Farming in the Desert - by Moses

Farming and Agricultural Economics

Perspective #1 – To enter a labour force that is paying their Farmers’ employee base $10/hour (in Canadian Funds) twice that amount, means this;

1) There will be more skilled workers.
2) The demand side upon applicants will be greater at this site.
3) It will cost more to build up capital.
4) Privatization will occur in most likelihood, with respect to each ventures’ products. ie- Pears will increase in supply and decline in cost (law of diminishing returns), under the premise of ‘Laissez Faire’.
5) Land will become fertile faster.
6) Agricultural products from this farm, will in all likelihood improve.

Perspective #2 – Under the same scenario of economics;

1) Cause a high staple price in immediate seasonal supply and an inflationary agricultural economy in the short term.
2) Speed up infrastructure in irrigation and Farming Communities with newly found funding.
3) Build a strong agricultural economy in the long term, as the agricultural sector would be built up tenfold over time (as our children may very well have new found interest in Farming in Rural Centers, versus the success of living in Urban Metropolitan Centers).

Cause and effects of these perspectives;

1) With a wider land claim, each Farm will create a ‘product’ market (specialization). Ie- Pears and Avocados on any particular Farm will increase in Quality and Supply.
2) The land will become fertile, sooner than might have otherwise been expected.
3) Irrigation would become highly feasible.
4) Worldwide teams would be in demand, and greeted by Volunteers Worldwide in greater numbers.
5) Trade amongst trading partners would be stronger. Should a person be given a decent salary, most would be a little more motivated in acting on an offer to be there. With an extremely low salary, it would stand to reason that most people Worldwide would reject employment. For example; Should the Provincial Government of Ontario promote five times the amount of Maple Syrup, and sell the product at half the price, this (in selling their seasonal supply in full) would bring in an additional Profit more than twice that of a limited supply and allow for a greater wage for the Labour force .
6) Should this Farming expansion be in a region of that in the Sahara Desert; Irrigation from the Red Sea across North-East Africa would occur much sooner than might otherwise be expected. Additionally, it would build up trading partners that today are almost non-existent.

In 1993, I spent 7 months on a Kibbutz in the Negev (the desert within Israel). We farmed pears, oranges, apricots, peaches, and avocados. To look at this Kibbutz during its' inception in 1942, one would wonder how this was at all possible. The reality is that through 50 years of hard work the land is now a semi-paradise. To achieve this in other barren, desert lands is not only possible but economically necessary (and feasible for that matter). Increasing farmland in the Sahara may be scoffed at today, however, when we look at precedents set in Israel and Jordan we see tremendous benefits from building up barren lands. It may be impossible for Nations within North-East Africa to pay $20 Cdn/Hour, however, Nations that pay $5/Hour to their Farmers would still be viable to many people. In 1993, on Kibbutz Reviviim, I was paid $50Cdn/Month to work in the agricultural sector. A small room, and my food was covered by the Kibbutz, yet the appeal was just to be IN ISRAEL. When will Ethiopia, Sudan, and Somalia learn that beginning to build within their lands today, will provide sustainable life in the not too distant future? I would imagine that many Ethiopian/Canadians, Sudanese/Canadians, and Somalian/Canadians would find appeal in working in their Homeland as a tenure during their lives within Canada and abroad.