Mean Technical Efficiency Research Articles

Impact of Bt cotton technology in an Indian cotton production system: A comparative econometric analysis between Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu

Cotton is one of India's most important commercial crops, known as the "White Gold." India has the largest area under cotton production with comparatively low productivity, owing to the enormous area under rainfed agriculture with insufficient input supply, implying inefficient resource usage. The present study measures the resource use efficiency and technical efficiency of Bt cotton production in Tamil Nadu in comparison with one of the major cotton-producing states, Maharashtra. The resource use efficiency was calculated using the Cobb–Douglas production function, and the stochastic frontier approach is deployed to estimate technical efficiency. Resource use efficiency analysis indicated that the majority of resources are being used at suboptimal levels, and there is the potential to increase cotton production by reaching the most profitable level of input use. However, frontier analysis confirmed that production was inefficient, with a greater gap in which both Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, particularly small and marginal farms, need to be addressed to increase production and farm income. The results indicated that the mean technical efficiency among Bt and non-Bt farmers was 94 % and 76 % in Tamil Nadu and 97 % and 74 %, implying the potential to increase cotton production with the current level of resources and technology. This study suggested a development policy aimed at stimulating extension activity through motivation to provide rural farm households with the necessary farm management skills to boost productivity].

Analysis of the Technical, Allocative, and Economic Efficiencies of Tef Producers in Ejersa Lafo District, Central Oromia, Ethiopia

Tef is the most important food and cash crop for more than 70 million people. It is the second-largest crop in terms acreage, but its average productivity is lower compared to other that may arise from different factors. Therefore, this research was intended to assess technical, allocative and economic efficiency of tef producers, and factors affecting technical inefficiency of tef producers using primary data collected from 472 tef producers from Ejersa Lafo district, Oromia, Ethiopia. The result of the stochastic frontier model and Cobb-Douglas production function revealed that the mean technical, allocative, and economic efficiency scores were 80.85%, 88.91% and 71.89% respectively. The result also revealed that all the included production variable; land, labor, fertilizer, chemicals, seed, and size of the plot allotted for tef significantly affected yield per hectare. Moreover, sex, education, experience in tef production, age of the head, distance from farmers’ training center and dependence ratio were the variable significantly affected technical inefficiency of teff producers. The conclusion from these results is that there is a room for farmers to reallocate their resources and achieve higher tef yield per hectare by 19.15%, and minimize their cost of tef production per hectare by 28.11%. Keywords: Allocative efficiency, Economic efficiency, Stochastic frontier, Technical efficiency, Tef, Ethiopia DOI: 10.7176/RHSS/12-13-02 Publication date: July 31 st 2022

Are farmers technically efficient in growing sorghum crops?: evidence from western part of Ethiopia Gudeya Bila district

Agriculture provides the majority of Ethiopian rural households with their principal source of income, yet it performs poorly. There is a rise in food insecurity as well as a decline in productivity as a result of this. Even if sorghum production in Ethiopia is increasing rapidly, it requires an efficient level of output to ensure high levels of productivity and profit. Hence the goal of this study was to examine the technical efficiency of sorghum production and its determinants in the Gudeya Bila area in western Ethiopia, utilizing primary data obtained through semi-structured questionnaires from 203 randomly selected households. The study utilized one-stage stochastic frontier production model to investigate the technical efficiency and its determinants. The mean technical efficiency of the homes was 45.64 percent, according to the results of the stochastic frontier of the parametric approach. These results suggest that farmers in the research area are technically inefficient in sorghum by 56.36 percent on average. Weeding frequency, farm size, and cell phone use were also key factors of technical efficiency in a one-stage stochastic frontier approach. As a result, the study reveals that by enhancing technological efficiency, it may be possible to increase production to the level of potential output. Ensure mobile information service, raise knowledge about intensive land use, subsidize chemical inputs, and expand educational possibilities in the research region are some of the numerous strategies to improve technical efficiency.

