Thesis (M.Sc. (Agricultural Economics)) --University of Limpopo, 2018 / Legumes are crops that are rich in protein and if households are made aware of their importance, they can be acquired at lower costs and dependency on animal proteins can also be reduced. The cowpea smallholder producers in Africa are faced with numerous challenges such as persistent pests such as aphids that reduce yields, lack of improved varieties and the inability to produce in quantities large enough to sell to local or broader markets in South Africa. The aim of this study was to examine economic efficiency of cowpea production among smallholder cowpea farmers in Capricorn and Waterberg districts of Limpopo province. The descriptive statistics indicated that interviewed farmers years of schooling ranged from 0 to 13 years, with an average of five years of attending school. Farmers’ age ranged between 33 and 78, with an average age of 61 years. The average income received on monthly basis from the overall agricultural produce was R1735.83 per farmer. The Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) results showed that the Technical Efficiency (TE) scores of cowpea farmers had a mean of 0,9588 with a minimum of 0,7500 and maximum of 1,000. This means that 95% of the farmers were technically efficient. The allocative Efficiency score ranges from a minimum of 0,4070 and a maximum of 1,000 with a mean of 0,6519. The Allocative Efficiency (AE) scores imply that farmers were not utilizing inputs. The Economic Efficiency scores ranges from a minimum of 0,3820 to 1,000 with a mean score of 0,6218. This implies that cowpea smallholder farmers were economically inefficient on average and that the cost of cowpea production for each farm could be decreased on average by approximately 38% to obtain the same level of output. The Tobit regression model found that the explanatory variables which were significant are age, educational level, primary income source, farm size, method of intercropping, purpose of growing cowpea and source of field labour. The study recommends that there is a need to provide primary education to the farmers for them to be able to measure and calculate the inputs they use and output they attain in order to improve their efficiency levels. Key words: Economic Efficiency, Smallholder Farmers and Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA).

Magister Artium (Development Studies) - MA(DVS) / Agriculture in Ghana is dominated by smallholder farmers who are faced with unpredictable rainfall and extreme weather events. Climate modelling forecasts that the rate at which precipitation will decrease in the country is far more than the rate at which it will increase during the wet season. It is predicted that rain-fed maize output will decrease below 25 percent in all the ten regions of the country by 2020 if nothing is done. To mitigate the effect of climate change and safeguard food security, the country must undertake measures to adapt to the changing climate. The process of adaptation, therefore, involves the interdependence of agents through their relation with each other. This includes the institution in which the agents reside and the resource based on which they depend. The resource embedded in such relationship has been termed social capital. Empirical studies on social capital and climate change adaptation is lacking, especially in Ghana. Based on this, the study assesses the influence of social capital on climate change adaptation strategies among smallholder farmers in the Central region of Ghana. Both primary and secondary data were used for the study. Primary data was collected using household questionnaires, focus group discussions, and key informant interviews. K-means cluster analysis was used to identify weak and strong ties and four individual social capital variables. Twenty-year maize and rainfall data were analysed using trend analysis. The influence of individual social capital and other controlled variables were analysed using Multinomial logit model. Using 225 sampled households the results of the study showed that all the four identified individual social capital variables differ by sex. The perceptions of climate change among smallholder farmers also differ significantly by location. The four individual social capital variables as well as other controlled variables influence at least one indigenous adaptation strategy and one introduced adaptation strategy. The study recommends, among others, that transfer of climate change adaptation techniques or technology to smallholder farmers should not be solely accomplished through the usual technology transfer network of agricultural researchers and extension agents. Rather, it will be imperative to increased contact with a wide variety of local actors who provide information and resources for agricultural production.

