Agrarian modernisation in Honduras

    Research output: Book/ReportBook

    Abstract

    Agrarian development in Honduras and, in particular, the role of the state therein were studied. The state played a pivotal role in nurturing agrarian expansion in the post-war period. Without state funding, development of the cotton and coffee sectors in the late 1950s and early 1960s would have been slower. Large infrastructural investments made by the state have been a key component in accelerating the expansion of smallholder coffee cultivation and coffee exports. The state played also a critical role through agrarian reform programmes, benefiting 74 608 peasants over the period 1962-1991, while the state credit bank provided much of the working capital sought by staple food crop producers. In the 1990s, new policies, consistent with neoliberal ideology, were advanced to rejuvenate the sector by restoring production incentives, liberalizing and deregulating markets and providing secure land title. In this new strategy, the state plays a much more peripheral role than it has historically been accustomed to. Caution should be exercised as Honduras is not in any sense of the word a developed market economy with complete and well-functioning markets. Consequently, the current policy may not only prove unworkable, but may ultimately have a counter-productive effect on rural welfare, if not output levels.
    Original languageEnglish
    Place of PublicationNew York
    PublisherEdwin Mellen Press
    Number of pages486
    ISBN (Print)9780773472839
    Publication statusPublished - 2002

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