Increasing Smallholder Farmers Research Articles

Complexity-aware principles for agri-food system interventions: Lessons from project encounters with complexity

CONTEXTComplexity has long been recognised as a key feature of agri-food systems. Yet, it remains largely theoretical or poorly addressed in practice, hampering the potential of international development projects to address agriculture and food-related challenges in the Global South. OBJECTIVEThe paper identifies and examines six sources of complexity that can manifest in projects, namely: unpredictability; path dependencies; context-specific dynamics; power relations; multiple temporal and spatial scales. It then proposes and tests six agri-food system principles that could be drawn upon to more successfully navigate this complexity. The aim of the paper is to illustrate how these principles could help projects respond to the changing circumstances and unpredictable turns of agri-food systems contexts in a different way, which flexibly embraces complexity. This flexibility is essential in an age of uncertainty and transformation. METHODSComparative case study analysis of six projects implemented by the CGIAR: aflatoxin control in groundnuts in Malawi (1), pigeonpea in Eastern and Southern Africa (2), sorghum beer in Kenya (3), sweet sorghum for biofuel in India (4), precooked beans in Uganda and Kenya (5), Smart Foods in India and Eastern Africa (6). The projects aimed to either increasing smallholder farmers' incomes or addressing food and nutrition security, or both. They were specifically selected as all they were affected by some of the sources of complexity, which hampered the projects to different extents. This makes the cases relevant for not only illustrating manifestations of complexity, but also help reflect on alternative strategies to tackle it. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONThe analysis of the case studies reveals how complexity can frustrate objectives of development interventions under several aspects. It also serves to discuss how complexity can be more successfully navigated (within but also beyond the selected cases) by applying the set of proposed agri-food system principles. The principles are also presented as ways future interventions could avoid clinging to what is “known to work” and instead venture into more powerful pathways of change. SIGNIFICANCEThe following complexity-aware principle are proposed: Welcome surprises and openly discuss trade-offs; Shun orthodoxies; Engage with context-specificity; Expose patterns of power; Embrace the lengthy nature of change; Understand the multi-scale (in terms of space and time) nature of agri-food systems contexts. These principles could be used by project designers and implementors to cope with the complexity and uncertainty that will inevitably be encountered in agri-food system interventions, and can no longer be ignored.

Factors Influencing Smallholder Bean Producer’s Participation in Collective Marketing in Kawambwa, Luwingu and Senga Hill Districts of Zambia

Commercialization of agricultural produce through cooperatives that undertake collective marketing can decrease transactions costs for smallholder farmers. This study investigated the factors influencing smallholder bean producers’ decision to participate and intensity of participation in collective marketing in Kawambwa, Luwingu and Senga Hill districts of Zambia. A multi-stage sampling design was used to draw 150 smallholder farmers from cooperatives from the three districts. Cross sectional data were collected through semi structured questionnaire and in-depth focused group discussions were also conducted with the three cooperatives. Double hurdle results revealed that the decision to participate in collective marketing was influenced by age, gender, household size, farm size, output price, farm income, hybrid seed, access to market information, ownership of a bicycle, radio and mobile phone. On the other hand, the determinants of intensity of participation in collective marketing were education level of the household head, bean output and distance to the nearest market. To increase smallholder farmers’ participation in collective marketing, there is need to focus on policies that enhance access to market information, promotion and adoption of hybrid bean varieties, increased bean production and construction of bulking facilities in rural areas away from main markets. Smallholder farmers who have attained at least primary level education should be targeted as well as encourage youth and women participation.