Technical efficiency of health production in Africa: A stochastic frontier analysis

Background: Inefficiency is widespread in health systems all over the world. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 20%-40% of the global health spending is wasted. In African countries, inefficiency of this magnitude will seriously hamper progress towards achieving universal health coverage and other health system goals. It is thus, significant to assess the efficiency of health systems over time in order to set the ground for identifying the contextual factors leading to inefficiency and design appropriate efficiency-enhancing measures.Methods: Using panel data for the years 2000, 2005, 2010, and 2015, the study employs a time-variant stochastic frontier production function to assess efficiency. The input measure used is current expenditure per capita in purchasing power parity (Int$) terms and the measure of output is health-adjusted life expectancy (HALE). Moreover, mean years of schooling, GDP per capita in Int$, and out-of-pocket payment as a share of current expenditure on health were used as technical inefficiency effect variables. Data were analyzed using Frontier Version 4.1.Results: The mean technical efficiency scores were 79.3% in 2000, 81% in 2005, 85.6% in 2010 and 88.3% in 2015. Over the four periods of time, Cabo Verde registered the highest technical efficiency scores, while Eswatini and Sierra Leone had the lowest. The minimum technical efficiency scores were 58.7% (in 2000), 59.1% (2005), 67.4% (2010) and 71.8% (2015). These indicate that despite improvements, there is a significant degree of technical inefficiency. Most of the countries among those in the bottom 10% efficiency scores are countries in Southern Africa, which in 2015 had a very high prevalence of HIV among adults, compared to the top 10%, which had prevalence rates of less than 0.1%.The mean efficiency score increased progressively over time – a nine percentage point increase between 2000 and 2015. The elasticity of current health expenditure was positive (0.06) and statistically significant. All the technical inefficiency variables had no statistically significant effect.Conclusions: Over the period of time covered in this study, there was some improvement in the average technical efficiency scores. However, there was also marked inefficiency in many countries, which is likely to hamper their progress towards universal health coverage and other health system goals. In a context where health spending is too low to provide needed services, it is imperative to address the causes of technical inefficiency and produce more health for the money. Furthermore, low-performing health systems should learn from their relatively high-performing peers.

Exploring the Inefficient Groundwater Use by Wheat Farmers: An Evidence from Sindh, Pakistan

Pakistan's agricultural production is lower than that of many other developing countries. The agricultural community is nearly illiterate and uses old and conservative farming methods. These constraints impede the adoption and spread of new technologies at the agricultural level. The objective of this study was to calculate economic, allocative, technical, and water-use efficiency. In addition, the drivers of inefficiency for wheat fields in Benazirabad and Naushahro Feroz districts were measured. For the analysis, 390 farmers' data were used, 195 from each of the Chihu and Malwa minor canals. Data-envelopment-analysis, a non-parametric method, was utilized to determine the ratings of efficiency. The findings revealed that the mean economic, allocative, and technical efficiency scores of farms in the study region were 52%, 62%, and 83%. The average water-use efficiency score was found to be 52%. For the improvement in the present farming system, quantified results suggested the need for potential increase in wheat production by 17% with keeping the same level of inputs. Results further revealed that the production cost can be reduced by 48% by producing the same level of output leading to optimal allocation of resources. There is also a potential gap of improvement for water-use efficiency. Improvement in agriculture extension services, timely and proper supply of inputs and the creation of local level marketplaces at lower administrative entities can improve the efficiency scores of wheat farmers.

Impact of Credit on Production Efficiency: Evidence from Cassava Smallholders Farmers in Southwest, Nigeria

