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The impact of strengthening agricultural extension services on women farmers: Evidence from Ethiopia

Author

Listed:
  • Niklas Buehren
  • Markus Goldstein
  • Ezequiel Molina
  • Julia Vaillant

Abstract

This paper evaluates the effect of the Rural Capacity Building Project (RCBP), which aimed at promoting growth by strengthening the agricultural service systems in Ethiopia, and by making them more responsive to smallholders’ needs, in particular women farmers. We examine the gender‐differentiated impact of the RCBP using panel data on 1,485 geographically dispersed households in project and control kebeles. We find that women farmers’ access and satisfaction with extension services increased significantly immediately after the start of the project, but that effect did not last into the medium term. The project led to an increase in the adoption of high‐value crop farming, area of land cultivated, and economic participation of household members, benefiting male‐ and female‐headed households equally. Results point to the positive impact of incorporating women's needs and constraints in the design of the agricultural extension system. However, the project was not able to reduce the preexisting gender gap in agricultural outcomes.

Suggested Citation

  • Niklas Buehren & Markus Goldstein & Ezequiel Molina & Julia Vaillant, 2019. "The impact of strengthening agricultural extension services on women farmers: Evidence from Ethiopia," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 50(4), pages 407-419, July.
  • Handle: RePEc:bla:agecon:v:50:y:2019:i:4:p:407-419
    DOI: 10.1111/agec.12499
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    Cited by:

    1. Ellinor Isgren & Yann Clough & Alice Murage & Elina Andersson, 2023. "Are agricultural extension systems ready to scale up ecological intensification in East Africa? A literature review with particular attention to the Push-Pull Technology (PPT)," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 15(5), pages 1399-1420, October.
    2. Dominik Naeher & Matthias Schündeln, 2022. "The Demand for Advice: Theory and Empirical Evidence from Farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 36(1), pages 91-113.
    3. Rajibul Alam & Yoko Kijima, 2023. "Incentives to Improve Government Agricultural Extension Agent Performance: A Randomized Controlled Trial in Bangladesh," GRIPS Discussion Papers 23-08, National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies.
    4. Abate, Gashaw T. & Dereje, Mekdim & Hirvonen, Kalle & Minten, Bart, 2020. "Geography of public service delivery in rural Ethiopia," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 136(C).
    5. Lin, Yang & Hu, Ruifa & Zhang, Chao & Chen, Kevin, 2022. "The role of public agricultural extension services in driving fertilizer use in rice production in China," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 200(C).
    6. Aziz, Noshaba & Ren, Yanjun & Rong, Kong & Zhou, Jin, 2021. "Women’s empowerment in agriculture and household food insecurity: Evidence from Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJK), Pakistan," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    7. Para Jansuwan & Kerstin K. Zander, 2021. "Getting Young People to Farm: How Effective Is Thailand’s Young Smart Farmer Programme?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-18, October.
    8. Nicholas Magnan & Abby M. Love & Fulgence J. Mishili & Ganna Sheremenko, 2020. "Husbands’ and wives’ risk preferences and improved maize adoption in Tanzania," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 51(5), pages 743-758, September.
    9. Luke Dilley & Kai Mausch & Mary Crossland & Dave Harris, 2021. "What’s the Story on Agriculture? Using Narratives to Understand Farming Households’ Aspirations in Meru, Kenya," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 33(4), pages 1091-1114, August.
    10. Naeher,Dominik & Schundeln,Matthias, 2021. "The Demand for Advice : Theory and Empirical Evidence from Farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa," Policy Research Working Paper Series 9532, The World Bank.
    11. Md. Rajibul Alam & Yoko Kijima, 2024. "Incentives to Improve Government Agricultural Extension Agent Performance: A Randomized Controlled Trial in Bangladesh," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 72(3), pages 1295-1316.

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