1The authors are a Senior Lecturer, Department of Agricultural Economics, University of
Ghana, Legon, Accra, Ghana; and a Professor, Department of Agricultural Economics, Michigan State
University (MSU), East Lansing, Michigan, USA, respectively. This research was conducted under the
USAID-MSU Food Security II Cooperative Agreement managed by USAID’s Global Bureau, Center
for Economic Development and Agricultural Growth, Office of Agriculture and Food Security, with
funding from the Africa Bureau’s Sahel Regional Programs. The research was conducted in
collaboration with the Institut du Sahel/CILSS, based in Bamako, Mali. The authors gratefully
acknowledge the financial and intellectual support of our USAID and INSAH colleagues but take sole
responsibility for the views expressed in this paper. We especially thank Mbaye Yade of MSU/INSAH
for his contributions to this research.
Effects of More Open Trade on Cattle Production, Beef Consumption, and
Welfare in the Central Corridor of West Africa
by
Samuel Asuming-Brempong and John M. Staatz1
Paper Presented at AAEA Annual Meeting in Tampa, Florida
July 30-August 2, 2000
ABSTRACT
The magnitude and direction of trade flows in cattle and beef, and how cattle
production and beef consumption adjust in response to more open trade in the Central
Corridor (an acronym for the sub-region that includes Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire, Mali, and
Burkina Faso) have been estimated. A mathematical programming approach was used to
model trade in cattle and beef in the West African Central Corridor. Quadratic programming
which maximizes the net social surplus in the Samuelson sense under a competitive market
framework when farmers are risk averse was applied. Estimates of consumer surplus,
producer profits, and government revenue changes were used as welfare indicators. The
different scenarios analyzed indicate that there would be an increase in trade in cattle and
beef consumption in the sub-region, as well as an overall welfare gain.
Introduction
This study analyzes the implications of