Smallholder farmers’ participation in profitable value chains and contract farming : Evidence from irrigated agriculture in Egypt

Key messages The participation of smallholder farmers in high-value and profitable value chains as well as contract farming remains low in Africa. Farmers with limited land resources are more likely to devote a larger share of their land to low-value crops such as cereals while this pattern weakens with increasing land size and slightly reverses for high-value crops such as spices and herbs. Smallholders in Egypt face a trade-off between ensuring food security to their house holds and maximizing profit, and land plays a major factor in moderating this trade-off. Younger and wealthier farmers are more likely to participate in the cultivation of high value crops such as spices and herbs as well as contract farming. There exist strong complementarities between participation in high-value value chains and contract farming.Non-PR3 Building Inclusive and Efficient Markets, Trade Systems, and Food Industry; 4 Transforming Agricultural and Rural Economies; 5 Strengthening Institutions and Governance; IFPRI1; EgyptSSPDevelopment Strategies and Governance (DSG); Transformation Strategie