INTENSIFICATION BENEFIT INDEX: HOW MUCH CAN RURAL HOUSEHOLDS BENEFIT FROM AGRICULTURAL INTENSIFICATION?

2018 ◽  
Vol 55 (2) ◽  
pp. 273-287 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. HARRIS
Keyword(s):  
Agricultural Research ◽  
Rural Households ◽  
Rural Poverty ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Farm Income ◽  
Small Farms ◽  
Actual Performance ◽  
Smallholder Farm

SUMMARYSustainable intensification (SI) of agriculture is the predominant objective for agricultural research and extension worldwide. Researchers and policymakers consider SI to be essential to avoid global hunger, improve human nutrition and reduce rural poverty while avoiding all manner of environmental disasters. To achieve these global public goods requires a large number of rural households – ‘small farmers’ – in less developed countries to improve their agriculture. Household size and farm size from 11,789 households in 15 countries from sub-Saharan Africa were used to calculate an intensification benefit index (IBI) that reflects how much a household will benefit if intensification occurs. IBI is defined as the increase in personal daily income (cents/person/day) as returns to land (dollars/hectare/year) increase. Actual net farm income from 160 rural households in each of three countries was compared with their IBI values to explore the gap between potential intensification and current smallholder farm performance. Fifty percent of all households had IBI values less than 0.075 cents/dollar, 70% less than 0.125 cents/dollar and 90% less than 0.225 cents/dollar. Returns of $1000/ha/year would result in fewer than 15% of households crossing a $2/person/day poverty line; $2500/ha/year would be required to lift 50% of the sample above the line; and even with $4000/ha/year, more than 30% of households would remain below the line. Since mean net returns from three sub-sampled sites were only $78, $83 and $424/ha/year the gap between potential- and actual performance is large but, theoretically, amenable to closure through adoption of improved technologies. However, surveys have shown that the available technologies would struggle to bridge the gap completely for rural households with small farms. For many small farms, the gains from adopting improved technologies are unlikely by themselves to lift them out of poverty and so might not be as attractive as scientists would wish.

scholarly journals STUDY ON LIVELIHOOD DYNAMICS OF RURAL HOUSEHOLD OF MUNGELI DISTRICT OF CHHATTISGARH STATE INDIA

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Neha Dhruw ◽  
Ajay Tegar
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
Rural Households ◽  
Total Sample ◽  
Rural Household ◽  
Retail Trade ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Farm Income ◽  
Vegetable Production ◽  
Size Groups ◽  
The Government

The study was carried out to study the livelihood dynamics of rural household of Mungeli district of Chhattisgarh state. Two blocks namely Lormi and Mungeli were taken into consideration for the study. A total sample size of 89 farmers was made from 07 villages. The study finds that the largest participation of rural household was in the livelihood activities like agriculture (crop production) with 95.50 per cent and non-farm (construction) with 26.96 per cent. Agriculture and non-farm were identified as the main two sources of income for rural households. The participation in both the livelihood activities estimated 84.96 per cent and 12.39 per cent respectively. Crop production and horticulture (vegetable production) were the main contributors to the farm income of rural households their contribution being 62.67 per cent and 24.29 per cent. PersonalSocial services and whole sale-retail trade-small stall were the main contributors to the non-farm income of rural households their contribution being 16.99 per cent and 3.62 per cent. The degree of diversification was found to be greater with 0.56 per cent among the landless and those belonging to lower farm-size groups. Shortage of irrigation water leads to certain problems including lower yields, decrease cultivated area. Therefore, the government should form efficient and strong policies for the better management of available water resources, ensuring equal availability to every farmer.

scholarly journals COMPOSITION AND DETERMINANTS OF RURAL NON-FARM INCOME DIVERSIFICATION IN NIGERIA

2020 ◽  
Vol 57 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Oluseyi Olutoyin Olugbire ◽  
Oluwatosin Esther Obafunsho ◽  
Titilope Omolara Olarewaju ◽  
Ruth Ibukun Kolade ◽  
Festus Abiodun Odediran ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Poverty Reduction ◽  
Formal Education ◽  
Rural Households ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Living Standard ◽  
Farm Income ◽  
National Bureau ◽  
Access To Credit ◽  
Poor Households ◽  
Reduction Strategies

