CONSUMPTION EFFECTS OF AGRIC POLICIES

A.I.D. Office of Nutrition and the U.S. Department of Agriculture will implement the project in select Latin American, African, and Asian LDC"s. During the project"s first three years, short-term policy evaluations will be carried out in 8-12 LDC"s. The evaluations will explore the linkages between agricultural policies, food consumption, and malnutrition in each country, e.g., how such policies impact on food prices, types of food available, rural poor income, and other areas. Analytical guidelines for conducting these evaluations will be developed, along with preliminary guidelines for modifying agricultural policy to promote better nutrition. Time frames for the evaluations will be kept short to encourage identification of simple and easily adaptable techniques for policy alteration. With the help of A.I.D. technical assistance, LDC governments will adapt and test new agricultural planning methods; undertake nutritional impact studies such as household consumption and budget/expenditure surveys and analyses of the impact of particular policy changes; train planners and analysts; and upgrade their information databases. Two to four LDC"s will participate in field testing analytical methods for their ongoing planning systems. Finally, a network will be developed to inform LDC governments of new analytical and data collection methods and to improve understanding of the correlation between agricultural policy and nutritional status. State-of-the-art workshops will identify gaps in knowledge and methodology and will promote greater communication between country officials, donors, and academicians. AID/W will distribute research, technical, and workshop reports to project participants. Two conferences will be held to summarize and evaluate project findings. The project will foster LDC use of tested methods in agricultural policy choices and will thus promote the adoption of policies favoring nutrition improvement.