Optimal Locational Choice for Agribusinesses in Madagascar

No hay miniatura disponible

Fecha

Título de la revista

ISSN de la revista

Título del volumen

Editor

World Bank, Washington, DC

Resumen

Descripción

The traditional location theory predicts that firms' locational choice is independent of the output demand. However, firms are often concentrated in large markets. In Africa, agrobusinesses are expected to play an important role to facilitate agricultural growth but are hardly available in rural areas. This paper examines the question of why agribusinesses are not located in local production areas despite the clear benefits expected from close proximity to their inputs. By applying the spatial autocorrelation Tobit model, the paper estimates the impacts of market and farm accessibility on agglomeration of new agrobusinesses in Madagascar. The findings show that market accessibility and agglomeration economies are important for attracting more agrobusinesses. The quality of labor is also an important determinant for their locational choice. The findings are consistent with some models of location theory: firms move away from rural areas where they may still have monopsony power, toward urban areas where productivity is higher.

Palabras clave

LOCATION THEORY, GEOSPATIAL ECONOMICS, AGGLOMERATION ECONOMIES, SPATIAL AUTOCORRELATION, CENSORED REGRESSION, AGRIBUSINESS, LABOR MARKET

Citación

Colecciones