scholarly journals Determinants of the Adoption of Sustainable Intensification in Southern African Farming Systems: A Meta-Analysis

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qian Guo ◽  
Oreoluwa Ola ◽  
Emmanuel Benjamin
Keyword(s):  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Arable Land ◽  
Household Size ◽  
Sustainable Intensification ◽  
Assessment Process ◽  
Extension Service ◽  
Extension Services ◽  
Access To Credit ◽  
The Impact

Climate change and environmental degradation are major threats to sustainable agricultural development in Southern Africa. Thus, the concept of sustainable intensification (SI) i.e. getting more output from less input using certain practices such as agroforestry, organic fertilizer, sustainable water management etc. has become an important topic among researchers and policy makers in the region in the last three decades. A comprehensive review of literatures on the adoption of SI in the region identify nine relevant drivers of adoption of SI among (smallholder) farmers. These drivers include (i) age, (ii) size of arable land, (iii) education, (iv) extension services, (v) gender, (vi) household size, (vii) income, (viii) membership in farming organization and (ix) access to credit. We present the results of a meta-analysis of 21 papers on the impact of these determinants on SI adoption among (smallholder) farmers in Southern African Development Community (SADC) using random-effects estimation techniques for the true effect size. While our result suggests that variables such as extension services, education, age, and household size may influence the adoption of SI in SADC, factors such as access to credit is also of great importance. Decision-makers should therefore concentrate efforts on these factors in promoting SI across the SADC. This includes increasing the efficiency of public extension service as well as involvement of private sector in extension service. Furthermore, both public and private agriculture financing models should consider sustainability indicators in their assessment process.

scholarly journals Determinants of the Adoption of Sustainable Intensification in Southern African Farming Systems: A Meta-Analysis

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 3276 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qian Guo ◽  
Oreoluwa Ola ◽  
Emmanuel O. Benjamin
Keyword(s):  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Organic Fertilizer ◽  
Arable Land ◽  
Household Size ◽  
Sustainable Intensification ◽  
Assessment Process ◽  
Extension Services ◽  
Access To Credit ◽  
The Impact

Climate change and environmental degradation are major threats to sustainable agricultural development in Southern Africa. Thus, the concept of sustainable intensification (SI) has become an important topic among researchers and policymakers in the region over the last three decades. SI involves getting more output from less input using practices such as agroforestry, organic fertilizer, sustainable water management, among others. A comprehensive review of the literature on adoption of SI in the region identified nine relevant drivers of adoption of SI among (smallholder) farmers. These drivers include (i) age, (ii) size of arable land, (iii) education, (iv) extension services, (v) gender, (vi) household size, (vii) income, (viii) membership in a farming organization and (ix) access to credit. We present the results of a meta-analysis of 21 papers on the impact of these determinants on SI adoption among (smallholder) farmers in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) using random-effects estimation techniques for the true effect size. While our results suggest that variables such as extension services, education, age, and household size may influence the adoption of SI in SADC, factors such as access to credit are also of great importance. Decision-makers should, therefore, concentrate efforts on these factors in promoting SI across the SADC. This includes increasing the efficiency of public extension service, as well as the involvement of the private sector in extension services. Furthermore, both public and private agriculture financing models should consider sustainability indicators in their assessment process.

scholarly journals Characterization of smallholder farmers and agricultural credit institutions in Rwanda

2021 ◽  
Vol 21` (01) ◽  
pp. 17343-17364
Author(s):  
Nathan K Taremwa ◽  
◽  
I Macharia ◽  
E Bett ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Information Asymmetry ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Arable Land ◽  
Agricultural Credit ◽  
Convenience Sample ◽  
Credit Access ◽  
Access To Credit ◽  
Information Gap ◽  
Lending Institutions ◽  
Credit Institutions

