On January 20th 2017, Professor Peter Warr, Dean of Economic Faculty, Australian National University visited NAPA and delivered a lecture “Poverty, Productivity and Agricultural Research: Evidence from Thailand” to NAPA staff and faculty, 200 undergraduate students of Public Policy at NAPA.
In the presentation Professor Peter Warr mentioned the results of the research on the relationship between productivity improvement in agriculture and improvement of living standard for poor people, thereby, he showed the verified conclusions related to the role of public investment on Total Factor Productivity (TFP), the role of productivity improvement in poverty reduction and restructuring. Professor Peter Warr emphasized the lack of investment in research as well as an innovation system will lead to the reduction of productivity improvement in agriculture. He also introduced the proof of returns of public investment and suggested comparison of the returns of public investment in the context of expenditure saving and effective public investment.
During the teaching session, NAPA lecturers and students discussed TFP of Vietnam agriculture, thereby, TFP growth rate of Vietnam is lower in comparison to other countries in the region since 2000, productivity reduction exerted a great influence on the agriculture growth rate as well as productivity improvement of the economy. NAPA lecturers and students showed their interest in the topic by raising questions and comments which proved the great reference value of the professor’s presentation in promoting productivity growth in Vietnam, especially for NAPA undergraduate students of Public Policy concerning evidence based analysis and evaluation Empirical studies combined with theoretical research are becoming indispensable tools in policy consultations. Therefore new analysis methods are needed to ensure reliability and reference value of consultation results. It is a new trend which needs updating, especially when the Ministry of Home Affairs is currently developing quantitative indicators for measurement and evaluation of public sector activities.
Professor Peter Warr visiting and lecturing at NAPA
