What Factors Determine the Rate and Level of Improve Coffee Variety Adoption Under Smallholder Farmers in North Western Ethiopia?

Abstract

Ethiopia is the origin of Arabica coffee and played plenty role on breeding, promotion, multiplication and disseminating of Arabica coffee plant to coffee producers and it becomes main source of income and foreign currency to Ethiopian economy. Despite its importance, little is known about the factors that determine the rate and level of improved coffee adoption to boost the coffee production. Therefore, this research aimed to investigate the factors that determine the rate and level of improve coffee varieties adoption under smallholder farmers in North Western Ethiopia. Total 114 sample households (34 Improved and 80 local coffee producers) were taken through systematic and random sampling method. Descriptive and Tobit model were adopted to analyze the data. The descriptive statistics result showed that Adopters of improved coffee varieties were owned larger land, allocated larger land for coffee, holds larger animals in TLU, produced higher coffee output, earned higher income of coffee, more accessed to extension and financial services, taken more training on new coffee and other crop varieties and more educated than non-adopters whereas non-adopters were had larger family size, adult equivalent and man equivalent than their counterparts. It also showed that 29.82% and 40.46% of adoption rate and level of improve coffee varieties adoption was reached in terms of respondent response and area coverage respectively. Tobit model result indicated that sex of household head, educational status of household head, participation on demonstration, area allocated for coffee production, income earned from coffee and access to agricultural extension service was the main factors determined the improve coffee varieties adoption rate and levels. This research suggests that expanding education, support demonstration activities and address agricultural extension services to all smallholder farmers that improved the improved coffee variety adoption as well as income and food security status of smallholder farmers. Therefore, governmental authorities and NGOs should be focused on the expanding of education and agricultural extension services to all smallholder coffee producers to improve coffee varieties adoption, source of income and ensure food security at household level in the coffee pro agro-ecologies of the countries. Keywords : Coffee, Adoption rate, adoption level, Improve coffee variety and Tobit model DOI: 10.7176/JPID/59-04 Publication date: February 28 th 2021