Impact of Agricultural Policies on Smallholders’ Food insecurity Resilience in Iran: Evidence from Iran

AbstractOne of the essential goals of societies, primarily developing and underdeveloped countries, is to eradicate poverty and achieve sustainable development. As vulnerable individuals in many communities’ face growing economic, environmental, and political challenges, proactive crisis management by governments and policymakers—aimed at increasing the productivity of key economic sectors such as agriculture—has become essential. The efficiency of the farm sector is not only crucial for ensuring national food security, but it also significantly impacts the livelihoods, incomes, and resilience of rural smallholders. The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of agricultural support policies on the resilience of rural farmers in the Fariman region. The study area is the Hossein Abad Rekhneh Gol village, Iran, and the data were collected through documentation and the use of questionnaires. The Resilience Index Measurement and Analysis (RIMA) introduced by the FAO has been used to determine the resilience of rural farmers. Additionally, the distribution of subsidized fertilizers to farmers as a common agricultural support policy in the country has been chosen. The impact of this agricultural support policy on the resilience of rural farmers has been estimated using the propensity score matching method in this study. The study results indicate that households eligible to receive subsidized fertilizers have higher resilience on average compared to households that are not eligible. Based on the research findings for the study area, it is recommended that rural smallholders be prioritized in the allocation of subsidized fertilizers, which is constrained by quantity and budget limitations imposed by the government, compared to large-scale farmers. Additionally, facilitating rural farmers’ access to the available agricultural wells owned by non-private institutions can potentially improve farmers’ resiliency.