Beyond the Farm Gate: Drivers of Farm Labor Productivity in BRICS+ Agrifood Systems

Agriculture still employs large shares of the workforce in many BRICS and BRICS-aligned economies, yet output per worker remains uneven across countries. This paper examines the drivers of farm labor productivity in ten BRICS+ members, namely Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates, using a balanced panel for 2001-2021. Drawing on data from the World Development Indicators, FAOSTAT, and UNDP, we estimate country fixed-effects models of agricultural value added per worker on lagged human development (HDI or schooling), arable land per worker, fertilizer use per hectare, national income (GNI per capita), and a time trend. The results show that higher HDI and greater land availability per agricultural worker are robustly associated with substantial productivity gains, whereas fertilizer intensity has no stable independent effect, and the influence of income largely operates through human development. A strong positive time trend suggests additional technological and institutional progress. Policy priorities should therefore combine investments in human development, land and tenure reforms, and innovation systems to foster inclusive productivity growth in BRICS+ agrifood systems.