Abstract
This study analyzed the allocative (cost) efficiency of rainfed maize production in Yola North and Yola South Local Government Areas of Adamawa State, Nigeria. Purposive and simple random sampling techniques were used to select 128 respondents. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics and stochastic frontier cost function model. Results revealed that the respondents had a mean age of 39 years and have large household sizes. The sampled farmers are experienced and cultivated an average of about two hectares of land. The respondents had also acquired one form of formal education or the other with primary school as the least. The results of the maximum likelihood estimate parameters of the stochastic frontier cost function revealed that cost of land and cost of seeds, cost of hired labour and cost of agrochemicals were significant at different level of probabilities. The allocative efficiency indices revealed that allocative efficiency of the sampled farmers ranged from 0.44 to 0.98 with a mean of 0.68, implying that an average farmer in the study area has the scope for increasing cost efficiency by 32% given the existing technology. The study recommends provision of adequate farm inputs and essential services at low cost to rainfed maize farmers.Keywords: Cost efficiency, rainfed, maize production, Yola, Adamawa, Nigeria
Highlights
Agriculture sector has been playing a tremendous role in the life of people especially in terms of supply of food, provision of employment and source of raw materials for agro-based industry in Nigeria
It has been observed that maize has not been produced to meet the demand of the people within and around Yola metropolis in Adamawa State, Nigeria
Stochastic frontier cost function was used for assessing allocative efficiency in maize production in the study area
Summary
Agriculture sector has been playing a tremendous role in the life of people especially in terms of supply of food, provision of employment and source of raw materials for agro-based industry in Nigeria. An attempt to maximize profit or output in production requires efficient use of farm resources (Umoh, 2006) This is because the scope of agricultural production can be expanded and sustained by farmers through efficient use of resources (Ali, 1996; Udoh 2005). It has been observed that maize has not been produced to meet the demand of the people within and around Yola metropolis in Adamawa State, Nigeria. For this reason, the study was conducted to analyze cost efficiency of rainfed maize farming in Yola North and Yola South Local Government Area of Adamawa State. The specific objectives are to: (i) describe the socio-economic characteristics of the respondents and (ii) estimate the allocative efficiency of the maize farming in the study area
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