Farming has been considered as main source of income for rural households in Nigeria, despite their involvement in other income generating activities. Focusing on income derivable from farming alone may be partially responsible for the ineffective poverty reduction strategies in Nigeria. Using the National Living Standard Survey data collected by the National Bureau of Statistics, this paper investigated the composition and determinants of non-farm incomes of rural households in Nigeria. The results show that the share of farm, non-farm wage (NFW)- and self-employment (NFS) incomes in total household incomes were 24.3%, 43.0% and 23.7% respectively. Households whose heads are male (0.647), had formal education (0.522), increased the likelihood of households’ participation in NFW activities, while access to credit (-0.307) and having larger farm size (-0.221) decreased it. Access to credit (0.379); community participation (0.103); larger family size (0.193) and possession of capital assets (0.069) increased the likelihood of participation in NFS-employment activities, while having larger farm size (-0.211) decreased it. The study concludes that policy targeting poverty reduction should focus on providing enabling environment for poor households’ access to non-farm activities in the study area.

scholarly journals Determinants of Market Participation of Smallholder Sorghum Farmers and Strategies for Improving Their Participation; the Case of Moretna Jiru District, Ethiopia

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atinkugn Assefa Belete
Keyword(s):  
Significant Role ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Probit Model ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Farm Income ◽  
Market Participation ◽  
Access To Credit ◽  
Smallholder Farm ◽  
Level Of Significance

Abstract The purpose of this study is to identify market participation of smallholder’s Sorghum producers in Moretna jiru district, central Ethiopia. Primary data was collected from 355 randomly selected smallholder farm households from three randomly selected kebeles in the district. The survey data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and econometrics model with probit and Tobit censored model. Results of the probit model analysis showed that output, farm size, extension contact and ownership of transport positive and significant role in households’ decision to participate in sorghum output sales at 1% level of significance; whereas, household income, off-farm income, access to credit and lack of information negatively at 1% and 10% level of significance. Results of Tobit censored analysis showed; extension contact, farm size, output and membership of farmer group have positive and significant role in the value of sorghum at 1% level of significance; while access to credit was found to have negative significant role at 5% level of significance. Farm size, output, extension contact and membership of farmer group was found to affect both households’ decisions to participate and intensity of participation in sorghum sales at 1% level of significance. Based on the findings there is a need to enhance the interaction between extension export and farmers and distribute trained extension exports in all kebeles by giving different trainings. ; and help the farmers improve land productivity, where possible, by intensifying farm practices through provision of sustainable and timely availability of inputs and management practices so as to generate surplus sorghum output and boost sales.

scholarly journals Impact of Credit access and Cooperative membership on Food Security of Rural Households in Southwestern, Nigeria

2020 ◽  
Vol 57 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ayodeji Kehinde ◽  
Mary Kehinde
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Rural Households ◽  
Household Size ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Farm Income ◽  
Southwestern Nigeria ◽  
Credit Access ◽  
Binary Logit ◽  
Security Index ◽  
The Impact

This study investigated the impact of credit access and cooperative membership on food security of rural households in Southwestern Nigeria. A multi stage sampling procedure was employed to select 300 rural households for the study. Data were analyzed using food security index, binary logit model, propensity score matching (PSM) and Augmented inverse probability weighting model (AIPW). Binary logit estimate reveals that age, household size, years of education, farm size, farm income and non-farm income significantly influenced the likelihood of rural households being members of cooperatives while household size, years of education, farm size, gender, asset and farm income significantly influenced the likelihood of rural households’ access to credit. Food security index revealed that about 66 percent of the households are food insecure. PSM revealed that cooperative membership and credit access is expected to increase the food security of rural households by approximately 1446 and 1496 kilocalories per person per day, respectively. AIPW revealed that cooperative membership and credit access is expected to increase the food security of rural households by approximately 1888 and 1899 kilocalories per person per day, respectively. The study concluded that credit access and cooperative membership has a positive and significant impact on food security of rural households. Thus, any programmes targeted at ensuring rural households’ food security, particularly southwest should take into cognizance their credit access and cooperative membership.

