The Effect of Agricultural Diversification and Commercialization on the Anthropometric Outcomes of Children: Evidence from Tanzania

Type Working Paper
Title The Effect of Agricultural Diversification and Commercialization on the Anthropometric Outcomes of Children: Evidence from Tanzania
Author(s)
Publication (Day/Month/Year) 2015
URL http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/bitstream/205050/2/Selected Paper No. 6426.pdf
Abstract
This paper provides evidence of the effect of agricultural diversification and commercialization
on the health of preschool children. We use a nationally representative sample of households
taken from the Tanzania National Panel Survey (TNPS) to describe the correlations between
agricultural diversification and commercialization on child nutrition. We find that engaging in
contract farming for producing food crops has a negative effect on both nutritional stunting
and wasting. Diversification only has a positive effect on child nutrition for children at the
bottom of the nutritional distribution. The effect of commercialization vary by the type of
crop produced and the position of children in the nutritional distribution. The results provide
insight into the effects of agricultural diversification and commercialization on the household
welfare.

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