This paper examines the foodgrain-marketing problems of Mali and analyzes why numerous proposals for reform have proved infeasible or too difficult to implement. Among the principal findings are: (1) government implementation is severely limited by physical, financial, and organizational factors; (2) the present mixed (government and private) system of marketing cannot be easily improved; (3) uncertainty over prices and general market disorganization divert farmer effort to cash crops and may reduce farmer willingness to develop grain production; (4) since existing co-operative organizations are instruments of government used mainly for grain requisition, farmers are reluctant to set up true co-operatives that could better defend their interests; (5) external assistance including food aid and a line of credit in the Operations Account in Paris has diluted the impact of grain-marketing policies and allowed the Mali government to maintain policies without having to fully absorb the consequences; (6) until very recently, the government had not been presented with well thought through proposals. The paper concludes that in any successful reform the State grain agency will have to play a major role - even under a "minimalist" assumption about the State's role in grain marketing - and that major improvements will result from indirect measures such as improvement and extension of feeder-road networks, better information on crops and marketing and better dissemination of such information, closer attention to relaxation of production constraints on food grains, and improved policy analysis within government. Such indirect changes will widen the options for reform and increase the probability of their adoption.

Although Lesotho is a small state never likely to be a major player in global affairs, its special interactions with South Africa make it a prototype for regional cooperation. Joint action by South Africa's and Botswana's military forces to end anarchy and preserve democracy in Lesotho serves as an important test case of regional peacekeeping in Africa. This reference provides comprehensive entries on historical events and personalities and focuses especially on the Basotho who have shaped Lesotho's development rather than on colonial officials and other expatriates. Greatest attention is given to the events, institutions, issues, personalities, places and external relationships of the post-independence era. The bibliography introduces a plethora of newer publications about Lesotho that have supplanted the rather sparse published literature previously available. An extensive chronology of Lesotho's evolution is included. The authors range of professional expertise and ability to compliment each author's areas of specialization. Offers in depth coverage of the most crucial events and participants in Lesotho's development.

Masters Theses in the Pure and Applied Sciences was first conceived, published, and disseminated by the Center for Information and Numerical Oata Analysis and Synthesis (CINOAS) * at Purdue. University in 1957, starting its coverage of theses with the academic year 1955. Beginning with Volume 13, the printing and dissemination phases of the activity were transferred to University Microfilms/Xerox of Ann Arbor, Michigan, with the thought that such an arrangement would be more beneficial to the academic and general scientific and technical community. After five years of this joint undertaking we had concluded that it was in the interest of all con cerned if the printing and distribution of the volumes were handled by an interna tional publishing house to assure improved service and broader dissemination. Hence, starting with Volume 18, Masters Theses in the Pure and Applied Sciences has been disseminated on a worldwide basis by Plenum Publishing Cor poration of New York, and in the same year the coverage was broadened to include Canadian universities. All back issues can also be ordered from Plenum. We have reported in Volume 33 (thesis year 1988) a total of 13,273 theses titles from 23 Canadian and 1 85 United States universities. We are sure that this broader base for these titles reported will greatly enhance the value of this important annual reference work. While Volume 33 reports theses submitted in 1988, on occasion, certain univer sities do report theses submitted in previous years but not reported at the time.

A joint FAO and World Bank study which shows how the farming systems approach can be used to identify priorities for the reduction of hunger and poverty in the main farming systems of the six major developing regions of the world.