Promoting Inclusiveness for Organic Rice Value Chain in Bumdesa Mukti Saluyu

Organic agriculture promotion could be a potential approach for eliminating fertilizer subsidies in Indonesia. Indonesia is the world’s third-largest producer of rice, and rice is a staple meal for most of the population. The Kanem Farmers Group operates 12,5 hectares of organic land for growing organic rice in the Sumedang Regency. The operations of BUMDesa Mukti Saluyu are founded on the concept of social entrepreneurship to boost the potential of villages. The main concern of BUMDesa Mukti Saluyu is the insufficient potential of organic rice in Cikurubuk Village, which necessitates strategic planning to establish a competitive advantage and organizational capacities for participating in the organic rice value chain while maintaining its vision of improving the economic well-being in the farmer society. The study employs both qualitative and quantitative methodologies. In the investigation of the outcomes produced from the in-depth interview, the qualitative data analysis method will employ the Interactive model developed by Miles and Huberman. The quantitative analysis makes use of technical abilities and value-added evaluation. Based on the analysis, promoting inclusivity is key to developing a competitive advantage for BUMDesa Mukti Saluyu. Recognizing the significance of collaboration with multiple stakeholders, BUMDesa Mukti Saluyu must conduct an integration of stakeholders involved in the organic rice value chain. Farmers, agribusiness companies, processors, distributors, and consumers play vital roles. The enabling environment, encompassing policies, standards, and investments, influence sustainable production practices and market access. The current integrated model provides a comprehensive framework to increase smallholder farmers’ participation in the organic rice value chain through project delineation and policy interventions.

Synergies and trade-offs of climate-smart agriculture (CSA) practices selected by smallholder farmers in Geshy watershed, Southwest Ethiopia

Studies on mainstreaming climate-smart agriculture (CSA) practices can increase smallholder farmers’ capacity and awareness to improve food security and establish sustainable livelihoods through resilient agricultural systems, while achieving adaptation and mitigation benefits. Hence, valuable insights can be obtained from smallholder farmers in responding to present and forthcoming challenges of climate change impacts. However, there is little research work on trade-off and synergy assessments. Taking Geshy watershed in Southwest Ethiopia as a case study area, both quantitative and qualitative data analysis were undertaken in this study. The data were collected from 15 key informant interviews, 6 focus group discussions, and 384 households to answer the following questions: (1) what are the top 5 preferred CSA practices for smallholder farmers in Geshy watershed when coping with the impacts of climate change? (2) What is the performance of the preferred CSA practices? And (3) which trade-offs and synergies are experienced upon the implementation of CSA practices? The study came up with the most preferred CSA practices such as the use of improved crop varieties, small-scale irrigation, improved animal husbandry, the use of efficient inorganic fertilizers, and crop rotation with legumes. The selected CSA practices showed that the productivity goal exhibit the best synergy, while the mitigation goal has trade-offs. The study also has shown that the use of improved crop varieties causes high synergies in all 3 goals of CSA practices; small-scale irrigation provides a medium synergy on productivity goal but high synergy for adaptation and mitigation goals; improved animal husbandry shows a high synergy with the adaptation goal, a relatively lower synergy with the productivity goal, and a trade-off with the mitigation goal; the use of efficient inorganic fertilizers shows maximum synergy for the productivity and adaptation goals; and crop rotation with legumes exhibits high synergy with the productivity and mitigation goals but a relatively lower synergy with the adaptation goal. These results can provide evidence to various stakeholder farmers in the value chain that the impacts of climate change can be addressed by the adoption of CSA practices. In general, CSA practices are considered indispensable. Smallholder farmers prefer CSA practices that help to increase crop productivity and household resilience to climate change impacts. The results generate a vital foundation for recommendations to smallholder farming decision-makers. It also sensitizes actions for innovative and sustainable methods that are able to upscale the preferred CSA practices in the agricultural system in Geshy watershed of Southwest Ethiopia and other regions.

Does State-Financed Organic Coffee Certification Increase Smallholder Farmers’ Income?

Many coffee producers in Indonesia carry on organic certification to warrant their production and processing standards. One of them is Nunggal Roso Farmers Group Association (Gapoktan) which performs state-financed organic certification on their robusta coffee products. This research aims to describe farm activities and organic certification applications on Gapoktan Nunggal Roso and analyze its income and profit in 2020. As many as 60 randomly selected respondents consist of 30 organic coffee farmers and 30 non-organic coffee farmers. The organic certification impacts were analyzed using income and profit analysis and then tested for their differences statistically. These research results signify that coffee farms in the research location which has been undertaken in polyculture with shading trees and intercropping plants do not change considerably by the presence of certification. Besides, also known from the research that the return to family labor in each working person-day of organic coffee farmers is lower than that of non-organic coffee farmers.

