Asia's green revolution in rice was
transformational and improved the lives of millions of poor
households. Rice has become an increasingly important part
of African diets and imports of rice have grown. Agronomists
point out that large areas in Africa are well suited for
rice and are encouraged by the field tests of new rice
varieties. So is Africa poised for its own green revolution
in rice? This study reviews the recent literature on rice

After 20 years of neglect by
international donors, agriculture is now again in the
headlines because higher food prices are increasing food
insecurity and poverty. In the coming years it will be
essential to increase food productivity and production in
developing countries, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa and
with smallholders. This however requires finding viable
solutions to a number of complex technical, institutional

This report presents an analysis of
the Early Childhood Development (ECD) programs and policies
which affect young children in Sierra Leone. This report is
part of a series of reports prepared by the World Bank using
the SABER-ECD framework. The country report includes
analysis of early learning, health, nutrition and social and
child protection policies and interventions in Sierra Leone,
along with regional and international comparisons. The

The Small Area Estimation (SAE) of
poverty in Rural Bhutan was prepared with an objective to
provide a more disaggregated picture of poverty in Bhutan
down to the gewog level, based on the Bhutan living standard
survey 2007 and Population and Housing Census of Bhutan
(PHCB) 2005. The report records the estimation process in
detail and describes results of statistical tests for
quality checks. According to these tests, the poverty

This paper aims to investigate
empirically how international migration and remittances in
Indonesia, particularly female migration, affect child
outcomes and labor supply behavior in sending households.
The authors analyze the Indonesia Family Life Survey data
set and apply an instrumental variable estimation method,
using historical migration networks as instruments for
migration and remittance receipts. The study finds that, in

The purpose of this paper is to provide
information on how to transform and strengthen pluralistic
agricultural extension and advisory systems in moving toward
the broader goal of increasing farm income and improving
rural livelihoods. The focus of this book is primarily on
the technical knowledge, management skills, and information
services that small-scale farm households will need to
improve their livelihoods in the rapidly changing global

This country note briefly summarizes
information relevant to both climate change and agriculture
in Haiti, with focus on policy developments (including
action plans and programs) and institutional make-up. Haiti
has submitted its National Adaptation Plan of Action to the
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC). Land use change and forestry are the largest
contributors to green house gas (GHG) emissions in the

This research report examines the
technical efficiency and impact of the Zambia Fertilizer
Support Program (FSP). The FSP was launched by the
Government of the Republic of Zambia (GRZ) in 2002 as a
temporary measure to provide subsidized hybrid maize seed
and fertilizer packages to smallholder farmers and to
promote the participation of private traders in supply. When
the FSP was announced, the Government indicated that farmers

The objective of the Agricultural
Insurance pre-feasibility study is to identify the
institutional, operational, technical and financial
challenges for the development of agricultural risk transfer
solutions and insurance for rice, fruit and vegetables,
livestock, and the aquaculture sector in Guyana. The
specific objectives of the study include: (i) to identify
the production systems, constraints and risks faced by

This briefing note examines
intergenerational aspects of community involvement, trust,
and authority, and dispute participation/resolution in
Timor-Leste, using findings from the justice module included
in an extension of the 2007 Timor-Leste Survey of Living
Standards (TLSLS2) and a review of relevant social-science
literature. It is hoped that this report will be a valuable
resource for civil servants, civil society organizations,

Although Bulgaria now implements the
European Union's (EU's) "common"
agricultural policy (CAP), national policymakers still
maintain responsibility to tailor CAP implementation to meet
the specific development needs of the country. The National
Rural Development Program (NRDP) very appropriately lays out
the challenges that Bulgarian agriculture and rural
development face, but the early implementation of a

This first World Bank for Results report
provides the Bank's shareholders, partners, and
external stakeholders with an integrated view of results and
performance in recent years. It serves as a companion to the
World Bank Corporate Scorecard. Aggregating results that
countries have achieved with Bank support against the
backdrop of global development results, the report also
assesses operational and organizational performance at the