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The study attempts to estimate farm subsidies the governments can save by transitioning to a millet-based production system, replacing GHG emission-intensive crops.

It updates a 131 × 131 commodity input–output (IO) table of the year 2015–16 into 2021–22 using the RAS procedure and simulates the economy-wide impacts of replacing rice and wheat with pearl millet and sorghum using consumption and production approaches. It then quantifies fertilizer, electricity and credit subsidy expenses the government can save through this intervention. It also estimates the potential reduction in GHG emissions that the transition could bring about. India is taken as a case.

Results show pearl millet expansion brings greater benefits to the government. It is estimated that when households return to their pearl millet consumption rates that prevailed in the early-reform period, this could save the Indian government Rs. 622 crores (USD 75 m). The savings shall be reinvested in agriculture to finance climate adaptation/mitigation efforts, contributing to a sustainable food system. Net GHG emissions also decline by 3.3–3.6 MMT CO2e.

Indian government has been actively aiming to bring down paddy areas since 2013–14 through the Crop Diversification Program and promoting millets (and pulses and oilseeds) on these farms. The prime reason is to check rapidly declining groundwater irrigation in Green Revolution states. Regulations in the past in these states have not brought the intended results. Meanwhile, electricity and fertilizers are heavily subsidized for agriculture. A slight shift in the cropping system can help conserve these resources. Meanwhile, GHG emissions could also be brought down and subsidies could well be saved. The results of the study indicate the same.

A less warm society is what governments and nongovernment organizations across the world are aiming for at present. Financial implications affect actions against climate change to a greater extent, apart from technological innovations. The effects of policy strategies discussed in the study, taking a large country as a case, when implemented appropriately around the regions, could help move a step closer to action against climate change.

The paper addresses a key but rarely explored research issue – that how a climate-sensitive crop choice will help reduce the government’s fiscal burden to finance climate adaption/mitigation. It also offers a mechanism to estimate the benefits within an economy-wide framework.

Effective agricultural product price regulation policies depend on market integration and the degree of symmetry in the transmission of agricultural product price signals. This study analyzes the transmission and asymmetry of the price series between the Ouagadougou consumer market and assembly markets considering three primary cereal products in Burkina Faso.

This study applies the nonlinear autoregressive distributed lag (NARDL) econometric model, which is an asymmetric extension of the ARDL cointegration model. The price series examined covers the period extending from January 2005 to December 2020.

Our analysis provides novel insights regarding short- and long-term asymmetric effects in the transmission of price signals between assembly markets and the consumer market. We also determine that the effects of negative shocks are more persistent than those of positive shocks in several markets.

For markets that exhibit symmetrical responses of assembly market prices to consumer market prices, the results could reflect the continuous efforts of market players, particularly the government, to eliminate market failures and ensure the long-term efficiency of cereal markets. To this end, an agricultural market information system can have a crucial role in easing information access for all market players.

This study provides new evidence regarding the nature of the transmission and asymmetry of price information on primary cereal products in the largest markets in Burkina Faso. Applying the NARDL model makes it possible to simultaneously estimate short- and long-term asymmetry.

Climate change and its imminent threat to human survival adversely impact the agriculture sector. In an impoverished country like The Gambia, economic costs of climate change are colossal. This study aims to establish a computable general equilibrium (CGE) model for The Gambia’s agriculture sector to examine the effects of climate change on crops, livestock and sea-level rise.

This study used a CGE model with other climate change impact models to compute the impacts of climate change on The Gambia’s agriculture sector. The social accounting matrix calibrates the results from the various models, thereby generating the baseline results which exemplify a “steady-state” and policy shock results illustrating the medium- and long-term effects of climate change on the country’s agriculture sector.

The baseline results indicate the status quo showing the neglect of the agriculture sector due to limited investment in the sector. Hence, the sector is the “hardest hit” sector as a result of climate change. When the model factored in climate change in the medium term (2055) and long term (2085), the macroeconomic indicators of gross domestic product, national savings, wages, disposable income and consumer price index deteriorated, elucidating the vulnerability of the economy to climate change. The consumption of groundnuts, cattle and fish will decline by 5%, 5% and 4%, respectively, in the long term. However, the production of all agricultural commodities will decline by an average of 35% for the same period. The results for international trade show that exportation would decline while importation will increase over time. The general price level for agricultural commodities would increase by 3% in 2055 and 5% in 2085. Generally, the results manifest the severity of climate change in the agriculture sector which will have a multiplier effect on the economy. The impact of climate change would result in agriculture and economic decline causing hunger, poverty and human misery.

The caveat of this study revealed the nuances not captured by previous Gambian climate change studies, thus the novelty of the study.

