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Research ArticleArticle

“Strange Farmers” and the Development of the Gambia’s Peanut Trade

TIJAN M. SALLAH
African Economic History, January 2019, 47 (2) 117-138; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3368/aeh.47.2.117
TIJAN M. SALLAH
Tijan M. Sallah () recently retired from The World Bank where he was Sector Manager for Agriculture and Rural Development for Eastern and Southern African countries. Prior to this, he taught economics at several American universities. All views expressed in this article are exclusively the author’s and should not be attributed to The World Bank.
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Abstract

This paper is a statistically based research and analysis that examines the historical evolution of the “Strange Farmer” phenomenon from the pre-colonial to the 1990s, and traces their contribution to The Gambia’s peanut export trade and to the colonial coffers, and subsequently those of the independent state. Strange farming is an agricultural contractual arrangement of “input (particularly labor and land) sharing” that enables Gambian landlords to “tie” migrant labor to their farms for the duration of the farming season. This is particularly important during periods of peak labor demand, when migrant-tenants could simply flee for better opportunities. The paper carries out simple linear regression and correlation analyses and finds significant correlation between the number of “Strange Farmers” in a given year and the volume of peanut exports in the subsequent year, contradicting Jarrett’s (1949) claim of no apparent correlation. The study describes the “Strange Farmer” system and also uses, but modifies, the classical “vent for surplus” theory, noting that expanded peanut production and exports must be understood against the background of seasonal labor supply augmentation by “Strange Farmers.” With these premises, the paper takes a long-term perspective on this important source of labor for The Gambia’s peanut trade.

  • © 2019 by the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System
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African Economic History: 47 (2)
African Economic History
Vol. 47, Issue 2
1 Jan 2019
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“Strange Farmers” and the Development of the Gambia’s Peanut Trade
TIJAN M. SALLAH
African Economic History Jan 2019, 47 (2) 117-138; DOI: 10.3368/aeh.47.2.117

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“Strange Farmers” and the Development of the Gambia’s Peanut Trade
TIJAN M. SALLAH
African Economic History Jan 2019, 47 (2) 117-138; DOI: 10.3368/aeh.47.2.117
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  • Article
    • Abstract
    • Introduction
    • Gambian Agriculture and Strange Farmers
    • “Strange Farming” and Share Cropping: Some Distinctions
    • “Strange Farmers” and the Beginnings of The Gambia’s Peanut Trade, 1820–1884
    • Colonial Rule, Peanuts and Migrants, 1884–1945
    • “Strange Farmers,” Independence, and Agricultural Development, 1945–Present
    • Conclusion
    • Footnotes
  • Figures & Data
  • Info & Metrics
  • References
  • PDF

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