The significance of access to agricultural credit in perpetuating agricultural productivity is unquestionable, because it is a means to achieving optimal productivity. The minimization of any barriers to agricultural credit access should,thus,be a global priority. One of the most significant and current barriers to agricultural credit access is information asymmetry which results into mutual distrust between lending institutions and borrowers in this case the smallholder farmers. To address information asymmetry, both the lending institutions and borrowers need to have definitive descriptive information about either party. Without the profiling of institutions and potential borrowers, an information gap persists, thereby increasing mutual distrust. This study addresses that gap, in the context of Rwanda by characterizing smallholder farmers and agricultural credit institutions. Across-sectional survey design was used in this study with smallholder farmers and staff in agricultural credit institutions in the Eastern, Western, and Central provinces of Rwanda as the units of analysis. A multistage sampling procedure was used,with stratified sampling of administrative levels spanning from province(stage 1) to districts (stage 2) and sectors(stage 3),followed by a simple random sampling of cells per sector, and the convenience sample of households. Staff in the financial institutions were purposively sampled. The data collected was analyzed using principal component analysis and cluster analysis with the K-means statistic(SPSS version 25). The largest cluster of smallholder farmers has the following characteristics: household size of1to 5 people, farmers with education, owning arable land not exceeding a hectare, with more than five years of farming experience,earning from other off-farm activities, with no dependents under five years of age, and renting less than an acre of land. As for agricultural credit institutions, the largest cluster has following compositions:have mechanisms or measures established for managing loan defaults with the majority using refinancing, rescheduling, and collateral release, with variable loan payback options, and provide targeted agricultural credit to farmers such as agricultural input premium.The research findings are particularly pertinent for maize-and rice-growing farmers,and how to reduce the information gap and the implications of broadening access to credit to smallholder farmers were discussed. This study emphasizes the need for characterization for both parties to be better informed about the characteristics and dynamics of each other, all in a bid to lessen asymmetric information and thus improve access to credit.

scholarly journals Smallholder farmers willingness to pay for privatized agricultural extension services in Tigray National Regional State, Ethiopia

2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 29-38
Author(s):  
Kidane Tesfay Gebreegziabher ◽  
Gidey Kidu Mezgebo
Keyword(s):  
Willingness To Pay ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Group Discussion ◽  
Household Survey ◽  
Agricultural Extension ◽  
Sampling Procedure ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Extension Service ◽  
Extension Services ◽  
Agricultural Extension Service

This study assessed farmers’ willingness to pay for privatization of agricultural extension services and examined factors that determine willingness to pay for those services. Multistage sampling procedure was used in selecting 240 households. Data were collected using household survey, focus group discussion and key informant interview tools. Data were analyzed using percentage and logit model. Results showed that 58% of the respondents were willing to pay for the privatization of agricultural extension services. Farm size, age, family size, credit access, frequency of extension contact and income were significantly influenced farmers’ willingness to pay for privatization of agricultural extension services. Privatization of agricultural extension services encourages graduates of agricultural sciences to launch consultancy firms and this engenders professional entrepreneurship. Number of visits, socioeconomic, and institutional factors must be given emphasis for privatizing the agricultural extension service in Ethiopia. Moreover, government should launch privatization parallel to the public agricultural extension services Keywords: Agricultural extension service, willingness, privatization. Ethiopia

scholarly journals A meta-analysis on the nutritional value of insects in aquafeeds

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
N.S. Liland ◽  
P. Araujo ◽  
X.X. Xu ◽  
E.-J. Lock ◽  
G. Radhakrishnan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Arable Land ◽  
Principal Component ◽  
Nutrient Digestibility ◽  
Insect Species ◽  
Aquatic Species ◽  
Complete Representation ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Maximum Threshold

A major challenge for development of sustainable aquafeeds is its dependence on fish meal and fish oil. Similarly, it is unwanted to include more plant ingredients which adds more pressure on resources like arable land, freshwater and fertilisers. New ingredients that do not require these resources but rather refine and valorise organic side streams, like insects, are being developed. Increasing evidence indicates that using insect ingredients in aquafeeds are a sustainable alternative and considerable progress has been made on this topic in the past years. The aim of this chapter is to present a comprehensive and systematic analysis of the data available on the impact of insects in aquafeeds. Systematic search, collection and selection of relevant literature from databases such as Web of Science and NCBI was performed. The literature search enabled 91 scientific papers from peer-reviewed journals, comprising a dataset of 415 experimental diets, including 35 different aquatic species and 14 insect species to be included in this meta-analysis, covering what we consider a close to complete representation of credible publications on this topic. Information on aquatic species, insect species, dietary composition (amino acids, fatty acids, proximate composition) and performance outputs (growth performance indicators and nutrient digestibility) were included in the construction of the dataset. Regression models and principal component analyses were performed on the meta-data. The results from the meta-analysis revealed a great degree of variation in the maximum threshold for insect inclusion in aquafeeds (from 4 to 37%) based on subgroups of trophic level of aquatic species, insect species used, statistical method and the output parameter. Overall, a maximum threshold of 25-30% inclusion of insects in aquafeeds for uncompromised performance is suggested. Reduction in protein digestibility, imbalanced amino acid profile and increasing levels of saturated fatty acid were identified as major factors limiting higher inclusion of insects in aquafeeds.

