Agriculture is the mainstay of the Nepalese economy. It employs more than 80 percent of the economically active population and accounts for about 39 percent of gross domestic product (GDP). Apart from being a major source of food, this sector is vital for the growth and development of the country’s industrial and export sectors, which are primarily agriculture-based. Attaining food self sufficiency and rapid industrial and export sector growth thus depends crucially upon the progress of the agriculture sector. The importance of the sector to the overall development of the country has been recognized since the beginning of planned development efforts, with the formulation and implementation of the first five-year development plan in 1955/56. The importance placed on the sector has been reflected in succeeding development plans in terms of allocation of development expenditures. Despite continued emphasis on the agriculture sector, performance in terms of increased sector productivity and production has not been satisfactory. As a result, poverty has been widespread and growing over time1 while the food security situation has visibly worsened. Poor performance of the agriculture sector is associated mainly with lack of appropriate sector strategies required to tap local potentials. Major factors behind the dismal performance of the sector in the country include the scattering of scarce development resources to all the geographical regions irrespective of their potentials; improper pricing policies and distribution systems of agricultural inputs; lack of farmer responsive technology generation and dissemination systems; and the habit of ignoring farmers in the development of the irrigation sector (AsDB, 1997).
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Publisher:
FAO
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(2001
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Type / Script:
Progress Report
in English
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Keywords:
AGRICULTURE POLICY, POVERTY ALLEVIATION, FOOD SECURITY, RURAL POVERTY, SUSTAINABLE HOUSEHOLD, FOOD SECURITY, LAND USE, DEVELOPMENT PLANNING, PUBLIC INVESTMENT, PRODUCTIVITY GROWTH, RURAL INFRASTRUCTURE, SOIL CONSERVATION, AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS, AGRICULTURAL INNOVATIONS, AGRICULTURAL MECHANIZATION, AGRICULTURAL PLANNING, AGRICULTURAL POLICY, RURAL DEVELOPMENT, SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE, LIVELISTOCK, FORESTRY, IRRIGATION, EMPLOYMENT, DEVELOPMENT EXPENDITURES
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Thematic Group:
FAO
:
Food and Agriculture Organization
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Thesaurus:
04.01.01
- Agricultural Economics And Policy; Rural Sociology
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Reference Link:
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