Factors Associated with the Technical Efficiency of Maize Seed Production in the Mid-Hills of Nepal: Empirical Analysis

Abstract

Maize is the second most important staple crop in Nepal. Its demand is rapidly increasing due to a growth in the poultry sector. The national maize yield is low, leading to insufficient domestic production and thereby increasing imports. Maize seed is considered as one of the crucial inputs in achieving the targeted yield growth, but usually is in short supply during the cropping season. Farmers are involved in maize seed production, which eases its supply. Thus, understanding the efficiency of maize seed production will have a direct impact on the efficiency of the country’s maize production. This paper aimed to assess the technical efficiency (TE) of maize seed production and the major factors affecting TE. Semistructured questionnaire survey was administered in June 2016 to 182 maize seed farmers selected randomly from a total of 260 maize seed growers in Palpa District, a leading maize seed producing district in the mid-hills of Nepal. TE is estimated based on the stochastic frontier production model, and the factors affecting TE are assessed using the Tobit model. TE ranged from 0.25 to 0.92 with an average of 0.71. This revealed the scope of increasing TE by 29%. TE in the study area is largely affected by the age and schooling year of household heads. Similarly, the experience of maize seed production, livestock holding, the share of maize seed area, seed source, and access to extension services affect TE. Hence, a focus on motivating experienced educated maize seed growers to expand the maize seed production area supplemented by a better seed source and extension services would contribute to improving TE.