Agricultural Export, Growth and the Poor in Africa: A Meta Analysis
Date
2022
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Journal of Interdisciplinary Economics
Abstract
Over the past decade, a growing number of studies have examined the role of
agricultural export in economic growth in Africa. The literature, however, provides
conflicting results about the agricultural export-led growth hypothesis. In
this study, we aim to re-examine the impact of agricultural export on economic
growth by performing a meta-analysis. There are two questions of interest,
namely, (a) whether publication bias is present in the agricultural export-growth
literature in Africa, and (b) if there is an overall effect of agricultural export on
economic growth. Our meta-analysis finds significant negative publication bias in
the literature. Moreover, after correction for publication bias, the results show
that agricultural export leads to growth in low-income and lower middle-income
African countries. These results are consistent with the agricultural export-led
growth hypothesis. By this, we provide empirical basis that may enhance policy
decisions on resource allocation to areas of comparative advantage. Additionally,
the existence of an income differential effect on the agricultural export-led
growth nexus implies that agricultural export-growth strategy has a pronounced
effect on the poor in Africa. The result suggests that the poor in Africa could
follow an agricultural growth strategy because it is a promising means to increase
per capita wealth.
Description
Research Article
Keywords
Africa, export-led growth, agricultural export, meta-analysis