Gender differences in smallholder farmers’ adoption of crop diversification: Evidence from Shaanxi Plain, China

Crop diversification can restore land fertility and increase smallholder farmers’ resistance to climate change and market fluctuations, particularly for female farmers who are more vulnerable to the impact of these risks. To understand planting situation, motivation and influencing factors of crop diversification of smallholder farmers based on gender differences, we conducted a detailed survey of 262 smallholder farmers (118 female and 144 male) in the Shaanxi Plain of China. On average, male-headed households planted 2.27 species on 0.47 ha of land, whereas female-headed households planted 1.57 species on 0.37 ha of land. The main factors motivating smallholder farmers to diversify their crops are increased income and reduced economic loss of market fluctuation; the main obstacle is farmer reliance on traditional planting methods. We found significant gender differences following the expanded theory of planned behavior model. Attitude (standardized path coefficient (SPC) = 0.32), subjective norms (SPC = 0.26), perceived behavior control (SPC = 0.32) and environmental knowledge (SPC = 0.27) significantly impact male-headed households’ willingness of crop diversification. In contrast, female-headed households are most significantly influenced by perceived behavior control (SPC = 0.42), followed by attitude (SPC = 0.34) and subjective norms (SPC = 0.21), whereas environmental knowledge has no significant effect on their willingness to diversify their crops. Female-headed households are sensitive to climate change, but their low education, less access to agricultural extension and weak family decision-making power contribute to their unwillingness and inability to reduce risks by adopting crop diversification. Agricultural credit, crop diversification training, and efficient agricultural extension services are recommended for increasing farmer’s adoption of crop diversification and risk alleviation.

Market access, household dietary diversity and food security: Evidence from Eastern Africa

Improved access to markets can influence household dietary diversity, consumption expenditure, and food security through multiple pathways. Market access can increase smallholder farmers’ income through decreased transaction costs, improve diet quality, and reduce poverty and household food insecurity. Improved market access also expands the variety of food available, opening opportunities for consumption diversification. We examine the association between market access and household dietary diversity, consumption expenditure, and food security in the Eastern African countries of Ethiopia and Tanzania using nationally representative panel data from the World Bank’s Living Standards Measurement Study-Integrated Surveys on Agriculture (LSMS-ISA). The empirical findings demonstrate that households located closer to market centers spend more on total household consumption expenditure, consume more diverse diets, and are less food insecure than households located farther away from markets. The results suggest that investing in accessible market development and rural infrastructure to link smallholder farmers to markets is essential for improving household dietary diversity and food security in sub-Saharan African countries.

The impact of the international rice genebank’s (IRG) on rice farming in Bangladesh

BackgroundThe International Rice Genebank (IRG) currently safeguards the largest and most diverse collection of rice genetic resources in the world. Over the past decades, genetic resources from the IRG have been used effectively to increase smallholder farmers’ rice productivity in developing economies. Bangladesh is one of the direct and indirect recipients of IRG germplasm for rice genetic improvement. This study aimed to map the impact pathways of IRG germplasm transfers to Bangladesh, evaluate the genetic contribution of IRG germplasms to rice productivity of farmers, and compute the equivalent economic benefit.MethodsImpact pathway analysis was conducted to map the IRG’s germplasm transfer for varietal improvement and seed dissemination of improved rice varieties in Bangladesh using the information collected from key informant interviews. Using data from the farm household survey conducted by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in 2016 in five divisions in Bangladesh, a pedigree analysis was conducted that related the productivity changes in farmers’ fields explicitly to genebank accessions through varietal improvement. Afterward, we evaluated the economic benefit of IRG contribution in rice varietal improvement in Bangladesh using the computed marginal increases in productivity, average paddy price, and estimated total rice area.ResultsIRG’s impact pathway on germplasm transfer in Bangladesh showed that impacts for farmers were achieved through joint efforts with IRRI and the National Agricultural Research and Extension System’s research-for-development programs. On average, 52% of the improved rice varieties’ genetic composition, cultivated by farmers in Bangladesh, definitely came from IRG accessions. This contribution factor could increase up to 67% if possible contributions were taken into account. The results of the Cobb–Douglas model implied that for every 1% increase in the definite IRG contribution to an improved rice variety, there was an increase in rice yield of about 0.99%, holding other factors constant. This yield increase can be translated into an additional US$ 8,576,973 aggregated net benefit of farmers during the wet season in Bangladesh. The enhanced yield can be associated with the added important agronomic traits contributed by the accession provided by the IRG in the genetic background of the rice varieties developed for farmers in Bangladesh.ConclusionsThe findings of the study demonstrate that IRG accession forms a significant part of the ancestry of improved rice varieties which is associated with improved yield. The study highlights the valuable contribution of IRG’s conservation and distribution of genetic accessions to the research and development of improved rice varieties and rice production on farms in Bangladesh.

