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The study examines the link between dietary diversity and BMI using data from Kenyan women aged 15–49. By exploring how dietary diversity affects BMI across various BMI categories, the study examines the demand for diet diversity and its impact on BMI. The results reveal a positive relationship between food diversity and BMI at all quantiles, suggesting that a more varied diet is associated with increased BMI levels among underweight, overweight, and obese individuals. This indicates that the correlation between dietary diversity and health outcomes in higher BMI categories may be ‘unfavourable’, with increased food diversity linked to a higher risk of ‘unfavourable’ BMI categories, i.e., overweight and obesity. This may be attributed to higher caloric intake and/or higher consumption of saturated fats and cholesterol from a more diverse diet, which can contribute to increased BMI. These findings highlight the need to consider moderation and balance in energy intake and the overall nutritional quality of diets when considering and evaluating diets and dietary diversity and in formulating and shaping food policies.

As climate change leads to increase flood risks, South Africa continues to rely on government driven ex post relief initiatives for flood management whilst commercial insurance providers are not yet incorporated into broader flood management strategies. The willingness to pay (WTP) for flood risk insurance is investigated among this most vulnerable demographic of low income households. Using discrete choice experiments (DCE) and mixed logit models, it uses primary data from respondents in Buffalo City metropolitan municipality to analyse preferences for insurance attributes, such as coverage levels, premiums and excess fees. The findings also show that there is a strong preference for lower premiums, better quality insurers, and easier application processes for adoption. The results of mixed logit show that attributes like the increased building coverage results in positive WTP and further confirms the need for insurance plans that are easily accessible and affordable. Taken together, the findings in this research highlight the value of trust, transparency, and the cost effectiveness of policy design in boosting both consumption of flood insurance and community resilience to floods among vulnerable populations.

Climate change threatens smallholder farmers' productivity, revenue generation, and increases household food insecurity. Thus, adaptation and coping strategies are paramount for smallholder farming households to mitigate these impacts of climate change. This study used a bibliometric analysis to examine smallholder farmers’ coping and adaptation strategies to climate change (SFCA-SCC) research trends from 2010 to 2022. A total of 1635 papers were analysed from Scopus and Web of Science (WoS) databases to characterize the field and observe research trends. The articles from these databases demonstrate an upward trend in publications (54–300) over the period under study, signifying the importance of research on adaptation and coping strategies of climate change. The research findings showed that majority of studies originated from institutions in industrialized countries, while very few did so from emerging economies. According to the findings, smallholder farmers have embraced a range of adaptation and coping mechanisms to mitigate the impacts of climate change, such as altering planting schedules, and diversifying crop varieties among others. It is imperative for African researchers and institutions to engage in more research aimed at developing strategies to mitigate the risks posed by climate change.

Positive Selection (PS) technique has been shown to reduce virus infection and increase yields, however there is insufficient empirical evidence on how this technology affects seed yam farm productivity. This study employed Propensity Score Matching (PSM) technique to evaluate the impact of PS on seed yam yields of 368 farmers randomly selected from Ghana and Nigeria.The findings showed that educational attainment, distance from the farm to the nearest market, cropping patterns, and other factors influenced farmers' adoption of PS. Furthermore, the adoption of PS technology resulted in a 16.98 % boost in farm productivity for PS seed yam farmers compared to their productivity without the technology. It is of the utmost importance that PS adoption be supported by developing tailored training materials for farmers to improve their use of the PS technology.

Substance abuse is a major public concern for the entire world. Using data from the National Income Dynamic Study wave four, this study examines the impact of substance (alcohol and tobacco) consumption on labour market outcomes in South Africa using the multinomial endogenous switching regression technique. This method controls for any potential selection bias and endogeneity problems. The results from the study reveal that individuals’ decisions to consume alcohol only, tobacco only, and a combination of both are driven by socioeconomic, health, and demographic factors. The estimated causal effect shows that substance use reduces individuals’ earnings in almost all cases and increases working hours. The findings suggest that efforts to control the use of alcohol and tobacco in South Africa should focus more on sensitization programmes that address the health, psychological, and economic implications of using these substances.

Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor [L.] Moench) production has considerable socio-economic values in sub-Saharan Africa for food security and to serve the increased industrial demands due to high population pressure and climate change. However, the production and productivity of the crop are yet to be expounded in Nigeria for economic gains. Therefore, the objective of this study was to present the current opportunities and constraints to sorghum production in Nigeria. A participatory rural appraisal (PRA) study was conducted in three selected sorghum growing zones in northern Nigeria involving 250 farmers. Socio-economic data were collected through surveys and focus group discussions. Sorghum was cultivated mainly by males (80%) who had grade 6-12 level of education (31.3%), with the productive age of 21-45 years (75.7%) and a household family size of below five members (52.3%). Low yielding landrace varieties such as Kaura (37.4%) and Fara-fara (29.3%) were the most widely cultivated types across the study zones due to their good grain quality. The major farmers' preferred traits from a sorghum variety were high yield, drought tolerance and Striga resistance. The study recommends integrated sorghum technology development incorporating the described preferences of the farmers for sustainable production and economic gains of the crop.

As a result of climatically regulated water sources, smallholder farming households in South Africa are severely impacted by climate change. Using the Livelihood Vulnerability Index, we assessed the vulnerability of smallholder farming households to climate change in Thaba Nchu, Mangaung District of the Free State Province of South Africa. Primary data from 301 smallholder farming households were collected and augmented with secondary data on temperature and rainfall from 2010 to 2020. The study found that farming households in Central Thaba Nchu are more vulnerable than those in North and South Thaba Nchu in terms of adaptive capacity: social network, livelihoods strategies, and socio-demographic structure. The Central Thaba Nchu were likewise more vulnerable to water resources than the Northern and Southern Thaba Nchu. However, Northern Thaba Nchu is more exposed and sensitive to health-related difficulties than Central and Southern Thaba Nchu. The study recommends that non-government and government institutions in the province should employ a pragmatic method to evaluate vulnerability using climate service information while prioritizing vulnerable households for adaptation support to improve adaptive capacity and resilience. The findings also imply that weather forecasters, in partnership with agricultural extension agents, must provide farmers with timely and adequate climate information reports to prepare them for climatic shocks. Moreover, it is important to deliver climate service information that is genuine, significant, and reliable.

This study examines consumers' willingness to pay a higher price premium for quail products using the price of chicken as a benchmark. A double-bounded dichotomous choice contingent valuation was used to elicit the data, and the factors influencing consumers’ willingness to pay (WTP) were identified using the ordered logit regression model. Results revealed that on the average consumers were willing to pay a higher price premium for quail products, with the mean WTP of GH¢ 27.46 ($5.66), representing 196.14% price premium and GH¢26.34 ($5.43) representing 196.03% price premium per crate of eggs and 1kg of quail meat, respectively. These findings are crucial for the development of the products as well as formulating marketing strategies for its promotion in the African food markets.

Agricultural environment in many developing economies has become increasingly unpredictable in recent decades as a result of climate change, increasing the risk of crop failure. Access to meaningful information is required to mitigate the negative effects of the changing environment. This study examined the impact of agricultural extension services on the adoption of soil and water conservation (SWC) practices using data obtained from farming households in Northern Ghana. A multivariate probit model was used to assess the simultaneous or/and substitution adoption of SWC practices, while endogenous switching probit (ESP) was used to estimate the impact of extension services on adoption of SWC practices to account for observed and unobserved heterogeneities. The results showed that most of the SWC practices were adopted jointly, and factors such as non-farm economic activites and farm size influence the adoption of SWC practices. Moreover, farmers who accessed agricultural extension services had a higher probability of adopting most of the SWC practices (crop rotation, contour ploughing and manure application), and those who did not benefit from extension services would have had an equally higher likelihood of adopting the SWC practices had they accessed the services. The findings of the study imply that enhancing agricultural extension services will reduce adoption gaps in SWC practices, and consequently reduce farmers’ exposure to climate-related agricultural production risks. With growing information and communication technologies, pluralistic extension service delivery that mixes governmental and private-sector-led approaches to extension operations to foster demand-driven extension delivery services are highly recommended.