Assessing Production Efficiency by Farm Size in Rwanda: A Zero-inefficiency Stochastic Frontier Approach

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jules Ngango ◽  
Seungjee Hong
Keyword(s):  
Technical Efficiency ◽  
Production Efficiency ◽  
Stochastic Frontier ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Farm Income ◽  
Maize Production ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Study Results ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract This study investigates the relationship between farm size and technical efficiency for maize production in Rwanda. Since levels of technical efficiency tend to vary considerably across farms in sub-Saharan Africa, with a mixture of both inefficient and fully efficient farms, the use of the conventional stochastic frontier method is not appropriate. In this paper, we apply a zero-inefficiency stochastic frontier method that manages both efficiency and inefficiency in the studied sample. The average technical efficiency of maize farms for the full sample is estimated at 0.64, demonstrating that maize output can be improved by approximately 36% without increasing the proportion of farm inputs used. Regarding the relationship between farm size and technical efficiency, the study results show a positive relationship between farm size and technical efficiency for maize production in Rwanda. Thus, the enforcement of land reforms such as land consolidation and enhanced aggregate productivity growth are needed. The results also indicate that education, cooperative membership, extension services, access to credit, off-farm income, land tenure, and livestock ownership have significant and positive effects on technical efficiency.

Decomposing Rural Income into Sectors to Identify Their Likely Contributions to Rural Poverty Reduction in Bangladesh

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 224-246
Author(s):  
Mohammed Helal Uddin ◽  
Nurul Islam
Keyword(s):  
Poverty Reduction ◽  
Rural Households ◽  
Rural Poverty ◽  
Real Income ◽  
Farm Income ◽  
Efficiency Enhancement ◽  
Real Wages ◽  
Rural Income ◽  
Different Sources ◽  
Cent Decrease

The article estimates the contribution of total income from each sector to the overall rural income. It tests if the poor, who are concentrated in the lower-income quintiles, gain most from farm or non-farm sources of income growth. Also, within the farm or non-farm income, what are the relative contributions of its different sources. The dominance of agriculture is still there for the lowest quintile of rural households, farming still being the dominant sub-category. Over 1991–2010, a 13 per cent decrease in per capita real income from agricultural wages for all rural households and a 41 per cent decrease in that for Quintile 1 rural households contradict the earlier finding that increases in real wages were one of the main contributors to poverty reduction. Quintile-wise decomposition suggests that a substantial income enhancement was realised at upper quintiles of rural households. It also appears from the quintile-wise decomposition that the efficiency enhancement was realised more at upper quintiles leaving a relatively smaller effect on poverty reduction.

Off-farm income and food expenditure of rural households in China

2019 ◽  
Vol 121 (5) ◽  
pp. 1088-1100
Author(s):  
Yuying Liu ◽  
Alan Renwick ◽  
Xinhong Fu
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Rural China ◽  
Rural Households ◽  
Household Head ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Farm Income ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Food Expenditure ◽  
Per Capita ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of off-farm income on food expenditure, using survey data of 493 rural households from Gansu, Henan and Shandong provinces in China. Design/methodology/approach A two-stage least squares estimator is used to jointly estimate the determinants of off-farm income and the direct impact of off-farm income on food expenditure while controlling for the endogeneity issue associated with off-farm income variable. Findings The empirical results show that gender, education of household head, household size, farm size, the presence of children, smartphone use and asset ownership mainly determine off-farm income, and the off-farm income affects food expenditure of rural households significantly. In particular, the results show that a 1,000 yuan increase in per capita off-farm income increases per capita food expenditure by 61 yuan. Further estimations reveal that off-farm income has a larger effect on food expenditure of high-income rural households relative to their low-income counterparts. Originality/value Although poverty implications of off-farm income have been well documented, few studies have analysed the effects of off-farm income on food expenditure of rural households. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, there are no studies on this issue that focus on rural China. Therefore, the present study attempts to provide a first insight into the association between off-farm income and food expenditure of rural households in China, with the aim of providing useful evidence for policymakers in their efforts to reduce rural and urban food consumption gap and further increase social welfare.

scholarly journals Drivers of household food availability in sub-Saharan Africa based on big data from small farms

2015 ◽  
Vol 113 (2) ◽  
pp. 458-463 ◽  
Author(s):  
Romain Frelat ◽  
Santiago Lopez-Ridaura ◽  
Ken E. Giller ◽  
Mario Herrero ◽  
Sabine Douxchamps ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Food Availability ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Market Access ◽  
Total Sample ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Farm Households ◽  
Farm Income ◽  
Smallholder Farm ◽  
Sub Saharan

