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COMCEC Agriculture Outlook 2018

1

Introduction

As of 2016, world population has reached 7.44 billion people. Almost half of this lives in rural

areas where the main economic activity is agriculture. For many economies, especially those of

developing countries, agriculture plays a distinctive role in economic development.

Therefore, it is seen as an important engine of growth and unique source for poverty reduction

in most of the developing world. Empirical studies demonstrate that agriculture is the most

effective sector in generating income for the poorest segments of the population. Hence, it is

accepted as a key sector for economic growth, reducing poverty and sustainable rural

development especially in developing countries.

In most of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) member countries, agriculture is one

of the leading sectors in terms of its contribution to income, employment, and trade. In 2016,

OIC agricultural gross domestic production (GDP) reached 649 billion US Dollars with a share of

20 percent in the world’s agricultural production. Furthermore, the number of people employed

in the agricultural sector in the OIC member countries reached 223 million in 2016, which

accounts for 26 percent of world’s agricultural employment. Agricultural commodity trade of

the 57 OIC member countries has increased considerably in the period from 1990 to 2017 and

reached 356 billion US Dollars. Thus, agricultural sector is of critical importance for many OIC

member countries for generating income, increasing welfare, eradicating extreme poverty and

hunger.

This report highlights the recent state of agricultural sector by analyzing macro agricultural

indicators, sectoral indicators and state of food security in the OIC member countries.

Agricultural value added, growth, population, employment, trade, resource use, production,

productivity and selected dimensions of food security in the OIC member countries are

presented and analyzed in this outlook. The report also dwells on the cooperation efforts under

the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation of the Organization of

Islamic Cooperation (COMCEC).

OIC member countries are analyzed in three groups: African Group, Arab Group and Asian

Group. Furthermore, for more detailed analysis, agriculture sector trends in the OIC member

countries are compared with the world trends. Lastly, key figures and tables created by COMCEC

staff usingmost recent data from various international organizations are presented with the aim

of enriching the understanding of the state of agriculture sector in the OIC.