Abstract Background Achieving food security is a global priority and a concern for most African countries, including Ghana. Food systems providing varied and healthy diets without compromising the natural resource base, such as integrated crop–livestock diversification, are important for development planning and policy. Using cross-sectional data obtained from 1284 smallholder households in northern Ghana, we used a double-censored Tobit model in a conditional mixed-process (CMP) framework to estimate the impact of crop diversification on household food security. Results The results showed that household-specific, socioeconomic, and institutional factors influence crop–livestock diversification and food security in northern Ghana. Moreover, we found that higher intensity of crop–livestock diversification translates into a greater probability of achieving food security. Conclusions Crop–livestock diversification is essential to Ghana’s pursuit of the zero-hunger global agenda as it enhances food security without adversely affecting biodiversity and ecosystem health. Therefore, it should be incorporated into Ghana’s ongoing agricultural programme dubbed, planting and rearing for food and jobs.

Many empirical studies have documented the role of farm management practices such as irrigation in reducing poverty and improving household well-being. Few studies, however, have looked at the impact of irrigation farming on poverty vulnerability and the welfare of rural farming household. This study examined the factors that influence farmers’ participation in irrigation farming, as well as how it affects farmers' food consumption expenditure per capita (proxy for welfare), poverty gap index, poverty severity and poverty vulnerability. The study's data was collected from farming households in the northern and coastal parts of the Eastern province of South Africa. The endogenous switching regression (ESR) model was employed in the study to account for selection bias that could be caused by both observed and unobserved household factors. The empirical result shows that gender, household size, educational attainment, crop diversification, and market outlet among others influenced farmers' decision to practice irrigation farming. Farmers engaging in irrigation farming boosted their food consumption per capita by 44%, while non-participants would have increased their consumption expenditure per capita by 23% if they had participated. Moreover, participating farmers reduced their poverty gap index by 20% and poverty severity by 22%, whereas non-participating farmers could have reduced their poverty gap index and poverty severity by 5% and 17%, respectively had they engaged in irrigation farming. Participation in irrigation farming also reduced poverty vulnerability by 25%, while non-participants may have reduced poverty vulnerability by 3%. The findings suggest that enhancing farmers' access to irrigation is crucial to meeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which aim to eradicate poverty in all its manifestations everywhere.

Abstract Background The adoption of climate-smart agricultural (CSA) practices is expected to improve farmers’ adaptation to climate change and also increase yields while simultaneously curbing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This paper explores the determinants of smallholder farmers’ participation in GHG-emitting activities. It also estimates the impact of CSA activities on reducing GHG emissions. Methods The findings are based on survey data obtained from 350 smallholder farmers in the East Gonja district of Northern Ghana. We adopted the generalized Poisson regression model in identifying factors influencing farmers’ participation in the GHG emission practices and inverse-probability-weighted regression adjustment (IPWRA) to estimate the impact of CSA adoption on GHG emissions. Results Most farming households engaged in at least one emission activity. The findings of the generalized Poisson model found that wealthier households, higher education, and households with access to extension services were less likely to participate in GHG emission activities. There was also evidence that CSA adoption significantly reduces GHG emissions. Conclusion Advocacy in CSA adoption could be a necessary condition for environmental protection through the reduction of GHG emissions.