Impact of agricultural commercialization on child nutrition in Ethiopia

Smallholder commercialization as nutrition-sensitive agricultural policy has been advocated by many researchers and policy makers though its effect on reducing child undernutrition remains inconclusive. Generalized Propensity Score model which allows for continuous treatments, capture selection bias and observed confounders was applied to estimate the causal relationship between smallholder crop commercialization levels and child undernutrition. Fixed effects model was used to control for the unobserved time-invariant confounders. Impact transmission channels were analyzed by looking at the role of income, gender and the possible substitution effects between the consumption of own-produced and purchased foods. Results provide strong evidence of heterogeneous child undernutritional impacts of smallholder commercialization. Estimates of the dose–response functions reveal that the average levels of underweight and wasting increase with lower and higher intensities of commercialization, but decreases with medium commercialization intensities, with the overall significant beneficial effects. On the other hand, the average level of stunting increases with lower and higher levels of commercialization, but declines with the medium commercialization doses with the overall effect remaining insignificant. Results also provide significant differentials in the estimated effects across time and space, commercialization doses, age, asset ownership and gender. Hence, regional, locational, infrastructural, temporal, gender and age sensitive policies need to be designed to increase smallholder farmers’ commercialization and reduce child undernutrition which is prevalent in the country.

Blockchain-Based Smart Contracts to Provide Crop Insurance for Smallholder Farmers in Developing Countries

Agricultural insurance can help smallholder farmers in developing countries deal with risks that are too large for them to manage on their own. Thus, significant welfare gains can be achieved by increasing smallholder farmers’ access to such insurance. Estimates also suggest that by removing farming risks through crop insurance, it is possible to increase smallholder farmers’ investments and income by 20%–30%.1

Assessing Smallholder Farmers’ Perception on Climate Variability in Relation to Climatological Evidence: A Case Study of Benguene in the Sudanian Zone of Mali

Sudanian zone is one of the regions in West Africa most confronted with high climate variability, challenging agricultural sustainability and rural livelihoods. Despite multiple research efforts devoted to exploring how farmers in this region perceive climate variability and how perceptions relate to adaptive responses, much remains to be done. This study examined farmers’ perception of climate variability compared with scientific evidence in the terroir of Benguene, between 1983 and 2018. Data was collected from twenty-nine (29) farmland heads (representing 49% of the total farmland heads in the village) through a survey conducted in October 2019. Monthly temperature data from ground measurement and daily rainfall data extracted from the gridded African Rainfall Climatology version 2 (ARC-2) time series was used. Descriptive statistic was used to analyse survey data. Climate data analysis included Mann Kendall trend analysis and computation of growing season parameters (Onset, Duration and Cessation) and its trend. In the end, a conformity index was used to compare farmers’ perceptions to climatological evidence. Conformity graph showed that apart from temperature, the farmers have low, to a weak perception of the other variables used to assess their perception. Results showed that many smallholder farmers have observed a rise in temperature (90%), delay onset (93%) and early cessation (93%) of rainfall. The analysis of the climate data showed high variability in the climate during the study period as observed in the increasing trends in temperature (p-value of 0.0007) and in the rainfall (p-value of 0.0001). Concerning the season parameters, the results show increasingly early-onset (June 1st ± 22 days) increasingly late cessation (October 09th ± 14 days) and consequently a long duration of the rainy season (130 ± 27 days). Conversely, farmers thought the opposite. These results imply the urgent need to increase smallholder farmers awareness of climate variability and change by providing climate information for better adaptation

Climate change adaptation strategies by smallholder farmers in Nigeria: does non-farm employment play any role?

