Research program on collective action and market integration of small-scale farmers

1. Research program on collective action and market integration of small-scale farmers Roldan Muradian Center for International Development Issues (CIDIN) Radboud University Nijmegen

2. The program deals with the overall issue of how and to what extent collective action institutions (cooperatives and other forms of farmers’ organizations) might favor the position of small-scale farmers when they integrate into agri-food value chains From the academic point of view, the program aims to shed new light on the dynamics of collective action institutions in rural areas in the developing countries and the behavior of farmers facing social dilemmas (problems that require collaboration to be solved) The program also expects to produce useful information for development practitioners on the role that collective enterprises might play in the promotion of rural development and the functioning of agri-food value chains in developing countries

3. Background: • Agri-food value chains are witnessing major transformations worldwide: • Rapid growth of the urban sector • Rising concentration of retailing • Increasing importance of standards and certifications • Price instability and high inflation in food products • Need for higher levels of coordination along the value chains • Need to create favorable market dynamics for small-scale farmers (both from the supply chain and development perspectives) • Due to the structural constraints they face, to improve the conditions of participation and upgrading capacity of small-scale farmers often requires collective action • The interest for agricultural development and farmers’ organizations in back in the policy agenda

4. Some of the basic research questions: • What type of farmers join cooperatives and other collective enterprises? • What is the impact of farmers’ organizations on households’ welfare and production indicators? • What are the impacts of certification schemes among members of coops? • Are there differences in the quality performance of members, compared to non-members? • What is the relationship between local indicators of social capital and the performance of collective enterprises? • What type of collective enterprises are more entrepreneurial? • Does market integration contribute to women empowerment? • What are the mechanisms through which value chain interventions can upgrade the performance of small-scale farmers?

5. Cross-cutting issues: • Value chain approach • Interest in interface between horizontal (collective action) and vertical (along the value chain) coordination • Gender (to treat the household not as a monolithic unit) • Emphasis on behavioral aspects • Combination of methods: quantitative, qualitative, experimental approaches

6. Value chains: Dairy Oilseeds Coffee Honey Vegetables Fruits 7 PhDs working in Ethiopia Funded by NWO and Nuffic

7. Ongoing program (PhD projects in different phases), the bulk of results are still to come • Some Preliminary results: • In the coffee sector, the distinction between members and non-members is very blurred • In the coffee sector, better-performing farmers combine different market outlet choice (are not fully loyal to the coops) • Along a series of indicators, the performance of primary cooperatives varies considerably within the same geographical area • Small-scale farmers’ enterprises (called PLCs in Ethiopia) hold a higher degree of collective entrepreneurship • In order to be effective in contributing to improve the conditions of market integration of small-scale farmers, value chain interventions should be focused on commodities with a particular set of characteristics (high asset specificity)