Sunday, July 12, 2009

How Malawi Ended Extreme Poverty

Simply by ignoring the World Bank's decades-long advice about not subsidising fertilizers. The Bretton Woods institution according to a New York Times article had over 20 years "pushed Malawi to eliminate fertilizer subsidies entirely... its theory was that Malawi's farmers should shift to growing cash crops for exports and use the foreign exchange earnings to import food...". You don't get any crappier than this!

Similarly prices of vegetables in Mauritius could go down if government subsidised fertilizers according to Kreepalloo Sunghoon, Secretary of the Small Planters Association. Having basic market intelligence flow to these planters would also stabilise the cost and supply of vegetables to your kitchen. And improving seed quality will not hurt variety.

By the way, don't you want to know how much of the billion-rupee Food Security Fund announced in last year's budget has actually been spent? And how it has been spent?

12 comments:

Kranti said...

The bean-counter was busy subsidising the poor industrialists - his sponsors!

Anonymous said...

Avez-vous noté comment il défend bec et ongle un autre sponsor - Ti Vegas? C'est à ch...

Citizen X

citoyenne desesperee said...

sanjay guette sa, kan mem prix monter ou quoi, ene nouvo business ine kumanse, li apelle stealing business, extra top ek pli rapide
ki economic growth.

Sanjay Jagatsingh said...

Stealing business? Kot apran sa? Li marse tou sel sa ou bien li bizin so stimulus pakeg?

Anonymous said...

I've visited all the hyperlinks. Good job. We need mor KJ in the Cabinet more than ever...

akagugo said...

What do you think if Mr Sunghoon was made to meet the MAA's Eric Mangar?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xb4mwoFJLw&feature=player_embedded

Sanjay Jagatsingh said...

@akagugo: petet zot deza konn zot. wi, important ki dimunn zwen pu tir nu depi dan trou.

akagugo said...

Allelujah!!! Zordi, M. Jean Arthur Pilot Lagesse,directeur- général désigné des opérations sucrières d’Harel Frères, inn réaliser ki "la pomme de terre est plus rentable que la canne"

akagugo said...

Since then, Malawi has lost the plot, it appears...

Sanjay Jagatsingh said...

Famine in Malawi. Mess in Indonesia. Mess in Mauritius. Should we then be surprised that some have recommended that the WB/IMF headquarters be turned into a shopping mall where falafel (a cousin of gato-pima) could be sold.

Sanjay Jagatsingh said...

Saying no to Monsanto can be like saying no to the WB/IMF.

akagugo said...

So this guy is telling some things, not all very well researched, but quite pessimistic. Just a peek into something marvelous and that can be adapted to our tropical climate. Unless he's interiorised the artificial notion that we MUST use fertilisers/pesticides at all costs and, god forbid, that we must buy all Monsanto's products...