Impacts of improved extension services on awareness, knowledge, adoption rates and perceived benefits of smallholder dairy farmers in Pakistan

2019 ◽  
Vol 59 (12) ◽  
pp. 2175 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. M. Warriach ◽  
P. C. Wynn ◽  
M. Ishaq ◽  
S. Arif ◽  
A. Bhatti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Animal Health ◽  
Perceived Benefits ◽  
Dairy Farmers ◽  
Extension Services ◽  
Family Approach ◽  
Knowledge Adoption ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Extension Program

The provision of effective extension services to smallholder farmers across both developing and developed countries remains a challenge worldwide. The objective of the study is to demonstrate the impacts of improved extension services on awareness, knowledge, adoption rates and perceived benefits of smallholder dairy farmers in Pakistan. An extension program was developed and implemented in five districts of Punjab (Okara, Pakpattan, Jhelum, Kasur and Bhakkar) and two districts of Sindh (Thatta and Badin) provinces. The extension program involved the provision of research-based information on a monthly basis to smallholder farming families (FF = 523) over a 4-year period. The extension program was primarily a knowledge transfer-based system, but also relied on farmer engagement and feedback to help drive research and topics for discussion. No financial incentives were provided to the farmers for their participation. A ‘whole-family approach’ was used in the extension program, where comprehensive interdisciplinary training on the whole dairy-farming system was provided to the males, females and children of the farming household. To encourage greater participation and support different learning strategies, several information transfer media were used (including group discussions, one-on-one visits, practical demonstrations, problem-based learning techniques and videos). To assess the impact of this extension program on farms involved, data on farmer awareness, knowledge, adoption and their perceived benefits were collected using a mixed-method approach from three different groups of farmers; registered (IMPreg = 179) farmers directly involved in the extension program, non-registered (IMPnon-reg = 116) farmers indirectly benefiting from the program and traditional (IMPtrad = 104) farmers not associated with any project activities. Overall awareness, knowledge and adoption rates relating to seven different recommendations in the extension program were significantly (P < 0.05) higher in the registered farmers than in the non-registered and traditional farmers. The perceived benefits of the adopted recommendations varied between the different extension messages, but farmers described that they observed increases in milk production, improvements in animal health (body condition and morbidity) and labour efficiency (time savings). These results suggest that adopting improved extension services using a whole-family approach we can significantly achieve higher adoption rates, leading to on-farm benefits to smallholder dairy farmers and their families.

scholarly journals Agricultural Credit and Extension Services: Does Their Synergy Augment Farmers’ Economic Outcomes?

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 3758
Author(s):  
Masaood Moahid ◽  
Ghulam Dastgir Khan ◽  
Yuichiro Yoshida ◽  
Niraj Prakash Joshi ◽  
Keshav Lall Maharjan
Keyword(s):  
Agricultural Development ◽  
Economic Outcomes ◽  
Agricultural Credit ◽  
Extension Services ◽  
Access To Credit ◽  
Quasi Experimental ◽  
Net Revenue ◽  
Inverse Probability Weighted ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Farming Households

Access to credit is essential for sustainable agricultural development. This paper evaluates the impact of formal and informal agricultural credit, access to extension services, and different combinations of agricultural credit and extension services on the economic outcomes of farming households in Afghanistan. This study applies a quasi-experimental approach (propensity score matching) and inverse-probability-weighted regression adjustment (IPWRA) analysis. The data comes from a survey of 277 randomly selected farming households in the three districts of rural Afghanistan. The results show that having access to formal agricultural credit has a positive and differentiated impact on the farming costs and net revenue of farming households. However, the effects increase when a farming household has access to both formal credit and extension services. The results also reveal that credit constraints affect farming costs and net revenue. The study provides some practical implications for agricultural development policymakers. First, formal agricultural credit affects farm revenue in rural Afghanistan. Second, the impact of credit bundled with agricultural extension services on farm revenue is higher than the impact of the provision of each service separately. Therefore, a more sustainable agricultural credit arrangement should be supplemented by extension services for farmers in Afghanistan.

Are farmers in Ethiopia ready to embrace cost-sharing agricultural extension approach?

2019 ◽  
Vol 46 (9) ◽  
pp. 1119-1136
Author(s):  
Muluken Gezahegn Wordofa
Keyword(s):  
Cost Sharing ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Agricultural Extension ◽  
Discrete Choice Experiments ◽  
Extension Service ◽  
Eastern Ethiopia ◽  
Extension Services ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Cost