Aims: This study evaluates credit impact on production efficiency of cassava farmers in southwest Nigeria.
 Study Design: Cross-sectional study.
 Place and Duration of Study: This study was conducted in South West Nigeria, between June 2019 and July 2021.
 Methodology: Multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select 210 small holder cassava farmers for the study. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data on respondents’ socio-economic characteristics, production efficiency and the efficiency distribution of cassava farmers.
 Results: Results show that the mean technical, allocative and economic efficiencies were (\0.55,0.91\), and (\0.50\) respectively. Results of Stochastic production frontier show farm size (\(\gamma=0.664, p<0.01\) ), labour ( (\\gamma\) (\=0.183, \mathrm{p} \leq 0.01)\) and quantity of stem cutting (\(\gamma=0.160, \mathrm{p} \leq 0.05)\) increased cassava output, while sex (\(\delta\) (\=0.797, \mathrm{p}<0.01)\), marital status (\(\delta=0.600, \mathrm{p}<0.05)\), level of education (\(\delta=0.062, \mathrm{p} \leq 0.01)\), number of extension contacts (\(\delta=0.624, \mathrm{p}<0.05)\) and credit (\(\delta=0.000004, \mathrm{p}<0.05)\) significantly influenced efficiency among cassava farmers. Also, result of Maximum likelihood estimates of cost function shows rent on land (\(\omega=0.455, p<0.01)\), price of fertilizer (\(\omega=0.078, p<0.01)\) and price of herbicide \((\omega=0.069\), (\p<0.01\) ) had positive influence on total cost incurred on cassava production while marital status (\(\delta=\) (\0.600, p<0.05)\) and credit (\(\delta=0.000004, p<0.05)\) significantly influenced efficiency among cassava farmers.

Technical Efficiency of Organic Tea Growers of Assam, India: A study in Dibrugarh District

Organic tea cultivation is a most emerging farming activity in recent years. Assam is only the state of India, where the highest tea is produced. Organic tea farming is a new concept for the state Assam. The study focuses on to estimate the technical efficiency level of organic tea growers. The Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) is used to estimate the efficiency level of the growers by conducting a survey in Dibrugarh district of Assam, where the highest organic tea growers are concentrated. The study found- Mean technical efficiency of organic tea growers is 0.91. The variables organic fertilizer, organic pesticide, manure, machine and land area under tea cultivation are found statistically significant. On the other hand the variable labour man days found insignificant result with output.

​Impact of Policy Change on Technical Efficiency: Evidence from Small Scale Food Crop Farmers in Kellem Wollega, Ethiopia

Background: An effort was made by the Ethiopian government to increase the level of technical efficiency of farmers across the country. However, due to climate change, smallholder farmers were facing challenges to increase technical efficiency in crop production. Adaptation to climate change is crucial to uphold and increase food crop productivity. This study analysis the impact of climate change adaptation and policy issues on food crop production efficiency in Kellem Wollega, Ethiopia. Methods: The data was gathered from 400 randomly selected food crop smallholder farmers. The Cobb-Douglas production function was used by including the climate change adaptation measures as explanatory variables in technical inefficiency. Simulation was made to adaption measures that can be influenced by the policy variables to see their impact on the level of technical efficiency. Result: The finding show that the use of adaptive practices (multiple crop type, improved crop varieties, adjusting planting dates and irrigation) had a significant and positive effect on technical efficiency whereas land fragmentation reduces efficiency level. Regarding simulation of policy variables the result show that the mean technical efficiency would increase with rising level of improved crop varieties, adjusting planting dates and irrigation practices. The results of the simulation of land fragmentation climate change adaptation variables show that the mean technical efficiency declines as a result of land fragmentation. Empirical results reveal that with appropriate policy intervention (climate change adaptation measures) the technical efficiency level of food crop farmers can be enhanced.

Technical Efficiency of Tef Producers: Evidence from West Shewa, Ethiopia

Tef ( Eragrostis tef ) is a major staple food crop and is important for generating farm income in Ethiopia and cultivated by more than 6.9 million farmers. The objectives of the study were to measure the level of technical efficiency and identify factors that cause efficiency differences among tef cultivating farmers in West Shewa, Ethiopia. The study was conducted based on the data obtained from 206 randomly selected households. For the analysis, both descriptive statistics and econometric models were used. A Cobb-Douglas stochastic frontier production model with the inefficiency effect was used to simultaneously estimate technical efficiency and identify the determinants of efficiency variations among tef producer farmers. The maximum likelihood estimates of stochastic frontier production showed that tef output was positively and significantly influenced by areas cultivated, and negatively affected by the increased seed rate and labour used. The estimated mean technical efficiency of sampled households in the study area was 84.3%, this shows that it is possible to raise tef output by about 15.7% without using additional inputs and by employing inputs on hand efficiently and there is a room to increase the output from the existing input combinations if farmers operate in an efficient manner. Livestock owned, use improved tef seed and proximity to the district market were found to negatively and significantly affect the technical inefficiency of tef producing farmers. Thus, stakeholders engaged in agriculture should emphasize on resources of farmers and the proximity to input and output market to improve the efficiency level of those less efficient farmers. Keywords: Stochastic frontier analysis; Technical efficiency; Tef ; West Shewa DOI: 10.7176/JESD/13-9-03 Publication date: May 31 st 2022