Abstract Technical inefficiency persists in Ghana’s cocoa farms. Farm-level guidelines from empirical studies are essential to inform programmes dealing with this challenge and subsequently improves farmers’ welfare. This study evaluates the two-way effects of technical efficiency and welfare using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and Conditional Mixed-process (CMP). The study reveals that, with no additional inputs, farmers have the potential of increasing their output by an average of 56% (overall technical efficiency) with mean pure technical and scale efficiencies estimated at 76% and 58%, respectively. Observed inefficiency in the Ghanaian cocoa farms is due to both inefficient utilization of inputs and farmers’ inability to operate at the most productive scale size. Furthermore, findings from the study indicated that improved technical efficiency and welfare of smallholder cocoa farmers are crucial for the sustainable growth of Ghana’s cocoa sector as farmers’ efficiency and welfare significantly complement each other. In other words, improved welfare enhances technical efficiency, and higher technical efficiency score translates into better welfare. Hence, farm-level policies such as inputs subsidy programmes, training farmers on the proper application of agrochemicals, among others to enhance farm efficiency should be strengthened since efficiency is tied to household welfare. Moreover, investment in education targeted at farmers to improve their managerial and technical capacities will enhance their ability to optimize the operational size of the cocoa production system, and subsequently improve their welfare.

Climate change significantly impacts global agricultural productivity. Therefore, a more dynamic farming system is needed to enable farmers to better adapt to climate change while contributing to efforts to produce enough food to feed the growing world population. In the context of climate change, this study analyzed the empirical scientific literature on the link between climate-smart agriculture and farm productivity. To evaluate the relevant articles, the authors used the search term “climate-smart agriculture amidst climate change to enhance agricultural production (CSA-CCAP)” to find studies published between 2009 and March 2022 using innovative bibliometric techniques. One hundred and sixteen published papers in BibTeX format were downloaded for further analysis. The most successful selected CSA approaches in Africa, such as in the Congo Basin forest, including sustainable land management practices, water-efficient maize hybrids, and others, aim to counteract climate change with signs of 200 percent output gains. The findings showed an annual growth rate of about 19%, demonstrating that research on CSA-CCAP expanded over time during the study period. Nonetheless, the research output on CSA-CCAP varied, with 2021 accounting for 30%, followed by 2020 with 16% as of March 2022. The study concluded that boosting agricultural productivity in the face of climate change may be accomplished through CSA to end hunger, eradicate poverty, and improve people’s well-being.

The expansion of Ghana’s cashew industry is expected to be a watershed moment in the country’s diversification of agricultural export commodity trade. In Ghana’s cashew farms, however, there is a significant difference between observed and potential farm yield. As a result, empirical study is required to serve as policy guidelines in order to improve farmer’s productive efficiency and, as a necessary consequence, contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of no poverty and zero hunger. The study explores farm-level productive efficiency and factors that can lead to variations in farmer’s technical efficiency in the Bono East region of Ghana. The single-stage double bootstrap Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) was used to estimate technical efficiency and its determinants. The estimated results indicate that the average bias-corrected technical efficiency score (33%) was lower than the original average score (51%), suggesting that the original efficiency scores had been skewed upwards. Some of the primary factors that have been reported as having a significant effect on technical efficiency include the gender of respondents, educational attainment, and membership of farmer groups. Results of the resource-use efficiency analysis suggest that cashew farmers in Ghana do not escape the criticisms of inefficient resource allocation. Farm-level policies should be skewed towards enhancing resource-use efficiency through effective capacity-building to improve farmer’s management and technical capabilities, improve farm productivity, and consequently contribute to Ghana's quest to meet the sustainable development goals.

Although women are actively involved in a wide array of agricultural production activities, they have limited access to farm productive resources and their influence in decision-making is also restricted compared with men. These limitations have the potential to affect women performance in agriculture. This study assesses gender-based farm performance (proxy by productivity) differences and identified sources of performance differentials amongst rice farmers in rural Nigeria using the Blinder-Oaxaca gender decomposition framework. The results revealed a disparity between men and women with a gender performance gap of about 11% in favour of men, of which 77.66% of the gap remained unexplained after accounting for gender differences in household characteristics, access to supply-driven factors, and farm productive resources. A more detailed analysis suggests that factors such as the use of improved rice varieties, membership of farmer-based organisations, extension services, and quantity of seeds sown could contribute to the gender performance gap. As a result, the study concludes that focusing on these productivity gaps and the factors that contribute to them is critical for developing policy interventions aimed at empowering women.