Contractual arrangements have been viewed as institutional arrangements ideal for improved market access for smallholder farmers. However, certain questions remain unanswered, such as whether the smallholder farmers benefit from them and how? Do contractual arrangements empower smallholder farmers or not? And do contractual arrangements lead to improved gross farm incomes for smallholder farmers or not? From these questions, three hypotheses were developed and tested, which are: Contracting lowers smallholder farmers' market price risk and therefore improves market access; contracting improves smallholder farmers' farm incomes; and contracting improves smallholder farmers' capacity to access external resources (financial credit, technical and extension services). This thesis characterised agricultural contractual arrangements in the Winterveld region, which ranged from implicit to explicit contracting. These contractual arrangements were characterised based on the general description of the contractual arrangement, the nature of the contract (formal or informal), contract negotiation, price discovery and payment structure, responsibilities of the contracting firm and farmers, contract enforcement and conflict resolution and opportunities and threats associated with the contractual arrangement. The study used a case study approach and interviewed a total of 50 smallholder farmers and three agribusiness companies. Most of the data were qualitative in nature with significant quantitative data on prices and yields. Only smallholder farmers who were actively involved in marketing their produce for the season 2009/2010 were interviewed, using a structured questionnaire. Agribusiness companies were interviewed us1ng semi -structured questionnaires. The technique of triangulation was employed to validate data from the three primary data sources, which were key informants, smallholder farmers· and agribusinesses transacting with Winterveld smallholder farmers. Literature on contract farming was explored and the main objective of the study was to show how contractual arrangements affect smallholder farmers and how best can they be used to mainstream smallholder farmers into formal agricultural markets. Results from the qualitative analysis showed that non-land assets endowment are sources of pre-selection bias and in some cases are determinants of being contracted. However there was no positive relationship between owning non-land assets and contracting. Some contractual arrangements, like the marketing specification public tenders' contractual arrangement, are well designed to minimise farmers' price risk. However, others, like the marketing specification valencia contractual arrangement, do expose farmers to market price risk. There was a significant difference in farm gross incomes between contracted and noncontracted farmers. It is however so that there were different levels of skills, management and enterprise mix between them. In some cases, for instance in the marketing specification valencia contract and marketing specification leafy vegetables and navels contracts, contracting does enable farmers to access external resources. However, having access to external resources also depended on the farmers' innovativeness and social networks and the information available to them. From these results, the thesis concluded that contractual arrangements are not a panacea for improving smallholder farmers' market access, therefore other alternative marketing channels for smallholder farmers have to be explored. Market outlets such as hawkers had very low transaction costs, which makes it easier for smallholder farmers to enter such market channels, but there is very low public support in such market channels. Furthermore, it is not always the case that contracting prices are superior to other prices in alternative markets. Some farmers in non-contractual arrangements in some cases realised superior prices for their produce. Based on the study findings, this thesis proposes key government interventions in eliminating information asymmetries and development of a public framework on contracting where necessary. Information asymmetries in particular can be reduced by deployment of effective and well trained agricultural extension personnel in smallholder farming areas. Also, a public framework on contracting reduces information asymmetries as well as guarding against unfair business practices against smallholder farmers. Furthermore, due to the heterogeneous nature of produce from smallholder farmers, exploration of urban supply chains characterised by cultural diversity and low income consumers might result in improved market access for smallholder farmers. The thesis also proposes further research on the policy environment in which agricultural contracting takes place in South Africa. This could help in creating better policies which may foster increased formal market access by smallholder farmers. Copyright / Dissertation (MSc(Agric))--University of Pretoria, 2013. / Agricultural Economics, Extension and Rural Development / unrestricted

This thesis identifies determinants of market participation of smallholder sorghum and millet farmers and proposes strategies for improving their market participation. The study used survey data from 195 smallholder communal and resettled farmers, and agribusiness firms dealing with sorghum and millet. The farmers were selected from three sorghum and millet producing districts of Zimbabwe. The firms were located in Bulawayo and Harare. Data was collected through face-to-face interviews with the sampled farmers and firm representatives. The thesis also explores the way the small grains have been marketed and the extent of field crop contracting in Zimbabwe. In addition, literature on determinants of market participation for other commodities was reviewed. Recommendations were then drawn on strategies for improved market participation for smallholder farmers. Transaction cost related factors are an important component of marketing that determines the extent of market participation for smallholder farmers. Results of the multiple regression and the probit models showed that transaction cost related factors, such as previously agreed prices (PRICEAGREE), confidence and trust in the buyer (CONFIDENCE), the difference in price knowledge (PRICEKNOW) and delayed payment for sold grain (DELAYPAY) have a significant impact on the quantity of grain sold and the extent of smallholder farmer participation in the market. Discriminant analysis was used to identify factors discriminating sorghum and millet sellers and non-sellers. The division was made according to whether or not a household sold sorghum and/or millet during the period 2004/05 to 2006/07. Of the fourteen potential discriminating variables, six explained group differences with statistical significance. The six important variables in the discriminant function analysis were: number of donkeys owned by a household, crop production levels, source of household income, method of transporting grain to the market, district and area cultivated. Five of the six discriminating variables point to wealth-ranking factors (household asset endowments) implying that poorer households are unable to participate in markets effectively. Farmers identified issues that need to be addressed for sorghum and millet production and marketing to be improved. The identified issues offer guidelines for priority areas to focus on when addressing limitations that are currently inhibiting farmer market participation. The major issues which included; seed unavailability, lack of access to draft power, lack of access to fertilizer, establishment of irrigation schemes; provision of transport to the market, production of marketable surplus and establishing a local market, all point to the need for external assistance to farmers. A review of literature confirms that contracting is an effective way to coordinate and promote production and marketing in agriculture. Sorghum and millet can be grown under contract successfully. The presence of successful contracts for other commodity crops is an indicator of the potential to increase marketing of sorghum and millet through contracting. However, for contracting to succeed, it is necessary to improve sorghum and millet productivity with an assured quality of the grain. The conclusion is that small grains are important food crops for smallholder farmers in drier environments but their productivity is low. Hence, to enhance farmer access to markets, it is necessary to increase the productivity of sorghum and millet and thus, enable smallholder farmers to produce adequate marketable surplus. Interventions by government and private sector should aim at addressing the major factors that determine market participation. Important to note is that, if poorer households are unable to effectively participate in markets, then interventions to increase households’ productive assets or the public goods that support agricultural production and marketing may be necessary. Based on the study findings, the thesis proposes possible key intervention ingredients for successful contracting of sorghum and millet in Zimbabwe. An enabling environment and legal framework created by government and private sector, addressing identified priority areas, primarily will largely determine the level of market participation of smallholder farmers in Zimbabwe. Copyright / Dissertation (MScAgric)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Agricultural Economics, Extension and Rural Development / unrestricted

