In collaboration with the International Association of Agricultural Economists (IAAE), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and Cornell International Institute for Food Agriculture and Development (CIIFAD) will host an international symposium on “Inclusive Agro-Enterprise Development”, as part of the technical program of IAAE’s Triennial Conference of 2012.

Agro-enterprises make important contributions to employment and income generation in developing countries. They have key roles in the production, processing and distribution of food and fiber and are central actors in developing sustainable agricultural value chains. The economic performance of agroenterprises—firm growth, profits, and market share—in no small measure depends on the environment in which they operate. In most developing countries, agro-enteprises and in particular small and medium agro-enterprises (SMAEs) face critical gaps in their day to day operations in terms of capacities, infrastructure, finance, market services, access to suitable and affordable technologies, and other requirements that need to be met in order for them to be viable and reliable chain partners . Yet, developing countries SMAEs account for a large and growing share of agricultural sector value addition and employment in developing regions.

To address these challenges, many countries have experimented, tested and implemented innovative approaches for promoting investments, technologies, and attracting capital aimed at engendering the development of agro-enterprises at all levels. They have also implemented risk management mechanisms to enhance the economic welfare of vulnerable actors in the agro-food system. These cases offer lessons that could be usefully adopted by other countries. Accordingly, this joint FAO-Cornell symposium will identify policies, tools and approaches that have been successful in facilitating inclusive development of agro-enterprises, with specific attention to tried and tested examples from developing countries. Beyond identifying the emerging lessons and best practices for development professionals, the symposium will highlight concern for the distributional consequences of global and domestic capital and technology flows and will underscore the need for institutional innovations in markets that can better manage risk and improve access to appropriate support services for agro-enterprises.

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