Hence the need for social protection to address chronic as well as transient income shortfalls. Investments in human capital (notably education) and measures such as contingent cash transfers can ensure that the next generation makes a quantum leap in terms of development. There is evidence to suggest that improvements in agricultural productivity have a strong effect in reducing poverty (Irz etal., There is also evidence that agricultural growth has helped support broader economic growth (for example, Tiffin and Irz, 2006), although agriculture’s role as a necessary driver of development has been questioned (Gardner and Tsakok, 2007). Proponents of the former approach (e.g. Hazell et al.,