Technical efficiency and profitability of small holder natural rubber production in southern Nigeria

The study measured the technical efficiency and profitability of small holder natural rubber production in southern Nigeria by examining the socio-economic characteristics of respondents, the profitability of latex production and technical efficiency. Multi-stage, purposive and random sampling techniques were employed in the collection of primary data from 300 respondents. Descriptive statistics and stochastic frontier production function were used to analyse the data collected. Results indicated that respondents were educated, married (76%) with a mean family size of seven people and well experienced mean farming experience of 19 years. Latex production was a profitable venture with an average variable cost per ha of 55,700.94 with total revenue (T.R.) and gross margin (G.M.) per hectare 163,594.17 and 107,893.23, respectively. Furthermore, the stochastic frontier production function analysis showed the number of trees per task, labour, farm size and age of plantation, clone, wage and fixed cost items were significantly related to rubber latex. The mean technical efficiency (T.E.) of the respondents was 0.84. Education, extension contact and experience were the significant factors that increased the technical efficiency of the respondents. The resuscitation of extension activities of A.D.P.s in the rubber growing states of the country through adequate funding by the government to improve the efficiencies of farmers, use of improved planting materials during replanting old plantations and the formation of cooperative societies by farmers to enhance access to production credit amongst others are recommended in the study.

Technical Efficiency and Economic Analysis of Rice Crop in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: A Stochastic Frontier Approach

Pakistan is one of the world’s leading producers, exporters, and consumers of rice. This study analyzes the technical efficiency of rice growing farmers in the Swat district of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. A three-stage sampling procedure was used to interview 204 rice growers through a well-structured and pretested interview schedule. The maximum likelihood function results showed that chemicals, urea, diammonium phosphate (DAP), labor, and farmyard manure (FYM-dummy) were positive and had a statistically significant effect on rice yield; this implies that a 1% increase in chemicals, urea, DAP, labor, and FYM leads to an increase in rice production by 0.22%, 0.25%, 0.02%, 0.03%, and 0.01%, respectively. The estimated results of model 2 reported that respondents’ age had a positive significant effect on inefficiency, showing that with a rise in farmers’ age, the farmers’ inefficiency significantly increased. The education and experience of farmers were negative and significant, implying that these variables significantly decreased the farmers’ inefficiency. Furthermore, the results showed the mean technical efficiency as 87%, with a minimum of 66% and a maximum of 99%. The study recommends that the extension department needs to arrange training programs for the rice growers in this specific area to boost rice yield, enhance agronomic skills, and facilitate these farmers with the technical knowledge for efficient production.

TECHNICAL EFFICIENCIES OF POULTRY TOLL FEED MILLS IN KADUNA AND PLATEAU STATES, NIGERIA

This study investigated the technical efficiencies of poultry feed firms in Kaduna and Plateau States, Nigeria. Primary data were collected using a structured questionnaire from a sample of 51 poultry feed firms, analyzed using descriptive statistics and stochastic frontier technical efficiency function. The findings indicate that poultry feed firms have an average production capacity of 4.2 tonnes per day, operating on an average of 5 days per week using not more than 1 shift per day. The feed mills were found to be technically inefficient with mean technical efficiency of 0.67. The determinants of technical efficiency were found to be operating capacity, distance to major market, number of employees, and availability of ingredients in required quantity as well as ownership type. The high cost and adulteration of ingredients, low patronage, and high competition from larger firms amongst others were factors identified as constraints to efficient poultry feed production. The study recommends that the firms should improve on the deployment of labour as well as improved wages, outsource for cheaper inputs or buy input in group to derive economies of scale and also increase their production in other to potentially maximize output.

