The Potential for Regional Cooperation in Fertilizer: A Methodology Study

摘要

Due to world fertilizer market instability and the importance of fertilizer as a strategic policy tool, the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), plan to devise a policy to develop adequate, dependable, low-cost fertilizer supply alternatives. Under consideration is an expanded fertilizer production policy utilizing the concepts of economic cooperation and regional integration. This study provides a preliminary methodological study of the potential benefits of this policy using a mathematical programming model to determine the investment, production, importation, and transportation patterns that minimize the costs of meeting ASEAN's 1985 fertilizer requirements.