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OTSUKA Keijiro Professor

Short bio

Keijiro OTSUKA (E-mail: otsuka@econ.kobe-u.ac.jp)
Keijiro Otsuka is a professor of Development Economics at the Graduate School of Economics, Kobe University, and a chief senior researcher at the Institute of Developing Economies in Tokyo. He received a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Chicago in 1979. Prior to joining the Kobe University, he was a Professor at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies from 2001 to 2016. Formerly, he was a Chairman of the Board of Trustees of International Rice Research Institute from 2004 to 2007, and President of the International Association of Agricultural Economists (IAAE) from 2009 to 2012. He is an honorary life member of IAAE, a fellow of Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, and a distinguished fellow of African Association of Agricultural Economists.

Research Interest

Based on a variety of field surveys in Asia and Africa, I attempted to construct strategy for agricultural and industrial development. Specifically I attempt to explore the reasons why successful Asian rice green revolution cannot be transferred to sub-Saharan Africa and how high-value agriculture can be built by means of contract farming. I also inquire the roles of industrial cluster and foreign direct investment in the development of local industries.

Lectures and Seminars

Teaching Experience
How to Write Articles in English
Applied Microeconomics

Message

There are three important abilities to carry out valuable empirical research: (1) understanding of microeconomics, (2) knowledge of econometrics, and (3) understanding of reality. Students are advised to make maximum efforts to study microeconomics and econometrics.

Main Publications

1. “Induced Bias of Technical Change in Agriculture: The United States and Japan, 1880-1980.” Journal of Political Economy 94(3), June 1986, pp. 523-44 (with Toshihiko Kawagoe and Yujiro Hayami).

2. “Land and Labor Contracts in Agrarian Economies: Theories and Facts.” Journal of Economic Literature 30(4), December 1992, pp. 1965-2018 (with Hiroyuki Chuma and Yujiro Hayami).

3. “Population, Land Tenure, and Natural Resource Management: The Case of Customary Land Areas in Malawi.” Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 41(1), January 2001, pp. 13-32 (with Frank Place).

4. “Food Insecurity, Income Inequality, and the Changing Comparative Advantage in World Agriculture.” Agricultural Economics, November 2013, 44(S1): 7-18.

5. State Building and Development, London, UK: Routledge, 2014 (edited with Takashi Shiraishi).

6. Cluster-based Industrial Developments: Kaizen Management for MSE Growth in Developing Countries, Hampshire, UK: Palgrave Macmillan, 2014 (coauthored with Tetsushi Sonobe).

7. Moving out of Poverty: An Inquiry into Inclusive Growth in Asia, London, UK: Routledge, 2015 (coauthored with Jonna P. Estudillo).

8. In Pursuit of an African Green Revolution: Views from Rice and Maize Farmers’ Fields. Dordrecht, Netherlands: Springer, 2016 (edited with Donald F. Larson).

9. Agricultural Development: New Perspectives in a Changing World. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute, 2021 (edited with Shenggen Fan).

Awards

2010 　Medal with Purple Ribbon
2018　 14th Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) President Award
2018 　Newly elected to the membership of the Japan Academy

Did empirical research and held lectures about Coalition for African Rice Development：CARD, a collective for the development of rice production in Africa, and about promotion of Kaizen activities in Africa.

Directory of Researchers in Kobe University

Directory of Researchers in Kobe University