ESTABLISHMENT OF THE " NETWORK FOR AGRICULTURAL POLICY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT"

Subject matter topics may include the following:

Macro-economic Environment of the transition

• Macro economic environment at country level;
• Socio-economic consequences of transition to market economy;
• Policies to promote environmentally sound production methods; conservation and protection of natural resources;
• Factor market policies;
• Food policy; supply/demand; consumption patterns;
• Food regulation; food production standards;
• Periodic evaluation of the process of transition, implications of privatization - macro and micro - case by case as well as aggregate.

Privatization and Restructuring of Agriculture and the Rural Sector

• Distribution and ownership allocation of farmland and production assets of former cooperative and state farms;
• Definition of property rights on land and use of other resources; legal instruments and development of institutions;
• Land tenure systems, including tenancy;
• Farmland registration systems, including LIS;
• Cadastral institutions; policy assumption and implementation;
• Economic effects of change in land tenure; present situation forecast trends;
• The sequencing of privatization activities and the definition of categories of public enterprises requiring different treatment;
• The role of privatization in evolving of market economy;
• Reform of the cooperatives system.

Price policies, Credit policies, Debt

• Farm price policy and reduction of agricultural subsidies;
• Sources of financing farm capital needs; internal financing; external financing;
• Credit; consumer credit; production credit; credit agencies;
• Problems related to extension of short-term production credits; medium-term and long-term credits; investment and credit policies: demand and supply; economics, institutions; agricultural debt restructuring; mortgage systems;
• Bankruptcy legislation;
• Credit and technological change;
• Policies to encourage the diversification of farm household investment;
• Government investment in infrastructure (roads, irrigation, ports and marketing facilities);
• Taxation: (land tax, agricultural income taxes, indirect taxes, labour taxes);

Agricultural Production and Food Processing Systems

• Farm management under market conditions;
• Rural infrastructure and institutions adapted to needs of emerging private farm sector;
• Enhancement of competitiveness in production and marketing;
• Storage losses; losses in processing;
• The effects of new technologies on expansion of production and mobilization of unutilized or underutilized resources;
• Training to improve farmers' decision-making abilities.

Domestic and Export Markets Development

• Markets and trade;
• Marketing systems; improvement of marketing efficiency;
• Marketing and transportation;
• Commodity marketing Boards (Agencies);
• Regional/sub-regional trade linkages.

Role of Governments in the Food Economy

• Organization, execution and financing of human capital development, (education and training institutional infrastructure, product quality programmes for agriculture);
• Social welfare implications of reforms for farm households;
• Policies aimed at development of basic rural infrastructure and of non-agricultural activities in order to enhance regional economic potential and making it possible for the rural economy to absorb some of the resources withdrawn from agricultural production;
• Government expenditure on agricultural research, education and extension service.