ISLAMABAD, Oct 20: Greater investment in agriculture in transforming economies, most of which are in Asia, is vital to the welfare of 600 million rural poor people living in those countries, says the latest World Development Report.

Titled ‘Agriculture for Development’, the report warns that the international goal of halving extreme poverty and hunger by 2015 will not be reached unless neglect and underinvestment in the agricultural and rural sectors over the past 20 years is reversed.

“Rural poverty accounts for an extraordinary 82 per cent of total poverty in transforming countries,” said Robert B. Zoellick, World Bank Group President.

“A greater focus on agriculture is essential when considering population pressures, declining farm sizes, water scarcity and environmental contamination, and the need to develop lagging high poverty areas.”

In transforming economies such as China, India and Morocco, agriculture contributed an average 7 per cent to growth in GDP between 1995 and 2003, though the sector accounts for about 13 per cent of the economy and employs just over half the labour force.

The report recommends that in these countries, where 2.2 billion people live in the countryside, the agricultural agenda should focus on reducing the disparity between rural and urban incomes and raising the incomes of the rural poor.

“Agricultural growth has been highly successful in reducing rural poverty in East Asia over the past 15 years,” said Francois Bourguignon, World Bank Chief Economist and Senior Vice President, Development Economics. “The challenge is to sustain and expand agriculture’s unique poverty-reducing power, especially in South Asia where the number of rural poor people is still rising and will likely exceed the number of urban poor for at least another 30 years.”

According to the report, agriculture can provide pathways out of poverty for millions of rural poor who would otherwise be left behind in transforming economies. It says one way out is through a high-value agricultural revolution. Incentives to diversify into high-value horticulture, poultry, fish and dairy products could be provided via pricing reforms and an overhaul of subsidy supports for cereals.

For its part, the World Bank is committed to increasing its support for agriculture and rural development, following a decline in lending in the 1980s and 1990s. In FY07 commitments reached $3.1 billion, marking an increase for the fourth straight year. —APP