The goal of the present study is to examine the degree of knowledge amongst Indian women about millet grain and its nutritional advantages. Millet is regarded to be five times more nutritious than rice and wheat. Despite the fact that millet contributes to 10% of India's food grain basket and has an annual production of 18 million tonnes, it is not consumed in the same proportion as mainstream cereals (that is rice and wheat). As a result, the study's primary objective is to determine the level of awareness and consumption pattern of millet amongst Indian women regarding millet grains.

The research was carried out in the city of Bengaluru in the state of Karnataka, India. For the purpose of study, a sample of 855 female respondents was approached using a non-probability sampling technique known as convenience sampling. The data were gathered through the use of a self-administered structured questionnaire.

According to the findings of the study, the vast majority of respondents consume millet for preserving overall health. Building self and family immunity is the most important factor with 4.11 mean scores and low standard deviation of 0.985. The results reveal that 80.6% of women in the study are aware of millet but only 62.7% of women are consuming millet. The motivating factors and demotivating factors leading to consumption and non-consumption behaviour, respectively have also been identified. The study also reveals that demographic factors such as age, qualification and income have a direct influence on millet consumption.

The scope of research can be extended to explore the impact of millet consumption on long term health benefits of millet amongst the target respondents. Further, the study can be extended to explore the consumption pattern of millet among different target audience in various parts of India. The media interventions in creating awareness of millet consumption benefits need to be studied for increasing the consumption of millet.

Companies involved in producing Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) products can be encouraged to produce millet based foods like cereals, biscuits, ready to eat foods etc. Workshops can be organized to raise awareness on how the millet can replace traditional grains in the cooking process.

Policy measures may include millet being promoted through technology dissemination, creating awareness about advantages of millet and including millet in the Public Distribution System (PDS). It is also important to promote the cultivation, maintenance and processing of the local variety of millet with competent marketing strategies so as to increase their cultivation comparable to the cash crops. Farmers should be educated on the importance of cultivation of minor millet.

The fast-paced lifestyle of urban Indians has a direct impact on their dietary preferences. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that people have a nutritionally balanced diet and engage in regular physical activity to reduce health risks. In India, as a result of women's increased participation in the workforce, women are forced to manage many tasks and obligations, which has detrimental effects on their health. The poor nutritional status of modern-day workers is attributed to a lack of education, lack of awareness and a general disregard for health-related concerns. There is a need to investigate if Indian women are aware of the nutritional benefits of millet grains that are higher in protein.

Ghana's economy is largely agrarian, and the business of agriculture is dominated by smallholder farmers who are predominantly rural dwellers. As a result, efforts to lift rural farming households from poverty have been narrowed to the promotion of agricultural development to the neglect of the rural non-farm sector. However, this is fast changing in the advent of a burgeoning rural nonfarm economy and must engage the attention of policy actors. This study thus assesses the effect of non-farm participation on households' level of commercialization of agricultural crops in Ghana.

The study applies a generalized structural equation model (GSEM) to the Ghana Living Standards Survey round 6 dataset, a stratified and nationally representative random sample of 16,772 households in 1,200 enumeration areas.

This study finds that non-farm participation increases the produce sold to output ratio. It is concluded that non-farm engagement by farmers boosts commercialization in Ghana. Thus, for the Ghanaian and similar contexts, agricultural development interventions that incorporate non-farm activities are more likely to be successful in improving livelihoods.

The study uses only the ratio of sales value to output value definition for commercialization and acknowledges use of multiple definitions could be superior.

Various empirical studies have examined the link between the farm and nonfarm sectors. This paper is original in its approach as it tackles an aspect of the subject that has been understudied, namely, an exploration of nonfarm and farm linkages from the perspective of agricultural commercialization.

The authors assess the development potential of cowpea beyond grain in local markets in Mali by: (1) identifying trader types and types of cowpea products sold; (2) examining trader roles; (3) estimating gross margins and their determinants; and (4) discussing policy opportunities to further develop the value chain.

The authors analyze data collected through observation and semi-structured questionnaires from 487 sellers in 26 markets, including market, seller, and product characteristics. The authors also calculate gross margins and conduct a regression analysis to identify influential factors.

The authors identify several types of cowpea sellers in local markets, including processor-retailers, retailers of fresh leaves and fodder, and grain retailers, collectors and wholesalers. Women dominate the marketing of processed products and fresh leaves. The marketing of boiled cowpeas offers retailers higher margin rates compared to fritters and pancakes. Grain sellers, who are mostly men, have lower margins but sell larger quantities. Processor-retailers bring more value to the cowpea value chain. Specialization of the seller in cowpea, regional location of the market and day of the market fair all influence gross margins.

