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Climate change and agricultural growth: an examination of the link in Malaysia

Md. Wahid Murad (Department of Economics, Faculty of Management and Economics, University of Malaysia Terengganu, Terengganu, Malaysia)
Rafiqul Islam Molla (Faculty of Business and Law, Multimedia University, Melaka, Malaysia)
Mazlin Bin Mokhtar (Institute for Environment and Development (LESTARI), National University of Malaysia (UKM), Bangi, Malaysia)
, and
Md. Abdur Raquib (Faculty of Business and Law, Multimedia University, Melaka, Malaysia)

International Journal of Climate Change Strategies and Management

ISSN: 1756-8692

Article publication date: 9 November 2010

3678

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify and analyze the link between climate change and agricultural growth in Malaysia, and pursue three sub‐objectives: to determine and analyze the link between agricultural growth rate and climate change score; to determine and analyze the link between per capita CO2 emissions and agricultural production index; and to determine and analyze the link between per capita agricultural production index and per capita CO2 emissions.

Design/methodology/approach

Relevant time series data compiled from several online sources including the Germanwatch, Ministry of Finance, Malaysia, and the United Nations database were used. The data for agricultural growth rate and climate change score for Malaysia were found to be available only for the four recent years from 2006 to 2009. The data for other variables such as per capita agricultural production index and per capita CO2 emissions have been standardized covering the period from 1990 to 2004. The ordinary least squares methods were employed to estimate the parameters in the three linear regression models.

Findings

The empirical results of the study reveal three important observations for Malaysia: the link between agricultural growth rate and climate change score is proven to be negative, but insignificant (p>0.1); the link between per capita CO2 emissions and agricultural production index is found to be direct and highly significant (p<0.01); and the link between per capita agricultural production index and per capita CO2 emissions is proven to be positive and highly significant (p<0.01). Also, an increasing level of per capita CO2 emissions in the country is proven to have both detrimental and beneficial effects on its agricultural growth. For instance, agricultural growth in Malaysia is found to produce significant effects on climate change, primarily through the production and release of CO2.

Originality/value

The paper recommends that the two‐way link between climate change and agricultural growth depends on the balance of the effects and that an in‐depth assessment of such effects might help the appropriate authority to anticipate the effects more accurately. The paper will be useful to researchers wishing to conduct research and develop models on the nexus between climate change and agriculture.

Keywords

Citation

Murad, W., Islam Molla, R., Bin Mokhtar, M. and Raquib, A. (2010), "Climate change and agricultural growth: an examination of the link in Malaysia", International Journal of Climate Change Strategies and Management, Vol. 2 No. 4, pp. 403-417. https://doi.org/10.1108/17568691011089927

Publisher

:

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2010, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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