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Comment: Maize research in Malawi
Author(s) -
Heisey Paul W.
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
journal of international development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.533
H-Index - 66
eISSN - 1099-1328
pISSN - 0954-1748
DOI - 10.1002/jid.3380020205
Subject(s) - multinational corporation , developing country , public sector , business , development economics , political science , agricultural economics , economic growth , economics , economy , finance
Jonathan Kydd's analysis of the history of maize research in Malawi argues successfully that the reasons for the low rate of adoption of high yielding maize varieties lie in an insufficient appreciation of local processing and storage requirements. The analysis, however, raises further questions. In particular, Kydd's conclusion that maize research by multinational seed corporations might be more effective than public sector research is not supported by adequate evidence. The existing evidence suggests that though these corporations are likely to play an increasing role in developing counties, they are unlikely to direct their efforts to the needs of the poor.