Determinants of Market Access for Members of Improved Potato Seed Producers’ Cooperatives in West Showa Zone, Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia

Tolossa Fufa Gulema

doi:10.7176/jmcr/77-03

Abstract

This study examined the determinants of market access for members of improved potato seed producers’ cooperative in Jeldu District. The specific objectives of the study are to assess the marketing channels of the potato seed, to analyze the factors that affect members to market access, and to identify the market problems potato seed of the sample farmers. Purposive sampling technique was used to select Jeldu district and four primary cooperatives from the sample frame and based on random sampling techniques of probability proportional to the size, 139 sample respondents have been selected. The analysis of the study was based on both primary quantitative data which was collected from the members of the sampled cooperatives through a questionnaire. Data analysis was carried out a logit regression model. Based on the analyses, the main findings of the study revealed that in general majority of the sample cooperatives members (54%) had access to the market through their cooperative and 46% of them have not accessed the market through cooperatives the last year. According to the result of the Logit model; storage facility, price, transportation facilities, and quality of seed produced were significant at less than one percent; training and education, and availability of marketing agent were considered significant at less than five percent probability level; and market information and management commitment were significant at less than ten percent probability level. In addition to the above findings, the study also showed that marketing problems of members in the study area were: Infrastructural problems (such as inadequate road facilities, lack of storage facility, lack of transportation truck, high transportation cost), lack of proper and up-to-date market information, price fluctuation, seasonal demands of potatoes seed, poor linkage of members with credit service organizations and quality problems were the major marketing problems included in the study. So, this and other problems related to the members in the study area need to give attention to the concerning government and cooperative bodies. Keywords: Market Access, Cooperative members, Improved Potato Seed, Producers DOI: 10.7176/JMCR/77-03 Publication date: March 31 st 2021

Highlights

The question of market access is of crucial importance for developing counties especially for their development agenda, this is attributable to the restricted nature of developing country markets and to the need for the continent to open up to market access to support growth dynamics and efforts to diversify production structures
A variety of factors can give rise to determine the marketing structure of agricultural products. These aspects may organized in the technical barriers including lack of market information, low quality of the agricultural product, backward market facilities, the large intervention of middlemen, lack of good storage facilities, and others
As it was expected this study shows that market information has positive influence on members market access of the sample cooperatives and significant at 10 %( p

Summary

Introduction

Introduction In many countries, farmers’ faced challenges of not producing enough food in the context of the rapid rise of the urban and rural non-farming population (Matman and Schrader, 2009 cited by Asfew, 2010) and face a problem of the possible market for their agricultural products. For most agricultural products, the availability of a market is a major constraint that restricts rural development in developing countries. A variety of factors can give rise to determine the marketing structure of agricultural products. These aspects may organized in the technical barriers including lack of market information, low quality of the agricultural product, backward market facilities, the large intervention of middlemen, lack of good storage facilities, and others

Methods

Results

Conclusion