Financing Horticultural Exports in Sub-Saharan Africa
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Date
1994-07
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Journal ISSN
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Publisher
Ohio State University. Department of Agricultural, Environmental, and Development Economics
Abstract
Several countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) have engaged in structural adjustment and financial sector reforms to either establish or strengthen their financing facilities. Unfortunately, the liberalization of financial markets in these countries has had little direct impact on the expansion of horticultural exports. The purpose of this paper was to examine more closely the argument about credit constraints and identify possible ways to improve the supply of financial services for horticultural exports in SSA countries. The data are drawn from case studies conducted by the Ohio State University team in six SSA countries including Ghana, Madagascar, Rwanda, Swaziland, The Gambia and Uganda during 1993-94. The methodology in the case studies was limited to reviewing the large number of studies already available, and to supplement them with interviews with key informants involved in horticultural exports. The main conclusion that emerges from the country studies is that export financing is not the most important factor limiting export growth compared to removing policy distortions, poor infrastructure and weak support systems for entrepreneurs, and the demanding requirements for production and post-harvest technology including packaging, handling, and marketing.