Abstract Zai is a conventional soil rehabilitation management practice where organic matter is buried in a small pit to help restore fertility and conserve water in the soil. However, adoption of this environmentally-friendly technology is low. This study makes two key contributions. First, it identifies the determinants of adoption and intensity of adoption of Zai technology for soil fertility management. Second, it performs diagnostic tests to show that Cragg’s double-hurdle as compared to the Heckman and the standard Tobit regression models is the best econometric approach to identify factors influencing farmers’ decision to adopt and the extent of adoption of the Zai in the Upper East region, Ghana. Results from the Cragg’s double-hurdle model revealed that different set of variables affect the probability and the intensity of adoption of Zai technology. The paper concludes that farm households should be encouraged to engage in non-farm economic activities to complement their farm income and enhance the purchase of productive farm inputs. Moreover, farm-level policies oriented towards increasing access to agricultural extension services, credit facilities, and the facilitation of farmer groups are essential to improving the adoption of farm innovations such as the Zai technology.

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

Sustainable Agricultural Practices (SAPs) have been promoted over the years as a means of ensuring sustainable development in the agricultural sector. However, adoption has generally been low across countries. This paper explores the linkages among SAPs and adoption decisions of SAPs among smallholder maize farm households in Ghana. The study used a household-level data on 394 farmers collected by the second round of the intensification of food crops agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa (AFRINT II) in Ghana. We employed a multivariate regression model to investigate the complementarity and the substitutability among the selected elements of SAPs as well as the simultaneous determinants of the SAPs components. We found out that some elements of the SAPs are complementary, while others are substitutes. The results also suggest that access to input credit, membership of farmer-based organizations, extension contact, and formal education, as well as intercropping, lead to the adoption of SAPs. The study recommends that SAP programmes that support the application of one technology (e.g., inorganic fertilizer) must provide simultaneous support for intercropping with nitrogen-fixing plants. Also, investment in public education is crucial in boosting farmers’ knowledge of agricultural practices. Lastly, the positive and significant policy variables such as FBO suggest that focusing on strengthening community social network institutions is one other way of improving adoption decisions of SAPs.

This study explored the potential impact of rural non-farm income diversification on households' welfare and adoption of Zai-technology (a proxy for agricultural technology adoption) using primary data collected from agricultural households in the Upper East region of Ghana. We used Propensity Score Matching (PSM) and Inverse-Probability-weighted Regression Adjustment (IPWRA) techniques to estimate welfare and Zai-technology impacts of non-farm income diversification. After controlling for differences in covariates, the results show that non-farm income diversification increases the likelihood of Zai-technology adoption and contributes to significant household welfare gains. We therefore suggest that the activities of agricultural extension services and farmer-based organizations (FBOs) be enhanced as they facilitate the diversification of non-farm incomes, thereby increasing investment in productivity-enhancing technologies (Zai) and household welfare.

For most developing countries like Ghana, the adoption of productive agricultural technologies in the quest to achieve food security and improve farmers' welfare cannot be overemphasized. Hence, interventions that have the potential to enhance the impact of the adoption of these technologies are critical for development planning and policy. This study investigates whether or not village saving groups enhance the welfare impact of agricultural technology adoption using farm-level data collected from the Garu and Tempane districts in the Upper East Region, Ghana. We applied an instrumental variable regression model that incorporates an endogenous interaction term to estimate the interceding role of village saving groups on the welfare impact of agricultural technology adoption. The empirical results reveal that participation in village savings groups further enhances the welfare impact of agricultural technology adoption (proxy by Zai technology). The factors that influence farmer's participation in village saving groups include the number of extension contacts, membership of farmer-based organizations (FBOs) and access to farm credit. Other factors such as the age of the farmer, household size and years of education were also found to influence farmers' decisions to adopt Zai technology. The study recommends the promotion of village saving groups as they build rural farmers' capacity to save for farm investment, which further enhances their adoption of agrarian technology in the quest to improve farmers' welfare. Moreover, policy instruments like the revitalization of extension services, the formation of FBOs, and access to farm credits should be strengthened in this pursuit.

