Browsing by Author "Murray, Anthony G."

Now showing 1 - 6 of 6
  • Agricultural, Off-Farm, Migration, and Social Protection Strategies to Increase Rural Household Resilience to Rainfall Shocks in Sub-Saharan Africa
    Mills, Bradford F.; Kostandini, Gentian; Murray, Anthony G.; Gao, Jianfeng; Koo, Jawoo; Guo, Zhe; Rusike, Joseph; Omamo, Steven (2016-04-07)
    Presented at the Spring Seminar Series at the Global Forum on Urban and Regional Resilience, Blacksburg, VA, 2016-04-07. Presented at the AGRA side session of the12th CAADP Partnership Platform, Accra, Ghana, 2016-04-12.
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    Are Heat and Eat Policies Affecting SNAP Household Participation?
    Nikolla, Dorina (Virginia Tech, 2016-08-31)
    In the U.S., states vary in the way they link the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). State practices that have come to be known as "Heat and Eat" (HandE) exploit a SNAP energy expense deduction in order to increase SNAP benefits. Sixteen states have used the practice at some point, with the earliest starting in 1995 and latest in 2013. This study uses variation in the timing of adoption of HandE across states to estimate the HandE's effect on SNAP participation. SNAP-LIHEAP participation links are also examined in relation to alternative state policies that bundle application costs. Using SIPP 2008 Panel data, the study employs a household fixed effects model to examine the impact of LIHEAP participation and the three SNAP-LIHEAP bundling policies on SNAP participation propensities. The results indicate that HandE policies cause a small increase in household SNAP participation, which is likely due to the fact that HandE provides additional benefits for SNAP participants. Categorical eligibility that links applications for both programs also generates higher differential probabilities of being on SNAP. These results are consistent with previous findings in the multiple program participation literature.
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    Do Improved Groundnut Seeds Make African Farmers More Food Secure? Evidence From Uganda
    Murray, Anthony G.; Mills, Bradford F.; Kostandini, Gentian (2016)
    Groundnuts are an important crop for Ugandan smallholders because they are high in protein, resupply nutrients to the soil, and are a storable source of wealth once dried. Adoption of virus-resistant seeds that increase yield and reduce yield variance may improve household food security, but the complex relationship is an empirical question. This article considers the effect of improved groundnut seed on smallholder food security in eastern Uganda. Results indicate that adopters have significantly higher household food security after controlling for observed and unobserved household heterogeneity. The food consumption score index increases more than 15 points with improved seed adoption.
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    Drought and Rainfall Variability: Costs and Resiliency Pathways for Rural African Households
    Mills, Bradford F.; Gao, Jianfeng; Kostandini, Gentian; Rusike, J.; Murray, Anthony G. (2016-04-12)
    This Research Note presents monetary estimates of the costs that drought, and rainfall variability more generally, impose on rural households in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The Note characterizes rainfall environments faced by rural households in SSA. Crop production variability and the costs that drought and rainfall shortfalls generate for maize, wheat, and sorghum are then simulated using historical data from Ethiopia and Zambia. The analysis also explores the effectiveness of alternative resiliency strategies in reducing household costs from variable rainfall. The Research finds that off-farm employment and public transfers are effective strategies in terms of stabilizing household income and reducing the costs of rainfall induced income variability. But these strategies do not fully protect households. Going forward there is urgent need for robust integrated policies at continental, national, and local levels to assist smallholder farmers in adapting to climatic variability and change.
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    Sustaining the CAADP Momentum: Strategies and Policies to Support Household Resilience to Drought
    Mills, Bradford F.; Gao, Jianfeng; Kostandini, Gentian; Ruisike, J.; Murray, Anthony G. (2016-04-12)
    Agriculture is the most important sector in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and will be the hardest hit by climate change. Country agricultural sectors will be impacted by climate change in different ways. But, in most cases, climate change will bring substantial welfare loses, especially to smallholder farmers for whom agriculture is a main source of livelihood. However even without future climate change, current welfare losses from smallholder exposure to drought and rainfall variability are large. Thus, there is an urgent need for the AU and National Governments, through the Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP) aligned national strategies and Climate Change Adaption Framework, to roll out tangible local, national, and continental policies that ameliorate adverse effects that current climate variability and future climate change have on vulnerable smallholders. This policy brief identifies strategies and policy interventions that can anticipate and mitigate the impacts that drought, low rainfall and other adverse climatic events have on rural households in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Adaptation strategies include growing drought-resident varieties of crops and use of water retention techniques such as drip irrigation, small dams and community water supply boreholes, as well as diversification of income to off-farm sources. The brief calls on regional organizations, national governments, and development partners to define robust integrated policies and actions that support and augment existing household agricultural and non-agricultural adaptation efforts.
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    Three Essays Examining Household Energy Demand and Behavior
    Murray, Anthony G. (Virginia Tech, 2012-06-19)
    This dissertation consists of three essays examining household energy decisions and behavior. The first essay examines the adoption of energy efficient Energy Star home appliances by U.S. households. Program effectiveness requires that consumers be aware of the labeling scheme and also change their purchase decisions based on label information. The first essay examines the factors associated with consumer awareness of the Energy Star label of recently purchased major appliances and the factors associated with the choice of Energy Star labeled appliances. The findings suggest that eliminating identified gaps in Energy Star appliance adoption would result in house electricity cost savings of \$164 million per year and associated carbon emission reductions of about 1.1 million metric tons per year. The second essay evaluates household energy security and the effectiveness of the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), the single largest energy assistance program available to poor households within the United States. Energy security is conceptually akin to the well-known concept of food security. Rasch models and household responses to energy security questions in the 2005 Residential Energy Consumption Survey are used to generate an energy insecurity index that is consistent with those found in the food insecurity literature. Participating in LIHEAP is found to significantly reduce household energy insecurity score in the index. Further, simulations show that the elimination of the energy assistance safety net currently available to households increases the number of energy insecure households by over 16 percent. The third essay develops a five equation demand system to estimate household own-price, cross-price and income elasticities between electricity, natural gas, food at home, food away from home, and non-durable commodity groups. Household cross-price elasticities between energy and food commodities are of particular importance. Energy price shocks reduce food expenditures for low-income households, as indicated by negative cross-price elasticity estimates for food and energy commodities. Additionally, low-income households reduce energy expenditures more than other households, further indicating ``heat or eat'' behavior. Results from all three essays provide policy makers with helpful information to shape future federal energy programs.