Non-farm employment in agrarian communities in developing countries has received a lot of attention. However, its role in implementing climate change adaptation strategies is rarely discussed. This study employs a cross-sectional data to examine whether rural households in Southwest Nigeria are increasing the extent of climate change adaptation practices through their participation in non-farm employment. To account for selectivity bias, the study used endogenous treatment effect for count data model (precisely Poisson) augmented with the inverse probability-weighted-regression-adjustment (IPWRA) estimator. Both estimators found that rural non-farm jobs increase smallholder farmers' adaptive capacities and that participants would have used less adaptation techniques if they had not participated in non-farm work. Efforts to boost rural development must provide more employment opportunities for farmers, particularly during the off-cropping time. This will help farmers improve their ability to adopt more climate change adaptation strategies and, consequently increase farm productivity.

Increasing smallholder farmers’ market participation through technology adoption in rural Timor‐Leste

AbstractThis study examines the role of high‐yielding maize varieties as one of the key drivers of smallholder farmers’ market participation in a highly subsistence rural economy. The analysis is based on the End‐of‐Program Survey data collected by the Seeds of Life program in 2016 covering 700 households in rural Timor‐Leste. The results reveal significant positive impacts of technology adoption on farmers’ market participation. Households where women are relatively more active in agriculture than men are more likely to engage in agricultural commerce. The results also show a positive impact of technology adoption on maize productivity. These findings present the first empirical evidence of the causal link between technology adoption and market participation choices.

COFFEE CERTIFICATION PARTICIPATION AND ITS IMPACT ON SMALLHOLDER FARMERS’ INCOME IN JIMMA ZONE, SOUTHWESTERN ETHIOPIA

Certification is an instrument to add value to a product, and it addresses a growing worldwide demand for healthier and more socially and environmentally friendly products. Globally, coffee certification has received strong recognition as it is proved to increase smallholder farmers’ access to input and output markets, production, productivity and income. This study investigates the major determinants of coffee certification participation. It also analyzes the welfare gains of participation in the certification schemes by smallholder coffee growers. Both primary and secondary data were used. Primary data were collected from randomly selected 247 coffee producers. Structured questionnaires, focus group discussions and key informant interviews were employed to collect the primary data. Descriptive statistics and econometric models were used for data analysis. Probit model was used to identify factors affecting participation in coffee certification schemes. Propensity score matching technique was used to estimate the impact of coffee certification participation on smallholders’ annual revenue from coffee production. The probit model result revealed that access to training, family size, land size owned, experience in coffee production, education status were significantly determined the smallholders farmers’ participation decision in coffee certification. The propensity score matching model result also shows that participation in coffee certification significantly (p=0.001) improved farmers’ annual revenue by 2,902 Ethiopian birr compared to selling coffee without the certification schemes. This income impact is mainly attributed to the premium price the certification offer to farmers for high quality coffee. Therefore, policies or projects related to coffee value chains should target improving farmers’ access to training, boosting the access to education, working on farmers’ productivity and increasing their technical knowhow on coffee certification to increase farmers’ participation in coffee certification and to improve their annual revenue earning level in the study area.