This study considers the presence of a gender gap in technical efficiency in Ghana's cocoa production sector. The two-stage double bootstrap data envelopment analysis (DEA) procedure was applied to estimate the bias-corrected technical efficiency scores for male and female cocoa farm managers. The results indicate that there is a potential for male and female cocoa farm managers to increase output without altering the quantities of inputs employed. Applying the extended version of the Blinder-Oaxaca (B-O) decomposition approach, the findings suggest that female plot managers are, on average, less technically efficient compared to their male counterparts. This gap could be linked to differences in their resource endowments. Nevertheless, there are still significant unobservable factors that contribute to the gender efficiency gap. A comprehensive decomposition examination indicates that differences in educational attainment, engagement in non-farm activities, and farm size may contribute to the unexplained technical efficiency gap. The study recommends that female-sensitive programmes that seek to encourage the participation of non-farm activities and provide access to education and land utilization are essential in reducing the gender gap in technical efficiency.

Poverty persists in many developing countries, including Nigeria, owing to inadequate infrastructure, unemployment, or poor working conditions, among other factors. Youth poverty and vulnerability to poverty have been identified to prevalent among the young population. Using an endogenous switching probit regression approach, in this study, we evaluated the impacts of youth participation in agribusiness programs (YIAPs) on poverty and vulnerability to poverty in Nigeria. Our findings revealed that some demographic and institutional factors significantly influence poverty and vulnerability to poverty among youth. The impact estimates indicate that participation in an agribusiness program has a significant positive effect on poverty reduction among youth. Moreover, there would have been about a 28% reduction in exposure to future poverty for non-participants had they participated in a YIAP. Our results suggest that intervention programs, such as YIAPs, that focus on skill acquisition and youth empowerment should be strengthened and scaled-up in order to improve youth welfare and subsequently reduce/eradicate poverty and vulnerability to poverty among youth.

Abstract Background In agricultural-dependent economies, extension programmes have been the main conduit for disseminating information on farm technologies, support rural adult learning and assist farmers in developing their farm technical and managerial skills. It is expected that extension programmes will help increase farm productivity, farm revenue, reduce poverty and minimize food insecurity. In this study, we estimate the effects of extension services on farm productivity and income with particular reference to agricultural extension services delivered by Association of Church-based Development NGOs (ACDEP). Methods The study used cross-sectional data collected from 200 farm households from two districts in the Northern region of Ghana. The robustness of the estimates was tested by the use of regression on covariates, regression on propensity scores and Heckman treatment effect model. Results The study found positive economic gains from participating in the ACDEP agricultural extension programmes. Apart from the primary variable of interest (ACDEP agricultural extension programme), socio-economic, institutional and farm-specific variables were estimated to significantly affect farmers’ farm income depending on the estimation technique used. Conclusions The study has reaffirmed the critical role of extension programmes in enhancing farm productivity and household income. It is, therefore, recommended that agricultural extension service delivery should be boosted through timely recruitment, periodic training of agents and provision of adequate logistics.

This study explores the determinants of income diversification using a sample of 200 farm-level data collected from households in the Garu-Tampane district, Ghana. The Simpson Index of Diversification was used to determine the extent of income diversification while Fractional Response Model, particularly Generalized Linear Model (GLM) was employed to identify the determinants of income diversification. Results from the Simpson Index of Diversification showed that the average income diversification index was 0.65 with the minimum and maximum of 0.13 and 0.83, respectively. No farm household was found to depend solely on a single source of income for its survival. The results from the Generalized Linear Model revealed that extension services, attendance to demonstration fields, membership of Farmer-based Organizations (FBOs), farmer accessibility to credit, the number of days spent on on-farm activities per month and the number of years in maize farming significantly influence income diversification. The study, therefore, concludes that farm-level policies geared towards alternative sources of income for the rural farm household should focus on improving extension services, the formation of farmer-based organizations, use of demonstration fields as well as ensuring farmers’ accessibility to credit.