Based on cross-sectional data drawn from 135 treated and 68 control farmers in Tanzania, and 133 treated and 71 control farmers in Zambia, this study uses propensity score matching to test whether conservation agriculture (CA) improves smallholder farmers’ welfare, in response to the policy objective of enhancing their resilience in the face of climate change. Farmers in Tanzania assess CA as having statistically significant impacts on increasing total agricultural yield, adaptation to climate change impacts, resilience to droughts, increasing maize production, enhancing household food security, increasing number of meals per day, increasing household income, accumulation of productive assets , addressing gender disparity and social cohesion, and improving soil health . However, CA had no impact on reducing the forest area cleared per year and total agricultural costs. Farmers in Zambia assess CA as having statistically significant impacts on increasing total agricultural yield , adaptation to climate change impacts, resilience to droughts, increasing maize production, enhancing household food security, increasing number of meals per day, decreasing number of food insecure months, increasing household income, accumulation of productive assets, addressing agricultural calendar bottlenecks, increasing total agricultural costs, addressing gender disparity and social cohesion, and decreasing soil health. However, CA had no impact on reducing forest area cleared per year. Policy could use such evidence to leverage CA adoption in support of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and Africa Agenda 2063, although its potential to sequester carbon and provide ecosystem services comes into question. / Dissertation (MSc Agric (Agricultural Economics))--University of Pretoria, 2021. / AERC-CMAAE / African Conversation Tillage Network / Agricultural Economics, Extension and Rural Development / MSc Agric (Agricultural Economics) / Unrestricted

The study analyzed the impact of the farm input subsidy programme (FISP) on the technical, allocative and economic efficiency and determining factors associated with these efficiencies of 12, 271 smallholder maize farmers from 2010 IHS3 dataset in Malawi. Descriptive statistics, stochastic frontier approach as and a Cobb-Douglas production function were applied. Yield responsiveness to production inputs was estimated by computing input elasticities. The findings indicate that technical efficiency of smallholder maize farmers ranged from 15.7 to 78.9 with a mean of 61.3 percent reflecting a substantial level of inefficiency. The allocative efficiency scores were between 23.5 and 86.2 with a mean of 66.9 percent reflecting a substantial level of allocative inefficiency. The economic efficiency scores were between 14.1 and 74.6 with amean of 59.2 percent reflecting a substantial economical inefficiency. An estimated return to scale was 0.87 indicating that during the period under review, smallholder maize farming decreased by about 13 percent. The results of second stage Tobit regression estimations indicates that the FISP programme improved the efficiencies of maize farmers in Malawi. In addition, t farmers’ age, farming experience, education years, having an income generating activity and receiving remittance were also identified as significant drivers of production capacity of smallholder farmers maize. However, farmers’ marital status, family size and distance to the market had a negative impact on smallholder farmers’ capacity in maize production. Smallholder farmers in Malawi were experiencing a decreased return to scale meaning that they were technical, allocative and economically inefficient in maize production. From the findings, among other issues to be considered for the improvement of technical, allocative and economic efficiencies of maize production among smallholders farmers, the government should support only energetic farmers, make farm inputs available and accessible to farmers, continued advocacy on v adoption of family planning to reduce population growth to carter for scarcity of resources, increase and enhance extension services to help in educating these smallholder farmers in handling new technologies associated with modern agriculture, encourage them to engage in IGAs to complement FISP in purchasing farm inputs, increased and extended cash transfer program to economically empower these smallholder farmers.

