An empirical analysis of direct income support (Usak case)

In this study, the system of direct income support, the final level of reformsabout the agricultural support payment which constitutes one of the most importantexpense items of the budget, is analysed. The development of agricultural structuresfrom the Ottoman Empire to the Republican Era is analysed, the sources of the currentstructural issues are mentioned and the agricultural support studies aiming to decreasethe negative effects of such issues over the farmers are examined. Since the agriculturalsupport policies were not only used for political abuse but also were not able to accessthe small farm enterprises precisely; the ineffective support policies heavy for thebudget were abated and instead of them direct income support system was introduced inline with the letter of intents presented to IMF in 1999. In this study, the objectives andthe results of the application of this newly introduced direct income support system areexamined through an empirical study implemented in Uşak. Besides the direct incomesupports system?s positive aspects such as enabling higher number of people to drivebenefit and fulfilling the objectives like keeping the record of the farmers; it also hassome other aspects that need betterment. This study reveals that the system does notfulfill its purpose about the production since the payments are decoupled from theproduct, and that small farm enterprises cannot fully benefit from the system since theincome support is granted according to the size of the land in thousand square meters. Itis also argued that the system can be used as a powerful means of determining theagricultural production policies by setting a different price for each product; and withrespect to the records of the first five years, the legal arrangements letting the smallfarm benefit from the system may fulfill the aim of this support system.