Browsing by Author "Billy, Abraham"

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Causal Link between Liberia’s Rice Imports and Income Changes
    (Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, 2018) Billy, Abraham; Bonabana-Wabbi, Jackline; Lapaka Odong, Thomas
    Liberia’s inability to produce enough rice to feed its population has led to massive rice imports, a high import bill, a negative balance of payment, vulnerability to shock and political instability (such as the 1979 rice riot that degenerated into civil unrest and the current economic crisis), increased food insecurity and high rate of poverty, among other effects. However, the effect of these massive rice importations on the national income has not been established. This provoked the need to determine the casual link between the imported rice volumes and income. To achieve this, the study models secondary annual time series data on Liberia’s agriculture subsector from 1979 to 2011. The Johansen cointegration technique, Error Correction Model (ECM) and the Granger Causality tests are used to determine the causal link between rice imports and income changes. Liberia’s imported rice volumes are observed to be sensitive to income changes in both the short-run and long-run periods. Based on the causation between imported rice volumes and income changes, this study recommends that the domestic rice production be improved and commercialized.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Factors Affecting Liberia’s Imported Rice Volumes across Three Different Periods
    (Makerere University, 2016) Billy, Abraham; Bonabana-Wabbi, Jackline; Lapaka Odong, Thomas
    The purpose of this paper is to determine the factors that affect Liberia’s rice importation during the pre-war, war and postwar period. Design/methodology/approach – The study employs two stage least squares (2SLS) multiple regression analysis by modelling secondary annual time series data on Liberia’s agriculture subsector from 1979 to 2011. Findings – The study finds income, interest rate and inflation rate as factors affecting the volumes of imported rice; whereas, the exchange rate, population and imported rice price are found to have insignificant effects on rice imports. Additionally, Cassava is seen to have a strong negative significant relationship with imported rice. Practical implications – The short-term government food security strategies of tariff waiver on imported rice and import subsidies that encourage rice imports should be revised to prioritizing and upgrading cassava production as a substitute commodity to imported rice. Originality/value – cassava production and consumption could serve as important substitute to imported rice.