Determinants of Foreign Direct Investment and Foreign Direct Investment in Agriculture in Developing Countries

Determinants of Foreign Direct Investment and Foreign Direct Investment in Agriculture in Developing Countries
Author: Fabian Farr
Publisher:
Total Pages:
Release: 2017
Genre:
ISBN:

Understanding determinants of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and Agricultural Foreign Direct Investment (AGFDI) is vital to policy makers in developing countries. FDI is a source of capital for the host country that does not affect its debt balance. Even so, technological spillover, better infrastructure as well as an increase in value added and market access have been the source of motivation to increase efforts to attract FDI. As for AGFDI, ongoing uncertainty with the financial markets created a shift in private investment towards tangible assets, which favors AGFDI to developing countries. Nevertheless, investment in agriculture suffers from low commodity prices and increasing productivity loss that discourage FDI and AGFDI. Therefore, it is crucial for policy makers to understand the determinants of AGFDI to create an attractive environment for potential investors. We use country level panel data to estimate the impacts of country-level economic and social variables on FDI and AGFDI. The data consist of 22 developing countries. A subsample of 13 Latin American countries is also studied. Country and year fixed effects are used to isolate the impacts of the explanatory variables on FDI and AGFDI. The explanatory variables wer constructed to avoid contemporaneous endogeneity. FDI determinants are consistent with previous studies and confirm traditional variables such as economy size, infrastructure and trade openness encourage FDI. A new variable that measures energy imports as a share of total energy use was negative for both main samples of FDI. The results of the Latin American panel for AGFDI, were mostly consistent with FDI determinants. Infrastructure, energy imports and economy size, as well as forestland share and agricultural value-add were statistically significant for the amount of investment inflow and total flow respectively. Further analysis with larger samples is necessary to confirm findings. Also, social and environmental impacts of AGFDI should be included in future studies.

Trends and Impacts of Foreign Investment in Developing Country Agriculture

Trends and Impacts of Foreign Investment in Developing Country Agriculture
Author: Pascal Liu
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO)
Total Pages: 384
Release: 2013
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN:

Substantial increases in agricultural investments in developing countries are needed to combat poverty and realize food security and nutrition goals. There is evidence that agricultural investments can generate a wide range of developmental benefits, but these benefits cannot be expected to arise automatically and some forms of large-scale investment carry risks for host countries. Although there has been much debate about the potential benefits and risks of international investment, there is no systematic evidence on the actual impacts on the host country and their determinants. In order to acquire an in-depth understanding of potential benefits, constraints and costs of foreign investment in agriculture and of the business models that are more conducive to development, FAO has undertaken research in developing countries.This publication summarizes the results of this research, in particular through the presentation of the main findings of case studies in nine developing countries. It presents case studies on policies to attract foreign investment in agriculture and their impacts on national economic development in selected countries in Africa, Asian and Latin America.

Foreign Direct Investment in Developing Countries

Foreign Direct Investment in Developing Countries
Author: Sarbajit Chaudhuri
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 327
Release: 2014-07-08
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 8132218981

In development literature Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is traditionally considered to be instrumental for the economic growth of all countries, particularly the developing ones. It acts as a panacea for breaking out of the vicious circle of low savings/low income and facilitates the import of capital goods and advanced technical knowhow. This book delves into the complex interaction of FDI with diverse factors. While FDI affects the efficiency of domestic producers through technological diffusion and spill-over effects, it also impinges on the labor market, affecting unemployment levels, human capital formation, wages (and wage inequality) and poverty; furthermore, it has important implications for socio-economic issues such as child labor, agricultural disputes over Special Economic Zones (SEZ) and environmental pollution. The empirical evidence with regard to most of the effects of FDI is highly mixed and reflects the fact that there are a number of mechanisms involved that interact with each other to produce opposing results. The book highlights the theoretical underpinnings behind the inherent contradictions and shows that the final outcome depends on a number of country-specific factors such as the nature of non-traded goods, factor endowments, technological and institutional factors. Thus, though not exhaustive, the book integrates FDI within most of the existing economic systems in order to define its much-debated role in developing economies. A theoretical analysis of the different facets of FDI as proposed in the book is thus indispensable, especially for the formulation of appropriate policies for foreign capital.

Foreign Direct Investment in South Asia

Foreign Direct Investment in South Asia
Author: Pravakar Sahoo
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 378
Release: 2013-10-01
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 8132215362

During the 1990s, the governments of South Asian countries acted as ‘facilitators’ to attract FDI. As a result, the inflow of FDI increased. However, to become an attractive FDI destination as China, Singapore, or Brazil, South Asia has to improve the local conditions of doing business. This book, based on research that blends theory, empirical evidence, and policy, asks and attempts to answer a few core questions relevant to FDI policy in South Asian countries: Which major reforms have succeeded? What are the factors that influence FDI inflows? What has been the impact of FDI on macroeconomic performance? Which policy priorities/reforms needed to boost FDI are pending? These questions and answers should interest policy makers, academics, and all those interested in FDI in the South Asian region and in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

Foreign Direct Investment in Agriculture

Foreign Direct Investment in Agriculture
Author: Jan Schüpbach
Publisher: vdf Hochschulverlag AG
Total Pages: 171
Release: 2015-10-07
Genre: Science
ISBN: 3728137197

Foreign direct investment in agriculture and land has increased substantially since the 2007–2008 food price crisis. However, there is a severe lack of quantitative evidence on its economic impact. Therefore, the primary goal of this study was to collect and analyze empirical evidence, in order to better understand the potential benefits and pitfalls of such investments and related processes of agricultural commercialization. In particular, the study tests the effect of two strategies for including smallholder farmers into modern food supply chains: 1. Outgrower schemes, i.e. a type of contract farming whereby small-scale farmers produce crops for large-scale farming enterprises 2. Wage employment on large-scale estates The central part of the study looks at one specific investment project in the Zambian sugar cane sector. This sectoral focus was supplemented by a broader, cross sectoral analysis of a large, nationally representative panel survey. Overall, the evidence suggests that large-scale investments by foreign as well as domestic companies, and especially the model of cooperation with smallholder farmers in outgrower schemes, can indeed have positive and significant effects on the income and wealth of rural households.

Foreign Direct Investment, Location and Competitiveness

Foreign Direct Investment, Location and Competitiveness
Author: European International Business Academy. Conference
Publisher: Elsevier
Total Pages: 305
Release: 2008
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0762314753

This volume addresses some of the critical issues now demanding the attention of International Business teachers and researchers. From several angles, the contributions analyze factors which may explain, and/or influence the relationship between the competitiveness of multinational enterprises (MNEs) and the countries in which they operate. More particularly, the four main issues address: the recent advances in the determinants and strategy of multinational business activity; the determinants of location competitiveness of countries; the competitiveness of emergent and developing countries and the locational responses of both indigenous and foreign-owned firms; and the policy challenges raised by the highly fragmented, and often uncoordinated international regulatory framework on government FDI. It is hoped the contents of the volume will be of interest to international business scholars, senior executives of multinational enterprises and national policy makers interested in advancing their competitiveness by engaging in outward, and encouraging inward foreign direct investment. This book addresses some of the critical issues now demanding the attention of International Business teachers and researchers. This book is published annually.