enough competition to ensure good pric<strong>in</strong>g performance (see chapter 5)while safeguard<strong>in</strong>g credit repayment.CONCLUSIONSTable 6.1 summarizes the assessment <strong>of</strong> <strong>in</strong>put credit <strong>and</strong> extension performanceacross sector types. Realized performance matches expected performance mostclosely for competitive sectors <strong>and</strong> national monopolies. Ug<strong>and</strong>a, which defiedexpectations for competitively structured systems, did so only by elim<strong>in</strong>at<strong>in</strong>gcompetition among firms, at least until 2007. Concentrated, market-based systems<strong>and</strong> local monopolies show the greatest diversity <strong>in</strong> performance. The formercan perform quite well on <strong>in</strong>put credit <strong>and</strong> relatively well on extension, butthat performance can suddenly decl<strong>in</strong>e as a result <strong>of</strong> the <strong>in</strong>stability referred toabove. The sample <strong>of</strong> countries <strong>in</strong>cludes only one (Mozambique) where localmonopolies had existed for a sufficiently long time to allow reasonable assessment.Highly variable performance across concession companies <strong>in</strong> Mozambiquesuggests that policy makers must carefully select new <strong>in</strong>vestors with an eyetoward productivity <strong>and</strong> quality; affiliates <strong>of</strong> mult<strong>in</strong>ational cotton trad<strong>in</strong>g firmshave performed best <strong>in</strong> this regard <strong>in</strong> Mozambique.A key question that cuts across local monopolies <strong>and</strong> concentrated systemsconcerns the factors that favor or h<strong>in</strong>der the emergence <strong>of</strong> an effectiveregulatory approach featur<strong>in</strong>g active collaboration among g<strong>in</strong>ners <strong>and</strong>INPUT CREDIT AND EXTENSION 81