The study was designed to assess the impact of irrigation schemes on livelihood strategies and food security status of smallholder maize farmers in North West Province of South Africa and covered three districts of the North West Province namely: Dr Ngaka Modiri Molema district, Bojanala district and Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati district. In this study, a descriptive survey design was used and a sample of farmers was interviewed from the list of farmers obtained from the extension workers. The targeted group was male farmers in irrigation farming and those who farm within the radius of the irrigation scheme. A questionnaire was designed as the primary tool for data collection and the process of collecting data involved face to face interviews and group discussions. Data collected were coded and entered into Microsoft Excel and then transferred to Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS). To analyse data, descriptive and inferential statistics were used. The results of multiple regression analysis of relationship between irrigation farming and livelihood strategies showed that the independent variables were significantly related to livelihood strategies of the farmers with an F value of 8.067, p< 0.05 and R value of 0. 788 showed that there was strong correlation between the independent variable and the household livelihood strategies. Significant determinants were marital status (t= 2.43), number of household (t= 5.41), nonfarm activity (t=1.73) and income (t= 6.59). The probit model was used to determine the influence of the socio-economic variables on household food security status. The model has a good fit and significant with two explanatory' variables being significant while eleven variables were insignificant. The significant variables were income and Land. The results of Forster Greer Thorbecke showed that about (1.5%) of the respondents are living below the threshold of (R9.2) per day, while the per capital income of respondents that are below the poverty line needed to be increased by (0.5%) to meet the level of poverty line. The results also showed severity of (0.1%), this implied that the gap of respondents from the poverty line is very small. / Thesis (M.Sc. (Agric Economics) North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, 2013

Magister Philosophiae (Land and Agrarian Studies) - MPhil(LAS) / This study explored the production and livelihoods of smallholder farmers in irrigation schemes in South Africa. The particular focus has been on the farming styles of smallholder farmers, the impact of irrigation scheme production on their income and livelihoods, and the issue of smallholder social differentiation. The New Forest irrigation scheme located in Bushbuckridge Local Municipality was used as a case study. The research methodology utilized a combination of extensive and intensive research designs. The farming style approach was compared with the livelihood strategies approach to determine the relationship between the farmers’ approach to farming and their livelihood development trajectory. The underlying assumption is that small-scale irrigation has the potential to make a positive contribution to the livelihoods of farmers. New Forest irrigation farmers face a number of challenges at the irrigation scheme such as neglect by government, inadequate irrigation water, and access to affordable crops inputs. The farmers were not organised to be able to purchase inputs, engage in co-operative marketing, and manage the irrigation scheme. The notion of investing in smallholder irrigation schemes in order to convert smallholders into commercial farmers is unrealistic. Those that were classified as ‘food farmers’, benefit from irrigation development and participation through meeting their household consumption needs. Those classified as ‘employers’, obtained negative gross margins per plot and hired most farm labour. Diversification by employers into other less risky livelihood activities on-farm and off-farm is an option. The ‘profit makers’, make high returns from crop production, and obtained the highest gross margins per plot. This thesis argues that support to farmers in smallholder irrigation schemes should be provided in the context of their farming objectives, and livelihood aspirations which are not only varied but evolve across time and individual circumstances.