The study examined how farmers’ technological choice affects technical efficiency (TE) in small-scale maize production in northern Ghana. A random sample of 340 respondents took part in the study. A binary probit modeling was applied to analyse adoption decision, while double bootstrap data envelopment analysis was relied upon to evaluate TE Truncated regression was used to assess the sources of inefficiency. The results indicated a bias-corrected TE of 57% under variable returns to scale assumption and 52% when constant returns to scale was assumed. Accounting for potential endogeneity of the adoption variable, the findings indicated that technical efficiency increased with technology adoption. Technical efficiency improved with herd size but decreased with educational attainment, number of household members, access to extension, frequency of weeding, and size of cultivated land. The study, therefore, recommends that making improved seeds available and affordable to small-scale producers and training farmers on effective weed management could be potential measures to enhance the farm-level technical efficiency.

The enhancement of agrarian productivity through the use of improved technologies such as fertilizer application is a critical avenue for increasing farm income, minimizing poverty, and tackling soil nutrient mining. This study has examined fertilizer adoption decisions using data collected from 226 smallholder cocoa farm households in the Western region of Ghana. The Heckman's two-stage model was employed to estimate the probability and the extent of fertilizer application in the Ghanaian cocoa farms. The result of the study indicated that the likelihood of fertilizer adoption was influenced by factors such as farmers’ engagement in off-farm economic activities, extension contacts, farm size, hired and family labour, and the value of productive farm assets. On the other hand, factors including household size, marital status, number of years working as a cocoa farmer (experience), support received from Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), farm size, and family labour significantly influence the extent of fertilizer adoption. Therefore, improving extension services to farmers and encouraging the ownership of farm assets could be useful for fertilizer adoption.

The study aimed at investigating the effects of off-farm participation on technical efficiency of maize production in the Tolon district of the Northern Region, Ghana. The Logit regression model was used to analyze the determinants of off-farm participation while the stochastic frontier production function was used to model the determinants of maize output and technical efficiency. The empirical results from the logistic regression model indicate that age of farmer, educational attainment, farming experience, farm size, and previous farm income are significant drivers of farmers’ participation in off-farm activities. Farmers’ average technical efficiency level was 90.7% suggesting a 9.3% potential loss to inefficiency. Moreover, participation in off-farm activities had a negative influence on farmers’ technical efficiency level. The study, therefore, recommends that farm-level policy should be directed towards making the agricultural sector attractive by promoting investment and agricultural employment opportunities in the rural areas so as to ensure full commitment to farming activities. JEL code: Q22

This study aims to identify the determinants of adoption of improved maize variety (IMV) among farmers in the northern region of Ghana and subsequently assess the factors influencing the intensity of IMV adoption. The study used two econometric techniques to address its objectives. Firstly, a multinomial logit was employed to identify factors affecting the adoption of IMV. Secondly, Tobit regression was used to analyze the determinants of the intensity of IMV adoption. A fractional regression model through the procedure proposed by Papke and Wooldridge was also used to test the robustness of the results obtained from the Tobit model. Results from the study revealed that variables such as the age of the household head, household size, level of experience, farm workshop attendance, the number of years in formal education, access to agricultural credit, membership of a farmer-based organization, availability of labor and extension contacts influence the adoption of IMV. Moreover, variables such as years in formal education, household size, distance to farm plots, attendance of demonstration fields, membership of a farmer-based organization, farm size, and previous income are significant determinants of the intensity of IMV adoption. The study has implications for achieving food security and poverty reduction through agricultural productivity growth.