Technical Efficiency of Turmeric (Curcuma Longa L.) Production in Kaduna State, Nigeria

Purpose: The study analyzed the technical efficiency of turmeric production in Kaduna State, Nigeria. 
 Methodology: Data for the study were collected with the aid of structured questionnaire from 33 turmeric farmers from Jabba, Kachia, Jama’a, and KagarkoLocal Government Areas of Kaduna State. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and stochastic frontier production function. 
 Findings: Analysis of the results revealed that the mean technical efficiency of turmeric farmers in the study area was 28% with majority (66.7%) having technical efficiency level of ≤0.303. Also, analysis of the stochastic frontier production function revealed that the socio-economic characteristics of turmeric farmers in the State significantly influenced their technical efficiency. 
 Unique contribution to theory, practice, and policy: It was recommended that campaigns aimed encouraging more youths into turmeric production as well as discouraging large household size among turmeric farmers should be promoted in the study area; and policies aimed at increasing the resource use efficiency of turmeric farmers in the State and hence their farm output should include the farmers’ specific efficiency factors in their formulation.

Financial viability of commercial dairy farms established under the third phase of the dairy-cattle importation project in Sri Lanka

The financial viability of dairy farms, established under the third phase of the Dairy-Cattle Importation Project in Sri Lanka, is assessed in this study. The data were obtained from a primary survey. The results of the Stochastic Frontier Approach revealed that the mean technical efficiency of farms was 44.9%. The average milk production of these farms was found to be lower than the expected production and the average cost of production of milk was higher than the average farm-gate price. Even though the financial performance of medium-scale farms was marginally better than the small-scale and large-scale farms, the difference was not statistically significant. The study indicates the need and the potential to improve the production efficiency of dairy farms established under the Dairy Cattle Importation Project to make them financially viable.

Technical efficiency of resource-poor maize farmers in northern Ghana

Abstract Farm productivity in most developing countries remains low, hence the need to enhance technical efficiency (TE) of producers. This study evaluates the TE of maize production in rural Ghana, using primary data from a survey of smallholder producers. A two-stage double bootstrap data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach was used to assess TE and its determinants. The results revealed a bias-corrected mean TE of 68% (as opposed to 81% using the traditional DEA approach). Hence, with the prevailing technology and current input levels, farmers can increase their TE of maize production by 32%. TE increased with adoption of improved varieties, weeding frequency, and herd size but decreased with producer’s age, household size, educational status, and group membership. Subsequently, these factors need to be carefully considered in targeting policies for increasing maize productivity. The study observed increased adoption of improved varieties and training in efficient methods of weed control as important measures to enhance TE of maize farmers.

Profitability and efficiency of pig production in Tamil Nadu

The present study was conducted to explore the cost and returns, profitability in pig (Swine) farming and to analyze the various factors affecting pig production and their level of efficiency in pig production. For the study, a sample of 45 swine farms was purposively selected by a simple random sampling procedure in the North-eastern zone of Tamil Nadu. The data were collected by personal interview method with the help of a pre-tested questionnaire pertaining to the year 2013–2014. The results revealed that minimum cost of production and maximum net return per farm per year from the pig rearing was noticed in large farms. Overall benefit-cost ratio was 1.46, which revealed profitable nature of swine farms in the study area. The results of cobb-douglas production function revealed that the variables, feed, and veterinary care were significant and positively influence the pork production. Allocative efficiency analysis showed that the resource feed was over-utilized and veterinary care was under-utilized. Technical efficiency was calculated using stochastic frontier production function and mean technical efficiency was identified as 76.37% and hence 23.63% of their technical abilities were not realized. Multiple regression was used to identify the factors influencing farm specific technical efficiency and profitability. Thus, the efficiency in pig production in the study area could be achieved through efficient extension programs about advanced scientific management practices for optimum utilization of resources.

