Investigating Spatial Dependence and Spatial Spillovers in African Agricultural Total Factor Productivity Growth

This study improves our understanding of the spatial dependence and spillovers of war on the agricultural sector productivity. The results provided here represent the first attempt in the literature to identify the total factor productivity impacts of war in Africa. War disrupts the agricultural sector in the affected country and its borders through loss of capitals, deaths of experienced farmers, disease, insecurity, and dislocation. A war may reduce productivity in a given country—a reduction of agricultural productivity by 0.41% and 0.40% in Congo and Angola, respectively. But its real effects, which are overlooked by alternative modeling strategies, are larger. JEL Classifications: C21, O11, O43, D24