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate perceptions of smallholder farmers toward the cost-sharing agricultural extension service provision. Design/methodology/approach The study used data from a cross-sectional survey, key informants interviews and focused group discussions conducted on 384 farm households from six Kebeles of Eastern Ethiopia. Findings The authors find that flexibility and credibility, ability of development agents to address neglected aspects in agricultural production, and reaching diversified groups of farmers as the perceived advantages of the cost-sharing approach. Furthermore, improved knowledge and attitude, enhanced research–extension–farmer linkages, and improved food security and poverty reduction are found to be the three most important impact areas associated with the approach. On the contrary, poor economic status of farmers, high cost of administration and absence of a clear guideline/legislation are found to be the most important constraints. The authors find that increasing farmers’ awareness about the cost-sharing approach and preparing a clear definition of the form, modalities and principles of the cost-sharing extension approach can be a part of the practical solutions to overcome the challenges. Research limitations/implications The current research is limited to the investigation of farmers’ perceptions toward paid extension services. The willingness to pay for extension services – using discrete choice experiments – is dealt with in another paper. Originality/value The first of its kind in the country, the paper tried to assess farmers’ readiness to try a new extension service delivery. The findings have important implications for policy makers and local level implementers of extension programs.

The impact of credit on productivity of smallholder farmers in Ghana

2019 ◽  
Vol 80 (1) ◽  
pp. 91-109 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ralph Essem Nordjo ◽  
Charles K.D. Adjasi
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Northern Region ◽  
Average Treatment Effect ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Policy Debate ◽  
Treatment Variable ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Access To Credit ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the impact of access to production credit on the productivity of smallholder farmers. Design/methodology/approach Data for the study were drawn from the Agricultural Value Chain Facility (AVCF), which was implemented in the Northern Region of Ghana. This paper uses the Propensity Score Matching (PSM) to estimate the average treatment effect of access to production credit on the productivity of smallholder farmers. The rationale for the choice of this estimation technique is to control for selection bias since the treatment variable (access to production credit) was not randomised. The authors also test for the effect of hidden bias using “Rosenbaum bounds” sensitivity analysis. The study uses two control groups to examine the net effect of credit on productivity. Findings The results reveal that smallholder farmers with access to production credit increased productivity through investment in farm inputs. For the impact of credit on productivity using control Group 1, the result shows that farmers with access to credit increased their productivity by 0.170 metric tonnes per hectare and for control Group 2, the result shows an increase of 0.252 metric tonnes per hectare more than farmers who are without access to production credit. Practical implications The evidence as provided by this paper is that access to production credit is significant to meet the credit needs of smallholder farmers and therefore contributes to the policy debate on whether access to credit has impact on the productivity of smallholder farmers. Originality/value The paper shows the importance of production credit in augmenting the production function of smallholder farmers.

scholarly journals Determinants of smallholder farmers’ adaptation strategies to the effects of climate change: Evidence from northern Uganda

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Francis Atube ◽  
Geoffrey M. Malinga ◽  
Martine Nyeko ◽  
Daniel M. Okello ◽  
Simon Peter Alarakol ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Household Head ◽  
Adaptation Strategy ◽  
Positive Influence ◽  
Adaptation Strategies ◽  
Farm Income ◽  
Extension Services ◽  
Access To Credit ◽  
Resistant Varieties

Abstract Background Climate change poses a threat to the sustainability of food production among small-scale rural communities in Sub-Saharan Africa that are dependent on rain-fed agriculture. Understanding farmers’ adaptations and the determinants of their adaptation strategies is crucial in designing realistic strategies and policies for agricultural development and food security. The main objectives of this study were to identify the adaptation strategies used by smallholder farmers to counter the perceived negative effects of climate change in northern Uganda, and factors influencing the use of specific adaptation strategies. A cross-sectional survey research design was employed to collect data from 395 randomly selected smallholder farmers’ household heads across two districts by the administration of a semi-structured questionnaire. Binary logistic regression was used to analyze the factors influencing farmers’ adaptation to climate change. Results The three most widely practiced adaptation strategies were planting of different crop varieties, planting drought-resistant varieties, and fallowing. Results of the binary logit regression model revealed that marital status of household head, access to credit, access to extension services, and farm income influenced farmers’ adoption of planting drought-resistant varieties as an adaptation strategy while access to credit, annual farm income, and time taken to market influenced adoption of planting improved seeds. Gender of household head and farm income had a positive influence on farmers’ adoption of fertilizer and pesticide use. Farming experience, farm income, and access to extension services and credit influenced farmers’ adoption of tree planting. Household size, farming experience, and time taken to market had positive influence on the use of fallowing, while size of land cultivated significantly influenced farmers’ planting of different crop varieties as an adaptation strategy. Conclusion Findings of the study suggest there are several factors that work together to influence adoption of specific adaptation strategies by smallholder farmers. This therefore calls for more effort from government to strengthen the provision of agricultural extension services by improving its climate information system, providing recommended agricultural inputs and training farmers on best agronomic practices to enhance their holistic adaptation to the effect of climate change.

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