Abstract
This study investigates the impact of farmland ownership and agro-ecological location on the adoption of the two most important sources of improved rice varieties (NERICA and ROK) in the context of Sierra Leone. In terms of farmland ownership, the results showed that farmers who cultivated their own land had a higher tendency of remaining as non-adopters of improved varieties, but those who rented farmland or were engaged in sharecropping had higher adoption rates of improved rice varieties. Also, the location of farmland (uplands or inland valley swamps) determined the rates of adoption of improved varieties differently. For instance, upland regions showed faster adoption of ROK varieties, but inland valley areas showed faster adoption of NERICA varieties. We also examined the survival rates of local rice varieties. The adoption of improved varieties was only occurring at a very low rate, and the farmers’ adoption of ROK varieties was swifter than for NERICA varieties. This study recommends that policies advocating the adoption of improved rice varieties in Sierra Leone must take into consideration the patterns of farmland ownership and location.
Highlights
The adoption of improved technologies notably improved rice varieties to boost food production, and rice self-sufficiency is increasingly becoming a crucial element in the formulation of food security strategic policies of many Sub Saharan African countries [1,2]
Graphical representations of the hazard estimates for farmers shifting from cultivating local varieties to adopting NERICA and ROK varieties are given in Figure 2A,B, respectively
We employed a comprehensive survey data and survival analyses approach to investigate whether land ownership structures and farmland locations influence the adoption rate of the two main sources of improved rice varieties (NERICA and ROK) as well as the local varieties in Sierra Leone
Summary
The adoption of improved technologies notably improved rice varieties to boost food production, and rice self-sufficiency is increasingly becoming a crucial element in the formulation of food security strategic policies of many Sub Saharan African countries [1,2]. This is seen in the importance rice holds as an economical food [3,4], essential staple, and significant source of food energy for a population of more than 750 million in Sub Saharan Africa [5,6,7], and Sierra Leone is not an exception [8]. A study in 2014 indicated that the rice consumption and production levels in
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