Graduate Studies

 

First Advisor

John Beghin

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

Department

Agricultural Economics

Date of this Version

11-2023

Document Type

Dissertation

Citation

A dissertation presented to the faculty of the Graduate College of the University of Nebraska in partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy

Major: Agricutural Economics

Under the supervision of Professor John Beghin

Lincoln, Nebraska, August 2024

Comments

Copyright 2024, Mohamad Amine Hedoui. Used by permission

Abstract

This dissertation is composed of two essays on agricultural trade and food security. The first chapter is entitled “Decomposing the GMO regulation impact on bilateral trade.” The essay analyses the complex impact of GMO regulations among countries on bilateral trade with a focus on GMO approvals. Three effects impact bilateral trade flows between trade partners: productivity enhancements in the source country, sorting cost from bilateral dissimilarity in regulations, and stringency impact on import demand. We estimate the model using a panel dataset of corn trade and two econometric approaches (PPML, Heckman sample-selection). We find that GMO laxity in production of exporters has the most prominent and robust effect of enhancing bilateral trade of corn. The effect of GMO laxity in demand appears to be smaller than the export booster effect of GMO adoption. Finally, bilateral dissimilarity in regulations does not appear to matter once we account for the impact of GMO in exporters’ production and for laxity in demand.

The second essay is titled “Can food security policies in Tunisia be better targeted?” The essay examines the issue of food security in Tunisia and the possibility of better-targeted food security policies. A modified version of the International Food Security Assessment (IFSA) model is used to explore different scenarios related to the grain industry in Tunisia and evaluates the effectiveness of existing food policy interventions. The approach relies on a PIGLOG demand modeling, which allows for precise aggregation of income-decile demands and accounts for income inequality. The data includes information on consumption, quantity, price, decile income distribution, decile expenditure share, and elasticities. Results show that the current Tunisian subsidy system leaves the lowest income decile vulnerable to food insecurity while inducing large fiscal outlays and deadweight losses. Rising international grain prices exacerbate these issues. Means-tested food stamps improve food security of vulnerable deciles, with potential fiscal savings.

Advisor: John Beghin

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