Review on Factors Affecting the Participation of Smallholder Farmers in Improved Chicken Rearing in Ethiopia

The main aim of this seminar paper is to review factors affecting the participation of smallholder farmers in improved chicken rearing in Ethiopia. Improved chicken rearing plays an important role by increasing smallholder farmers’ household food security and income generation as well as increasing gender equity, amongst the rural poor. To increase the chicken contribution to income and dietary diversity of the household; a ministry of agriculture and rural development of the country have been multiplied and disseminated several improved chicken breeds to the smallholder farmers over the last fifty years in different parts of regions of Ethiopia. Improved chickens such as Rhode Island Red, White Leghorn, Bovine brown, and Issa brown, were imported and disseminated to smallholder farmers to increase egg and meat production, income generation, job creation for the smallholder farmers, and genetically to improve the native chicken breeds through on-farm research and public extension programs in Ethiopia. Even if an improved chicken were disseminated to smallholder farmers in the country, smallholder farmers’ discussion to participate in improved chicken rearing system was limited to traditional rearing system and different factors as well as different challenges. Those challenges and factors are lack of extension follow-up, lack of complementary inputs, diseases, unavailability of credit services, market problem, agro-ecological problem, and less gender participation. Based on this seminar paper of review, it was concluded that extension agencies and other concerned departments should manipulate these crucial factors to bring about inclusive and desirable changes in the participation of smallholder farmers in improved chicken rearing that; can towards improved poultry technologies in Ethiopia. Keywords: Ethiopia, Improved chicken rearing, Participation, Smallholder farmers DOI: 10.7176/JBAH/11-2-02 Publication date: January 31 st 2021

Confronting genetic gains with markets: Retrospective lessons from New Rice for Africa (NERICA) in Uganda.

Breeders have two non-exclusive strategic investment options for increasing smallholder farmers’ and consumers’ livelihoods through genetic improvement of crop varieties: (i) enhancing productivity; and (ii) enhancing value and market access. New Rice for Africa (NERICA) varieties with superior agronomic characteristics were bred and introduced in various African countries in the early 2000s. Two decades later, drought tolerant NERICA4 is among the popular upland rice varieties grown across Africa. We analyze market evidence for NERICA4 from Uganda in 2011, i.e. well before it massively reached urban markets, where it is currently commingled with standard rice. We then compare the breeding priorities that would have ensued from the 2011 market evidence with the reality a decade later. Non-hypothetical auction experiments with consumers were conducted in urban Uganda in 2011 to predict potential market share and value of non-fragrant NERICA4 and fragrant NERICA1, relative to two market standards, i.e. non-fragrant Kaiso, and Supa, the most popular fragrant rice variety in the region. Average consumer bids positioned the two NERICAs between both market standards. Whereas NERICA1 easily outcompeted NERICA4 and Kaiso in the non-fragrant rice category, it failed to compete with Supa in the fragrant category. The 2011 market evidence would have suggested breeders prioritize investment in breeding programs for fragrant NERICAs to help smallholders gain access to high-value markets and expand consumers’ choice with cheaper fragrant rice alternatives. However, the popularity of NERICA4 relative to NERICA1 in farmers’ fields seems to suggest that agronomic genetic gains may have outweighed market traits such as fragrance.

Determinants of Wheat Commercialization among Smallholder Farmers in Debre Elias Woreda, Ethiopia

Even though wheat commercialization has got great emphasis, smallholder farmers face challenges to participate in the wheat market. As a result, understanding the intensity of smallholder farmers’ wheat commercialization and factors affecting wheat commercialization has vital importance to tackle the problem. Consequently, this study was undertaken in northwestern Ethiopia to measure smallholder farmers’ wheat commercialization and analyze factors that hamper wheat commercialization in the study area. For this purpose, a systematic sampling technique has been employed to select a total of 154 smallholder wheat producer household heads. A semistructured questionnaire has been used as a principal primary data collection method. Similarly, the output commercialization index and the beta regression model have been employed for data analysis. The result of the study showed that 23.4%, 51.9%, and 24.7% of smallholder farmers were subsistence, semicommercialized, and commercialized, respectively. The result indicated that the majority of smallholder farmers are semicommercial wheat producers. Moreover, the beta regression result indicated that educational status, number of oxen, land size allocated to wheat production, farming experience in wheat production, extension service, and market distance are major factors for smallholder farmer’s wheat commercialization. Therefore, an attempt to increase smallholder farmers’ wheat commercialization should give special priority for significant explanatory variables.