We calculated a simple indicator of food availability using data from 93 sites in 17 countries across contrasted agroecologies in sub-Saharan Africa (>13,000 farm households) and analyzed the drivers of variations in food availability. Crop production was the major source of energy, contributing 60% of food availability. The off-farm income contribution to food availability ranged from 12% for households without enough food available (18% of the total sample) to 27% for the 58% of households with sufficient food available. Using only three explanatory variables (household size, number of livestock, and land area), we were able to predict correctly the agricultural determined status of food availability for 72% of the households, but the relationships were strongly influenced by the degree of market access. Our analyses suggest that targeting poverty through improving market access and off-farm opportunities is a better strategy to increase food security than focusing on agricultural production and closing yield gaps. This calls for multisectoral policy harmonization, incentives, and diversification of employment sources rather than a singular focus on agricultural development. Recognizing and understanding diversity among smallholder farm households in sub-Saharan Africa is key for the design of policies that aim to improve food security.

scholarly journals Farmland Rental Participation, Agricultural Productivity, and Household Income: Evidence from Rural China

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 899
Author(s):  
Wenjing Han ◽  
Zhengfeng Zhang ◽  
Xiaoling Zhang ◽  
Li He
Keyword(s):  
Rural Households ◽  
Agricultural Productivity ◽  
Household Survey ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Farm Income ◽  
Rural Land ◽  
Total Income ◽  
Land System ◽  
Rural Land System ◽  
On Farm

The rural land rental market is playing an increasingly important role in the agricultural transformation period for developing countries, including China, where rural farmland rental is highly context-specific with the implementation of the collective-owned rural land system; thus, in turn, the access to farmland rental markets for rural households has profoundly influenced their livelihood strategies and income earnings. This paper investigates the income impact differences caused by rural households’ farmland rental participation activities and explores such impact mechanisms by further evaluating the income impacts caused by rental area and household agricultural productivity. Data from the Chinese national household survey were used for estimating the empirical models. Our results show that farmland renting has positively affected households’ on-farm and total income, but there is no significant effect upon off-farm income. According to income differences across quantiles, we find households with high on-farm income are more sensitive about enlarging their farm size by renting farmland, and households with middle and upper-middle off-income may benefit more from renting out their farmland. Furthermore, the joint effects of renting area and household agricultural productivity on lessee households’ farm income is significantly positive. For lessor households, our results indicate that renting out farmland did not improve their off-farm and total income as it may have a limited effect on farm household labor distribution. Our findings suggest that engaging in farmland rental activity can enhance farming productivity efficiency and poverty alleviation among rural households. Under the collective-owned rural land system, it is urgent and necessary to initiate and design incentive policies to encourage highly efficient large farms to expand the farm size and provide smallholders with equal opportunities to engage in farmland rental activities.

scholarly journals Sustainable Agricultural Practices, Farm Income and Food Security among Rural Households in Africa

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdul-Hanan Abdallah ◽  
Awal Abdul-Rahman ◽  
Gazali Issahaku
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Treatment Effects ◽  
Rural Households ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Farm Income ◽  
Welfare Benefits ◽  
Sustainable Agricultural Practices ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Sustainable agriculture has been recognized in the literature as one of the important pathways to ensuring food systems and livelihoods among rural households in Africa. Using data from the ‘Intensification of Food Crops Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa (Afrint)’ project, we examine the impact of adoption of multiple sustainable agricultural practices (SAPs) - zero-tillage, intercropping, residue incorporation and animal manure - on farm incomes and food security (captures as self-sufficiency in food production-SSF) among African rural households. Multinomial endogenous treatment effect (METE) method is applied to control potential selection bias. In addition, the multivalued treatment effects (MTE) model and dose-response-functions (DRFs) are also used to examine the treatment effects heterogeneity associated with SAPs adoption. The study reveals that joint adoption of SAPs is increased farm income and food security relative to the adoption of a single practice. Households obtain significantly higher farm income (FI) and food security (FS) via adoption of at least three practices relative to households adopting less than three practices. These findings reaffirm the benefits of adopting SAPs as a package rather than single practice, to enable farm households to derive significant welfare benefits.

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