World Perspectives

Taliban Challenge

Analysts are noting that Afghanistan is not the same country today that it was when the Taliban last ruled the nation during 1996 – 2001. Back then there was no electricity, let alone cell phones and televisions. This is even more true when it comes to some of the essentials of life such as access to nutrition, clean water, and basic sanitation. The life of the average Afghan has improved and the test for the Taliban is keeping the citizenry content without the advantage of billions of dollars in aid from the west.  There has been a 60 percent increase in Afghanistan’s gross agricultural production over the past 20- years. Production is likely to slip if the Taliban retains the governance approach it used in the late 1990&...

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From WPI Consulting

Forecasting developments in production agriculture

On behalf of a private U.S. agricultural technology provider, WPI’s team generated an econometric model to forecast the movement of concentrated corn production north and west from the traditional U.S. Corn Belt. WPI’s model has subsequently provided quantitative support to a multi-million-dollar investment into short-season corn variety development. WPI’s methodology included a series of interviews with regional grain elevators and seed consultants. Emphasizing outreach and communication with stakeholders who possess intimate sectoral knowledge – on-the-ground insights – is a regular component of WPI’s methodologies, made possible by WPI’s ever-growing network of industry contacts.

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