Efficiency, valuation, and pricing of irrigation water in northeastern Tunisia

This study examines the effects of irrigation water use efficiency improvements and citrus price fluctuations on water values in the tree production systems of northeastern Tunisia. It also aims to compare water values with the real price of water as currently paid by farmers and determine the optimal price. Cross-sectional data of a selected sample of 42 citrus farms located in the main producing region of this commodity was used for the analysis. To do so, we used the stochastic frontier production function approach. Empirical findings show that significant inefficiencies do exist in the studied sample of farms. Overall mean technical efficiency and water use efficiency are 78.4% and 44.3%, respectively. Based on these values, simulation analysis indicates that an improvement in water use efficiency combined with an increase in citrus prices could shift the water marginal value curve upwards, which will result in higher water valuation. Results also show that the current water price paid by farmers is much lower than the water value estimated at the level of “theoretical” citrus irrigation requirements. Application of higher irrigation water fees is definitely feasible for the studied production system, however, they need to be accompanied by increased incentives for water use efficiency in addition to better market integration of farmers.

Data Envelopment Analysis of Allocative and Technical Efficiencies of Yam Production in Adamawa State

The aim of this research was to analyze the allocative and technical efficiency of yam production using data envelopment analysis (DEA). A purposive and simple random sampling technique was used and 100 yam producers were selected using structured questionnaires. A non-parametric Data envelopment analysis was employed and both the allocative and technical efficiencies of the yam producers were investigated and examined. The result revealed that the majority (81% ) of the farmers are male, (39%) fall within the age range of 36-40 years and (75%) had some form of education, 57% had technical efficiency (TE) of (0.81) and above while 43% operate at less than 0.81 efficiency level. The mean technical efficiency was 0.78 while the mean allocative efficiency was 0.98. The result further indicated that yam farmers in the study area have achieved absolute efficiency in the use of variable inputs. Thus, it could be concluded that yam production in the study area was viable in terms of technical and allocative efficiency. It is, therefore, recommended that Government in partnership with the private sector should encourage farmers to increase their technical efficiency in yam production which could be achieved through improved farmer specific efficiency factors, which include improved farmer education, access to credit and access to improved extension services.

English

Sweet potato is one of the important staple food for majority of Ugandans. As such, it is depended on by many households. Reportedly, sweet potatoes production is low especially in Western Uganda. This may have been attributed to resource misallocation leading to some levels of efficiency or inefficiency. However, the current level of efficiency or inefficiency and its determinants in sweet potatoes production is unknown. As such, this study determined technical efficiency and its determinants among sweet potatoes farmers in western Uganda. Data were collected from 160 households using multistage and random sampling techniques. After data cleaning, 151 questionnaires were considered for the study. Data envelopment analysis was used to determine technical efficiency while Tobit regression model was used to analyse the determinants technical efficiency. The results showed that the mean technical efficiency stood at 55%. Accordingly, household size, farm location, group membership and use of pesticides had a positive and statistically significant effect on technical efficiency while farm size and input prices had an inverse and statistically significant association with technical efficiency. To increase on sweet potatoes yields, farmers should be encouraged to form various groups where they could share production ideas, use pesticides for effective control of weeds and government should subsidise farm inputs to improve on affordability and timely acquisition. Key words: Sweet potatoes, low yields, technical efficiency, subsidize, Uganda.

Technical Efficiency of Wheat Production in Major Wheat Producing States of India: A Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA)

This study was conducted to estimate the technical efficiency of wheat production in major wheat-producing states of India using secondary data for the period 2000-01 to 2016-17. The area of study comprised those states which covered more than 80 per cent of wheat production in India, i.e., Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, and Haryana. Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) was used to estimate the state-specific technical efficiency in wheat production. The results showed that the technical efficiency in wheat production increased over time The correlation coefficient between mean technical efficiency and growth rate of yield was strongly positive and highly significant, revealing that the higher technical efficiency was directly reflected in higher yield from wheat cultivation.