Prioritizing Agricultural Value Chains for Job Creation, Poverty Reduction and Nutrition Enhancement - Policy note, June 2021

Jul 19, 2026

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Policy note (June 2021) assessing agricultural value chain priorities to maximize job creation, poverty reduction, and nutrition enhancement. The analysis links inclusive recovery and employment performance across 2009–2018, highlighting agribusiness as strong for growth, jobs, and labor productivity. It identifies highest job-creation potential in traditional cash crops, cassava, edible oil seeds, pulses, and rice, and explains how employment elasticities and multipliers drive impact. It also argues that faster job targets require coordinated on-farm and off-farm growth strategies, backed by productivity gains, vertical value-chain arrangements, processing expansion, and more reliable farm input supply.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages10

Reading Time25 min

Job Creation and Inclusive Growth

Sector performance during 2009-2018

Value chains with highest job creation potential

Coordinated on-farm and off-farm growth strategy

PRIORITIZING AGRICULTURAL VALUE CHAINS FOR JOB CREATION, POVERTY REDUCTION AND NUTRITION ENHANCEMENT Policy note, June 2021 Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disc losure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized 2 I page Prioritizing Agricultural Value Chains This note aims to establish which value chains have the highest potential to create jobs, reduce poverty and improve nutrition. Although the comparisons are not limited to agribusiness value chain groups, they are based on the findings ofa larger study, which concluded that the agribusiness sector provides the best prospects to generate inclusive recovery from recession and create jobs relative to other segments of the economy1. In addition to growth and jobs, agricultural value chains play other important roles in development, including supporting the livelihoods of poor and vulnerable households and providing nutritious foods and thereby contributing to human capital development. The potential of value chains to advance multiple development objectives undescores the importance of the following ranking assessments. Job Creation and Inclusive Growth Key message \# 1. Growth, employment, and labor productivity outcomes during 2009-2018 suggest that the agribusiness sector provides perhaps the best opportunities to accelerate inclusive recovery and job creation going forward. •The 2009-2018 experience is quite instructive as this period was marked by pre-recession volatility, recession, and post-recession recovery – similar to recent and current economic circumstances and near-term challenges. • During that period, the off-farm agribusiness sector outperformed the overall economy in GDP growth, job creation and labor productivity growth. In particular, GDP in the off-farm agribusiness segments grew on average by 5.3 percent annually compared to 3.7 percent economy-wide, employment in off-farm agribusiness grew on average by 3.5 percent annually compared to 2.5 percent economy-wide, and labor productivity (GDP per worker) in off-farm agribusiness grew on average by 1.8 percent annually compared to 1.2 percent economy-wide. • Similarly, primary agriculture outperformed the overall economy in terms of GDP growth (4.3 percent versus 3.7 percent) and creation of better jobs as labor productivity grew by 2.8 percent compared to 1.2 percent on average economy-wide. • Within off-farm agribusiness, GDP growth and job creation were fastest in hotel & food services followed by trade & transport. • Primary agriculture and processing led all agribusiness segments (and the overall economy) in creation of better jobs. Figure 1. Agribusiness segments grew faster and created more and better jobs than the overall economy 1 Recent ASA report entitled “Transforming Agribusiness for Inclusive Recovery, Jobs and Poverty Reduction.” Prioritizing Agricultural Value Chains page I 3 Key message \# 2. The value chains with the highest job creation potential are traditional cash crops followed by cassava, edible oil seeds, pulses and rice. Cassava roots. © Arne Hoel/World Bank. Figure 2. Value chains with highest potential to create jobs Job creation impact of individual value chains per unit of growth (1 = highest, 0 = lowest) . • The value chains with the highest job creation potential have higher growth employment elasticity – the percentage increase in employment associated with a 1% increase in GDP originating from the targeted value chain group. • Growth employment elasticity measures employment generated economy-wide and within agribusiness. Estimated employment multipliers are presented in Table 1. • Traditional cash crops emerge as the value chains with the highest potential to create jobs, whether employment elasticity is evaluated economy-wide or within the agribusiness sector. On the other hand, rice is strong in creating jobs economy-wide, but not in the agribusiness sector – hence its lower ranking. • Job creation attributed to these value ch

FAQs

Which agricultural value chains are prioritized for job creation potential?

The note highlights traditional cash crops as highest potential, followed by cassava, edible oil seeds, pulses and rice, based on employment elasticity and multipliers.

Why does agribusiness outperform the overall economy for jobs and productivity?

Evidence from 2009–2018 shows off-farm agribusiness delivered stronger GDP growth, faster job creation, and higher labor productivity growth than the overall economy, with primary agriculture also performing better on growth and job quality.

What does the report say about meeting job creation targets?

The growth burden is lower when on-farm and off-farm segments grow in tandem; it increases when either segment stagnates. Coordinated strategy is therefore needed.

Jul 19, 2026

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