Agri-Food Sector Potential in the Chosen CIS Countries

Abstract

Since the early 1990s, the chosen CIS1 countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine) have undergone transition from a centrally planned to a market-oriented economy. Several countries from the group have sizeable agricultural sectors. Countries like Russia and Ukraine play an important role on the international markets. The untapped agricultural potential of these countries is the subject of this paper. The main goal of this paper is to improve the understanding of the agri-food sector performance in the chosen CIS countries. The paper provides content analysis of country reports, cross-country SWOT analysis of agri-food sector performance and development potential supplemented with expert evaluation.

Keywords: agriculture, food sector development, CIS countries, transition

JEL Classification: F63, L66, O13, O47, O57