Future work should explore consumer preferences for different types of cowpea products.

This study of the cowpea value chain in Mali has revealed the multidimensional character of the cowpea plant, which goes far beyond its grain and highlight the important roles played by women.

This study aims to investigate the role of international price volatility and inventories on domestic market price dynamics in the case of agricultural commodities.

A structural model is employed to uncover relationships among commodity price, price volatility, inventories and convenience yield. Monthly producer price data along with annual data on trade, consumption, inventories and tariffs for 71 countries and 13 commodities covering 2010–2019 are assembled to estimate the model. With a first-stage Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator (LASSO) estimator to identify the best instrument set, a nonlinear approach is used to estimate the model.

Results show that international market information plays a critical role in domestic market price dynamics. International price volatility has a stronger effect on domestic prices than that of international inventories.

Current upheaval in commodity markets requires an understanding of how prices move together and inventories affect that movement. A country's internal price is not independent of the effects of global market events.

Although hypotheses exist that global market information (volatility and inventories) helps countries manage domestic commodity prices, there have been limited studies on this relationship, especially with a structured model and cross-country data.

Millets are ancient grains, following wheat, that have been a fundamental source of human sustenance. These are nutrient-rich small-seeded grains that have gained prominence and admiration globally due to their super resilience in diverse climates and significant nutritional benefits. As millets are renowned for their nutritional richness, the demand for millet-based products increases. Hence, this paper aims in identifying the growing need for innovative processing techniques that not only preserve their nutritional content but also extend their shelf life.

In traditional times, heat was the only means of cooking and processing of the foods, but the amount of damage they used to cause to the sensorial and nutritional properties was huge. Millets’ sensitivity toward heat poses a challenge, as their composition is susceptible to disruption during various heat treatments and manufacturing processes. To cater to this drawback while ensuring the prolonged shelf life and nutrient preservation, various innovative approaches such as cold plasma, infrared technology and high hydrostatic pressure (HPP) processing are being widely used. These new methodologies aim on inactivating the microorganisms that have been developed within the food, providing the unprocessed, raw and natural form of nutrients in food products.

Among these approaches, nonthermal technology has emerged as a key player that prioritizes brief treatment periods and avoids the use of high temperatures. Nonthermal techniques (cold plasma, infrared radiation, HPP processing, ultra-sonication and pulsed electric field) facilitate the conservation of millet’s nutritional integrity by minimizing the degradation of heat-sensitive nutrients like vitamins and antioxidants. Acknowledging the potential applications and processing efficiency of nonthermal techniques, the food industry has embarked on substantial investments in this technology. The present study provides an in-depth exploration of the array of nonthermal technologies used in the food industry and their effects on the physical and chemical composition of diverse millet varieties.

Nonthermal techniques, compared to conventional thermal methods, are environmentally sound processes that contribute to energy conservation. However, these conveniences are accompanied by challenges, and this review not only elucidates these challenges but also focuses on the future implications of nonthermal techniques.

The study investigates the inter-linkages between geopolitical risk (GPR) and food price (FP).

By employing the bootstrap full- and sub-sample rolling-window Granger causality tests.

The empirical results show that there is a time-varying bidirectional causality between GPR and FP. High GPR leads to a rise in FP, suggesting that geopolitical events usually may disrupt supply and demand conditions in food markets, and even trigger global food crises. However, the negative effect of GPR on FP does not support this view in certain periods. This is mainly because GPR is also related to the global economic situation and oil price, which together have impacts on the food market. These results cannot always be supported by the inter-temporal capital asset pricing model, which states that GPR affects FP in a positive manner. Conversely, there is a positive impact of FP on GPR, indicating that the food market is an effective tool that can reflect global geopolitical environment.

In the context of the Russia–Ukraine conflict, these analyses can assist investors and policymakers to understand the sensitivity of FP to GPR. Also, it will provide significant revelations for governments to attach importance to the role of food price information in predicting geopolitical events, thus contributing to a more stable international environment.

Africa's history of trade, production and financial services that propelled the continent's economic systems existed long before an era of colonisation commonly recognised as beginning in the nineteenth century. By the time the decolonisation of a majority of African countries was achieved in the mid-twentieth century, the African economic identity had been, to a great extent, relegated by Westernised methods and orientations. Today, Indigenous practices are once again resurfacing in Africa's ongoing search for sustainable development, with increasing calls to resuscitate and incorporate these age-long business orientations. This introductory chapter provides readers with a synopsis of all the themes of this second of a two-volume edited book with a focus on the philosophies and practices of Indigenous businesses, which, if successfully explored and scaled up, would make significant contributions to Africa's economic infrastructure.