This study assessed factors that affect awareness of health implications of agrochemical use and its effects on maize production in Ejura-Sekyedumase Municipality of Ashanti Region, Ghana. One hundred and fifty-four (154) maize farmers were randomly sampled from the municipality. The study used awareness indicators to estimate an index representing farmers’ awareness levels of health implications of agrochemical use. An ordered logit compliment with multivariate linear regression model was used to identify the drivers of farmers’ awareness level of health implications of agrochemical use. Also, a multivariate linear regression model was used to analyze the effects of health implications of agrochemical use on maize output. On average, the respondents have the moderate awareness level of health implications of agrochemical use (0.578). The awareness level was significantly explained by education, the number of children in school, ownership of TV/radio, experience in agrochemicals use, and farm size. The multivariate linear regression results showed that awareness levels of health implications of agrochemical use increase maize output. It is therefore recommended that interventions aimed at increasing farmers’ awareness levels of health implications of agrochemicals use should focus on educating farmers through interactive radio discussion and training sessions on the field and incorporate safety use of agrochemical in our educational curriculum.

This study evaluated the profit efficiency of artisanal fishing in the Pru District of Ghana by explicitly computing profit efficiency level, identifying the sources of profit inefficiency, and examining the constraints of artisanal fisheries. Cross-sectional data was obtained from 120 small-scale fishing households using semistructured questionnaire. The stochastic profit frontier model was used to compute profit efficiency level and identify the determinants of profit inefficiency while Garrett ranking technique was used to rank the constraints. The average profit efficiency level was 81.66% which implies that about 82% of the prospective maximum profit was gained due to production efficiency. That is, only 18% of the potential profit was lost due to the fishers’ inefficiency. Also, the age of the household head and household size increase the inefficiency level while experience in artisanal fishing tends to decrease the inefficiency level. From the Garrett ranking, access to credit facility to fully operate the small-scale fishing business was ranked as the most pressing issue followed by unstable prices while perishability was ranked last among the constraints. The study, therefore, recommends that group formation should be encouraged to enable easy access to loans and contract sales to boost profitability.

Considering the increasing demand in the rice industry, the study was undertaken to determine the factors influencing household preference for locally produced rice in the Upper East Region, Ghana. Primary data was obtained from a sample of 180 households with the aid of a structured questionnaire. Probit model and Kendall’s coefficient of concordance were used to analyze the data. Significant socioeconomic factors include income, age, sex, and marital status, whereas the quality factors such as the absence of foreign materials, packaging, and aroma were also significant determinants of preference for local rice. The top three traits consumers consider in their choice for local rice were good-looking grains, excellent packaging, and absence of foreign materials in the rice. There was an evidence of an increased preference for quality local rice. Hence, increased investment in the rice value chain, particularly the processing stage where quality standards remain the topmost priority, will help boost consumers’ confidence in the local rice market.

Climate Change has gained global attention due to its adverse impact on agriculture. Cocoa production in Ghana is also under threat following climate change. This study, therefore, examined farmers’ perception on climate variability and its effect on adaptation strategies in the Suaman district of Western Region, Ghana. It involved 240 cocoa farmers. The study estimated Heckman’s treatment effect model that corrected the presence of selectivity bias in the sample. From the result, 69.5% of the farmers perceived an increase in the average temperature while 22.5% perceived an increase in the average rainfall over the years. The factors that significantly influenced farmers’ perceptions were farm size, farm management training, household size and farmer-based organization (FBO) membership. The major adaptation strategies adopted by the farmers were pesticides application, planting improved varieties, mixed planting and changing planting dates. Farmers’ perception was found to have a positive impact on their adaptation. Other factors that significantly influenced adaptation were age of cocoa farm, household size and FBO membership. The study concluded that perceptions are essential in adapting to climate variability in the district. Training of farmers on cocoa production and other agricultural activities in relation to climate variability and its impact is highly recommended. Similarly, enhancing access to weather forecast information is important to enhance farmer’s perceptions and also effectively implement adaptation strategies such as changing planting dates.