Bank Liquidity Creation Mechanism and Economic Development in Sub-Saharan Africa

The financing of the agricultural sector is an important issue in African countries. The objective of this thesis is to produce evidence in a context where improving agricultural productivity remains a major challenge for agricultural policies that are essential for achieving inclusive economic growth. More specifically, this thesis first estimates the effect of information asymmetry on the supply of agricultural credit and on agricultural productivity. It then examines the role of prudential regulation on the supply of credit to agricultural enterprises. Finally, the thesis identifies the demand profile for formal agricultural credit expressed by agricultural enterprises.

To achieve these objectives, the thesis starts from the hypotheses according to which

• i) there is an unbalanced relationship between the supply and demand of agricultural credit;
• ii) the absence or incompleteness of credit markets constitutes a brake on the improvement of the productivity of the agricultural sector;
• iii) the existence of information asymmetry between the actors on the credit market as well as the lack of knowledge of the profile of the demand for agricultural credit by financial intermediaries cause the rationing of the supply of credit in relation to the demand of agricultural credit.

The lessons learned from the results of the thesis will inform the design of agricultural public policies that facilitate the improvement of agricultural productivity through facilitating access to the formal credit market for agricultural entrepreneurs.