104 Book. Reviews
policies and experiences helps to elucidate what this really means on the ground. Overall.
the publication is a valuable addition to the literature on poverty and hunger, problems
demanding urgent domestic and global solutions.
Reviewed by Helen Jackson, School of Social Work, Harare, Zimbabwe.
Trade, Exchange Rate And Agricultural Pricing Policies In Zambia, Doris J Jansen.
World Bank Comparative Studies, The Political Economy of Agricultural Pricing Policy,
World Bank, Washington DC, 1988 (276pp, no price given).
This incisive analysis of the impact of exchange rate and agricultural price policy willleave
Zimbabwean readers with a surreal picture of what could happen here if patterns established
before independence are allowed to continue unchecked. It will do the same for many other
African readers.
The study is an important contribution to price policy analysis in Africa. It will be most
useful to agricultural and macro economists in government departments and at universities
as well as to donor communities. It shows how various econometric techniques can be used,
even where the data are not available for traditional approaches. In particular an innovative
approach to establishing the exchange rate is clearly defined. The study carries out empirical
analyses of:
the effects of direct and indirect intervention on relative prices and the combined
impact on relative values added
the effect of price intervention on agricultural output, consumers, foreign exchange,
Government budget, sectoral resource transfers and income distribution.
As with any quantitative analysis in a developing country adequate data is not available
and traditional estimation procedures are not always possible. The advantage of this study
is that it uses simplified techniques and logical analysis to derive guesstimate data where
necessary. It is possible that Zambian readers may not always agree with the assumptions
upon which these are based, but, since the approaches used have been clearly outlined,
alternative assWT!ptions can be substituted and the results reassessed. It would seem.
however, that the assumptions actually understate the situation.
The study found that direct producer price policy had taxed both cotton and maizebut
subsidised tobacco. However, once the indirect impact of the exchange rate policy was
included in the calculation the effective rate of taxation (negative NRP) was 26% forvirginia
tobacco, 46% for cotton and 48% for maize over 18 years from 1966-1984. The taxation
was actually increasing over time and in 1984 (despite the price policy reforms) the NRPs
were - 40% for tobacco, - 73% for cotton and - 58% for maize (using a shadow exchange
rateofK5/$). The results for all the commodities are similar, with confectionery groundnu15
being the most heavily taxed; and paddy rice, wheat and tobacco the least in most YeaIS.
Maize meal consumers were subsidised at an average rate of 52% over the past ten YeaIS.
Estimating some elasticities, and using others from similar situations, a rough
approximation of the impact on maize output was estimated to be a 58% reduction per annum
(over the long term) with the effects increasing over time so that they were - 71%per annum
during the 1976-84 period. The negative output effect was proportionately greaterfor
subsidised fertiliser. Excluding the impact from the consumer subsidy, the impacton
Book Reviews 105
foreign exchange earnings of the producer price taxes, fertiliser subsidy and exchange rate
policies on maize imports and tobacco exports was an average of $70 million per annum of
8% of merchandise exports.
Excluding inefficiency costs, the budgetary effects of price policy were estimated to be
some K74 million per annum from 1970-84 (almost 10% of the government budget). These
subsidy situations often constitute a large proportion of the budgetary allocation for
'agriculture'. Despite repeated determination to channel resources to agriculture and to
diversify exports away from copper, only 6% of the budget is actually allocated to
agriculture. Jansen points out that another problem is that whilst capital appropriations may
have increased the recurrent budget has declined with per capita allocations decreasing
significantly. She estimates that mere has been a net transfer of resources out of agriculture
of some 7% of GNP per annum. The study shows a deterioration in both rural and urban
incomes despite the food subsidies for urban households. The average rural household
avoided the negative impact of government pricing policy by reverting to subsistence
production.
The study includes a comprehensive history of agricultural pricing policy and a
normative assessment of the impact of administrative controls. As a study contributing to
the literature onZambian agriculture, this publication is essential reading. As a text to assist
other countries utilising similar methodologies it would have to be used in conjunction with
a policy analysis text (eg Monke and Pearson, 1989; or Timmer, Falcon and Pearson, 1983).
It provides students and analysts with an excellent example of how to make the best use of
available data to provide rough approximations where precise estimates are not feasible. As
with all quantitative studies throughout the world, but especially in developing countries,
the results are only as strong as the underlying assumptions. Jansen has a good knowledge
and understanding of the basic relationships in the Zambian economy and has provided a
useful analysis.
Reviewed by Kay Muir Leresche, Mutare, Zimbabwe
References
JansenDoris (Dodge) (1977) Agricultural Policy and Performance in Zambia, University
of California, Berkeley.
Monk Eric and Pearson Scott R (1989) The Policy Analysis Matrix for Agricultural
Development, Cornell University Press, Ithaca.
Timmer C Peter, Falcon Walter P and Pearson Scott R (1983) Food Policy Analysis, John
Hopkins University Press, Washington.
Prisoners of Ritual An Odyssey into Female Genital Circumcision in Africa, Hanny
Lightfoot-Klein, Harrington Park Press, New York, 1989 (306pp, US$14,95)
The very title of this publication indicates the author's view of its subject, female
circumcision, and it would indeed be difficult for anyone outside the cultures where it is
practised to hold a supportive view of this custom. Nonetheless, Lighfoot-Klein manages
to give a balanced, objective, sensitive and perceptive portrayal of this highly emotive issue.