Agriculture is considered a critical sector in attaining economic growth for most economies in Africa. However, for the sector to play its role, it needs to be commercialised to enable smallholder farmers to participate in markets and, hence, improve their incomes and livelihoods. In most developing economies, smallholder farmers find it difficult to participate in markets because of the numerous constraints and barriers mostly reflected in the transaction costs that make access to input and output markets difficult. When analysing the effects of transaction costs on market participation, much attention has been accorded to farmers while ignoring middlemen/traders who are also part of the marketing system. Furthermore, studies on the effect of transaction costs on market participation tend to focus on grains and cereals while ignoring agrocommodities that are more perishable. The purpose of this study was to holistically examine the effects of transaction costs on participation of smallholder farmers and middlemen in banana markets of the Great Lakes region in central Africa. The study adopted a non-separable household model which incorporated fixed and proportional transaction costs in the function of maximising utility subject to resource constraints. The Heckman procedure was used to determine the factors affecting the discrete choice of smallholder farmers on whether to sell and quantities to sell while catering for selection biases. Probit analysis was used to determine the farmers’ choice of selling point while the ordinary least squares method was used to analyse the extent of participation of traders. Variables capturing transaction costs in regards to information gathering, negotiating, contracting, monitoring and enforcing of contracts were used in the analyses. The empirical analyses were based on secondary data availed for 2666 farming households and 494 traders located in Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda. The results of the study indicate that fixed and proportional transaction costs distinctly affect the participation of smallholder farmers in markets. Belonging to farmer groups facilitates information exchange which reduces fixed transaction costs and, hence, increases the likelihood of farmers to participate in markets. The size of a household, distance to markets and ownership of transport means, which is linked to proportional transaction costs, influence the extent of farmer participation in markets. The choice of selling point was significantly influenced by household size, the gender of the household head, off farm revenue, access to price information and the extent of remoteness of household. The effects of transaction costs on market participation of smallholder farmers were more evident in the analyses for bananas than in the one for beans. The participation of traders was significantly influenced by gender, trading experience and supply distance which relate to the bargaining prowess, business networks and per unit transport cost, respectively. Interventions geared towards supporting associations for farmers may facilitate information exchange and enhance bargaining and contracting skills which subsequently reduce transaction costs. Policies aimed at supporting investment in rural infrastructure, in terms of feeder road networks and market places, can lead to reduction in transaction costs and thereby enhance participation of farmers and traders in markets. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Agricultural Economics, Extension and Rural Development / unrestricted

This study focused on analysing the production and marketing constraints that often prevent smallholder farmers from accessing high-value markets in the agribusiness value chain. Access to markets is an essential requirement for the poor in rural areas to enjoy the benefits of agricultural growth. Limited access to agricultural markets by smallholder farmers in rural areas represents one of the most important challenges confronting policymakers in developing countries. Several studies have indicated how smallholder farmers can be linked to markets, but they have failed to address issues of how to increase the likelihood of smallholder farmers benefiting from high-value markets. Due to the stringent sourcing criteria of formal markets, small-scale farmers are excluded from the agricultural value chains. It may be easy to access the market, but it is very difficult for smallholder farmers to retain that market. This is attributed to the fact that smallholder farmers face various constraints along the value chain such as production and marketing constraints. The main objective of this study was to identify and analyse the constraints confronting smallholder farmers in the Limpopo Province and to suggest different strategies that can be used to make it easier for smallholder farmers to access high-value markets in the agribusiness value chain. This was achieved through personal interviews in two districts, i.e. the Capricorn and Vhembe districts. Primary data was obtained through structured questionnaires in both districts. These two districts were chosen due to their uniqueness with regard to agricultural potential, with smallholder farmers in both districts being heterogeneous and confronting different constraints in producing and marketing their products. Producing for the market calls for production resources, including production means such as land, water, on-farm and off-farm infrastructure, labour force, capital, and good management of these resources. Poor access to these resources affects the way in which smallholder farmers can benefit from opportunities in agricultural markets, especially in terms of the volume of products traded and the quality and quantity of those products. Based on the surveys employed for purposes of this study, the participation of smallholder farmers in high-value markets is constrained as a result of poor access to comprehensive agricultural support services. There are relatively few direct linkages between smallholder farmers and fresh produce markets, supermarkets, and agro-processors. The majority of sales by farmers are at either the local market or the farm gate level. Few farmers have access to basic production equipment and infrastructure. A range of impediments to participation in high-value markets were identified. These include lack of access to sufficient and productive land for expansion, sufficient water, modern irrigation systems, mechanisation, transport logistics, and market information. These constraints constitute the greatest barrier for smallholder farmers when it comes to accessing high-value markets, and overcoming these constraints is critical if smallholder farmers are to access lucrative markets. There is relatively low participation among farmers in collective action, more especially at production and marketing levels. The study found that smallholder farmers in the Vhembe district have a comparative advantage in terms of vegetable production compared to those in the Capricorn district. Smallholder farmers in the Vhembe district are better linked to agro-processors, fresh-produce markets and supermarkets as compared to farmers in the Capricorn district – even though this is the case for only a few individual farmers. The study also found that individual producers have greater access to on-farm infrastructure and also perform better and have closer links to formal markets compared to projects owned by groups of households. The results of the study suggest that smallholder farmers who are currently not participating in high-value markets could improve their participation if they are given access to comprehensive agricultural support services. More attention must be given to supporting smallholder farmers in both districts to ensure that they engage in commercial production and participate in high-value markets on a sustainable basis. This could only happen if their constraints along the value chain are addressed. The major challenge confronting policymakers is to create an enabling environment for smallholder farmers and empower them to produce high volumes of good-quality products on a consistent and sustainable basis. / Dissertation (MInstAgrar)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Agricultural Economics, Extension and Rural Development / unrestricted