Socio-economic factors determining the commitment to participate in an agricultural development project in rural Ethiopia

Abstract

Ethiopia is suffering a massive exodus of rural people towards the capital. Thus, the Government is trying to support projects carried out to stimulate opportunities given to the agriculture sector. In this line a project has been designed, working together with a Non-Profit Organization (NPO). The present research paper analyses the factors which determine the farmers’ socio-economic, educational and nutrition commitments to design an assignment criterion in the frame of a rural development project in Ethiopia where all the families are surveyed. The donated wells are intended to make possible their access to safe water and the creation of a small vegetable garden with the final goal of improving their living standard. However, because the number of wells to donate was limited, it was crucial to identify assignment criteria to maximize the outcomes of the project. The selected families must help in the building of additional wells to other families and improving social status of the village through commitment to (i) return a percentage of exceeding crops for the community, (ii) assist to continuous training in agriculture, budgeting and nutrition and (iii) enroll their children in school. The article seeks to understand which socio-demographic and economic variables determine families’ different commitments. A descriptive analysis of the sample is made and different multivariate techniques are applied. Interesting results were observed such as women income, having an animal for transportation and owning a mobile, which are variables that determine these commitments.