Fertilizer Cost Build-up in Tanzania and policy options for increasing smallholder farmers’ access

Fertilizer price cost build up in Tanzania limits 96.5% of the smallholder farmers access to fertilizer that deter agricultural productivity and the goal for attaining food security. The objective of the paper was to examine strategies for addressing fertilizer price build up in Tanzania that would increase fertilizer use and create demand by smallholder farmers. We use secondary data from the reviewed literature on factors for price build up in Tanzania. The study adopts the supply chain analysis from the source of origin, importation, shipping costs, port service charges, quantity procured, methods of procurement, blending and packaging, as well as means of transportation used. The key determinants in the chain include the Cost, Insurance and Freight (CIF), port charges, port handling costs, bagging, storage fees and means of transportation. The most two significant drivers for the fertilizer price build up is the procurement method and means of transportation that seem to significantly increase farm gate prices. It has been established that price build up is a function of quantity imported due to economies of scale; that is to say importing small quantities pushes buyers to pay high prices for the product and shipping expenses. The infrastructural factors for fertilizer price build up are associated with the mode of transportation as either road haulage or railways use. It has been established that transporting bulky fertilizers to various destinations by road is more expensive when relatively compared with railway transportation. The paper, therefore recommends for policy change that emphasize bulky fertilizer transportation by railways and monitor its implementation.

Dis-incentivizing sustainable intensification? The case of Zambia’s maize-fertilizer subsidy program

Poor and declining soil fertility is a major constraint to increased cereal yields in sub-Saharan Africa. While input subsidy programs (ISPs) for inorganic fertilizer are a popular and expensive tool used by African governments to increase smallholder farmers’ cereal yields, far fewer resources are devoted to promoting other soil fertility management (SFM) practices that can improve soil health, increase cereal yield response to inorganic fertilizer, and support sustainable agricultural intensification. Moreover, little is known about how ISPs affect farmers’ use of such SFM practices. We examine whether and to what extent household participation in Zambia’s maize-fertilizer subsidy program affects the household’s use of fallowing, intercropping, crop rotation, and animal manure. Using nationally-representative panel survey data from Zambian smallholder farm households, we find that Zambia’s maize-fertilizer subsidy program reduces the probability and extent of fallowing and intercropping of maize with other crops. In addition, we find some evidence that the program induces an increase in continuous maize cultivation on the same plot over time; however, the weight of the evidence suggests no statistically significant ISP effects on the use of animal manure. The analysis uses the Mundlak-Chamberlain device to control for time-invariant unobserved heterogeneity and addresses concerns related to the endogeneity of selection into the subsidy program with an instrumental variables/control function approach. Overall, our results suggest that Zambia’s maize-fertilizer subsidy program may have dis-incentivized sustainable intensification rather than promoted it.

The impact of credit on the technical efficiency of maize-producing households in Northern Ghana

PurposeProduction credit is essential for enhancing the technical efficiency (TE) and the welfare of smallholder farmers in Africa. The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of credit on smallholders’ TE using cross-sectional data from 223 maize-producing households in Northern Ghana.Design/methodology/approachDue to the exogenous assignment of credit and assumption of homogeneity in farm technologies, the propensity score matching (PSM) analysis was used to compare the average difference in TE between farmers that had received credit and those that had not.FindingsThe results revealed that production credit impacts positively on smallholder farmers’ TE. Access to production credit is significantly influenced by access to markets and extension services, distance to market, asset index and land fragmentation. The provision of credit enhances the timely purchase and efficient allocation of farming inputs to produce the maximum possible output. Per capita income and land fragmentation also play important roles in reducing smallholders’ TE.Practical implicationsTo increase efficiency gains, credit programs for agricultural interventions should target resource-poor smallholder farmers. The efficiency gains can be sustained through stronger partnerships with financial institutions. Policy interventions aimed at increasing smallholder farmers’ access to production credit (e.g. through the creation of a conducive investment environment that lowers the lending rate and collateral requirements) must be vigorously pursued.Originality/valueTo the best of authors’ knowledge, this is one of the only recent studies to examine the impact of credit on the TE of farming households by applying the translog stochastic frontier production function and the PSM approaches.