Published by Johns Hopkins University Press. Also published by Oxford University Press in South Asia (forthcoming).
In developing countries across Asia, food marketing parastatals have played an important role in agricultural policy, especially with regard to government efforts to stabilize food prices. Three broad market failures constitute the primary arguments for this form of government intervention: a lack of market integration stemming from inadequate infrastructure, the absence or inadequacy of risk-mitigating institutions and markets, and the need to protect the world's poorest communities from a volatile global market. Opponents of such public intervention schemes claim that the old rationales are no longer convincing, that the programs are not cost-effective and do not allocate resources optimally, and that private institutions are strong enough to take over many of the functions traditionally performed by parastatals.
In From Parastatals to Private Trade, the editors—clearly from the latter camp—pose three general questions: Why must parastatal-centered policies in Asia change, when should policy changes occur, and how should such change happen: gradually or abruptly? Experts in agricultural policy use case studies from South Asia (Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan) and East Asia (Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam) to answer these questions; and a concluding chapter synthesizes these countries' experiences with price stabilization programs.
In light of the evidence—which indicates that parastatals played important roles in the past but have become overly expensive, and that reduced intervention can promote competition, help develop alternative institutions, and release funds for development and antipoverty programs without jeopardizing price stability—the editors highlight the challenges ahead and propose suggestions for reforming the existing paradigm for price-related policies.
This volume provides valuable analyses for anyone concerned with balancing government intervention with market-friendly policies.
- "This book provides a timely update to a perennial policy debate: how to deal with price instability for basic food staples. Food marketing parastatals may have played a valuable role during the Green Revolution, but, as the six case studies in the book show, these same parastatals now not only incur huge costs but are also an impediment to more efficient private market development. The book provides valuable policy guidance to Asian countries, and the lessons are also very relevant to African countries, where ways to deal with domestic price instability continue to be hotly debated."
—Derek Byerlee
Co-director of the World Bank's World Development Report 2008
and Lead Economist, Africa Region, World Bank - "From Parastatals to Private Trade provides a remarkable synthesis of economic history, policy analysis, and case studies. A distinguished set of authors has drawn from their extensive Asian experiences to produce a volume that stresses the difficulties in combining private-sector management techniques that lower costs with public-sector objectives for food price stability and accessibility by the poor. This volume will interest practitioners and academics alike."
—Walter Falcon
Farnsworth Professor of International Agricultural Policy (Emeritus), Stanford University - "This book provides an excellent historical and cross-country review of policy instruments for food security and price stability. It makes the compelling argument that 'times have changed' and that parastatals don't have a role in this new world. Asia is evolving towards increasingly liberalized and privatized food markets and food security policy ought to keep up with this trend. This book charts the way ahead for Asian food policy."
—Prabhu Pingali
Head of Agricultural Policy and Statistics, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
The table of contents is available for download in PDF format.
- Table of Contents