ABSTRACT
Most African countries have undergone dramatic agricultural market reforms over the last decades. This has resulted in significant changes in the operation of agricultural markets and consequently in welfare, income generation, and natural resource use of rural households. The challenge facing reform processes in these countries is a need to balance efforts to encourage efficient private participation while facilitating and complementing the role of the public sector. Concerns and suspicions about adverse effects of agricultural liberalization on rural households persist and often leave the policy maker at a loss as to the type of interventions required. Hence, managing the reform processes and assisting policy makers necessitates a good understanding of the operation of agricultural markets and the constraints at the farm household level to the response to market incentives.
