Subsidizing Agricultural Production on Imperfect Markets

In: The Pakistan development review: PDR, Band 26, Heft 4, S. 447-456

Abstract

Economic growth, and the distribution of wealth and income,
are two of the major, dimensions of economic policy in all countries. If
one follows the data published by the World Bank, one can see, that even
the relative income distribution in the developed and some of the
developing countries are very similar; it is only, that the level of
income is much lower in the latter countries, and therefore, that low
income is more visible and striking. Therefore, raising the level of
income of the very poor has been a major task of all governments. There
has been a very controversial discussion, however, as to how the incomes
of the poor can be raised easily, whether by economic growth,
redistribution of wealth, i.e. the means of production, or of income.
This discussion has been inconclusive so far, and the present paper sets
out to examine some of these aspects. Pakistan may serve as a perfect
example, considering the fact, that the country first suffered from an
overemphasis on economic growth and a neglect of distribution and then
tried distribution with no growth.