This paper is based on an ongoing joint work with David Sahn and Xiaobo Zhang.

Replaced with revised version of paper 07/28/11. Former title: Indirect Effects of Microfinance: A Field Experiment on Formal Savings Expansion and Informal Safety Nets of the Ultra-Poor

This study aimed to evaluate the technical efficiency of farmers engaged in rice-wheat cropping systems in India using Resource Conserving Technologies (RCTs) such as zero-tillage and direct seeding, under the intervention of the Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia (CSISA) project primarily...

Indoor air pollution due to solid fuels is among the ten most important risk factors in global burden of disease leading to respiratory diseases, anaemia, blindness and other disorders. This study examines the correlations between fuel choice and the nutritional status of children. We also...

Using a unique dataset of 703,287 farm operators from the Taiwanese Census of Agriculture merged to administrative records from the National Farmers' Health Insurance (FHI) program, we examine the effects of the enrollment in the FHI program on farmers’ on- and off-farm labor supply and the...

This study makes use of linear programming methodology to design a minimum cost diet for the Central Ugandan region. We used a set of constraints on recommended levels of daily nutrient intake, recommended proportions of groups of foods, as well as preferences and food availability in Central...

The Food Stamp Program (FSP) administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the cornerstone of the U.S. federal income and food safety net policy. The FSP has subsidized the food budget for millions of American households for over forty years, spending more than $60 billion per...

We analyze the evolution of Sub-Saharan Africa’s agricultural total factor productivity (TFP) over the past 45 years, looking for evidence of recent changes in growth patterns using an improved nonparametric Malmquist index. Our TFP estimates show a remarkable recovery in the performance of...

Replaced with revised version of paper 06/22/11.

Growing attention on the developing world’s potential for export led growth has naturally flowed into the agricultural sector. I examine the effects of Malawian crop adoption on childhood health to determine the effects of transitioning to cash crops in risky food markets. Preliminary results...