IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/ibn/jasjnl/v5y2013i8p163.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Effect of Agricultural Extension Program on Smallholders’ Farm Productivity: Evidence from Three Peasant Associations in the Highlands of Ethiopia

Author

Listed:
  • Asres Elias
  • Makoto Nohmi
  • Kumi Yasunobu
  • Akira Ishida

Abstract

This study evaluates the effect of agricultural extension program participation on farm productivity taking three case study kebeles (peasant associations) in Ethiopia. A total of 1112 plot-level data collected from 300 selected farm households, comprising of extension participants and non-participants, were used in the study. The study begins the estimation with simple Ordinary Least Square (OLS) method. To deal with the potential bias due to the existence of observed and unobserved characteristics, we employed Heckman Treatment Effect Model (HTEM) and Propensity Score Matching (PSM). The OLS result shows that extension participation increases farm productivity by about 6%. However, both HTEM and PSM clearly reveal the presence of selection bias in extension program participation which leads to underestimation of the OLS estimates. The participation could have increased farm productivity by up to 20% had it not been to the serious selection bias related to non-farming factors such as involvement in kebele administration, and wealth status of the participants observed during program placement. Our PSM analysis also verifies the positive effect of extension program participation on farm productivity. In conclusion, the extension program has a positive effect on farm productivity in the study area. However, its effect with its current structure and input could have tripled had there been no bias related to extension program participation. This result provides a valuable policy insight in which improving access to diversified and quality agricultural inputs are critically necessary for the participants on top of expanding the program to less resourceful farmers by avoiding any entry barriers in the future.

Suggested Citation

  • Asres Elias & Makoto Nohmi & Kumi Yasunobu & Akira Ishida, 2013. "Effect of Agricultural Extension Program on Smallholders’ Farm Productivity: Evidence from Three Peasant Associations in the Highlands of Ethiopia," Journal of Agricultural Science, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 5(8), pages 163-163, July.
  • Handle: RePEc:ibn:jasjnl:v:5:y:2013:i:8:p:163
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://ccsenet.org/journal/index.php/jas/article/download/27227/17273
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://ccsenet.org/journal/index.php/jas/article/view/27227
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. James J. Heckman & Hidehiko Ichimura & Petra E. Todd, 1997. "Matching As An Econometric Evaluation Estimator: Evidence from Evaluating a Job Training Programme," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 64(4), pages 605-654.
    2. Jeffrey M Wooldridge, 2010. "Econometric Analysis of Cross Section and Panel Data," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 2, volume 1, number 0262232588, December.
    3. Fengxia Dong & Jing Lu & Allen Featherstone, 2010. "Effects of Credit Constraints on Productivity and Rural Household Income in China," Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) Publications (archive only) 10-wp516, Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD) at Iowa State University.
    4. Asfaw, Solomon & Shiferaw, Bekele & Simtowe, Franklin & Lipper, Leslie, 2012. "Impact of modern agricultural technologies on smallholder welfare: Evidence from Tanzania and Ethiopia," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(3), pages 283-295.
    5. Marco Caliendo & Sabine Kopeinig, 2008. "Some Practical Guidance For The Implementation Of Propensity Score Matching," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 22(1), pages 31-72, February.
    6. Rajeev H. Dehejia & Sadek Wahba, 2002. "Propensity Score-Matching Methods For Nonexperimental Causal Studies," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 84(1), pages 151-161, February.
    7. Thirtle, Colin & Beyers, Lindie & Ismael, Yousouf & Piesse, Jenifer, 2003. "Can GM-Technologies Help the Poor? The Impact of Bt Cotton in Makhathini Flats, KwaZulu-Natal," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 31(4), pages 717-732, April.
    8. Alvarez, Antonio & Arias, Carlos, 2004. "Technical efficiency and farm size: a conditional analysis," Agricultural Economics, Blackwell, vol. 30(3), pages 241-250, May.
    9. Barrett, C. B. & Reardon, T. & Webb, P., 2001. "Nonfarm income diversification and household livelihood strategies in rural Africa: concepts, dynamics, and policy implications," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 26(4), pages 315-331, August.
    10. Doss, Cheryl R. & Morris, Michael L., 2001. "How does gender affect the adoption of agricultural innovations?: The case of improved maize technology in Ghana," Agricultural Economics, Blackwell, vol. 25(1), pages 27-39, June.
    11. Genius, Margarita & Pantzios, Christos J. & Tzouvelekas, Vangelis, 2006. "Information Acquisition and Adoption of Organic Farming Practices," Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Western Agricultural Economics Association, vol. 31(01), pages 1-21, April.
    12. Guido W. Imbens & Jeffrey M. Wooldridge, 2009. "Recent Developments in the Econometrics of Program Evaluation," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 47(1), pages 5-86, March.
    13. James Heckman & Salvador Navarro-Lozano, 2004. "Using Matching, Instrumental Variables, and Control Functions to Estimate Economic Choice Models," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 86(1), pages 30-57, February.
    14. Menale Kassie & Precious Zikhali & Kebede Manjur & Sue Edwards, 2009. "Adoption of sustainable agriculture practices: Evidence from a semi‐arid region of Ethiopia," Natural Resources Forum, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 33(3), pages 189-198, August.
    15. Feleke, Shiferaw & Zegeye, Tesfaye, 2006. "Adoption of improved maize varieties in Southern Ethiopia: Factors and strategy options," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 31(5), pages 442-457, October.
    16. Giovanopoulou, Eirini & Nastis, Stefanos A. & Papanagiotou, Evagelos, 2011. "Modeling farmer participation in agri-environmental nitrate pollution reducing schemes," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(11), pages 2175-2180, September.
    17. Heckman, James J. & Robb, Richard Jr., 1985. "Alternative methods for evaluating the impact of interventions : An overview," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 30(1-2), pages 239-267.
    18. Benedito Cunguara & Karl Moder, 2011. "Is Agricultural Extension Helping the Poor? Evidence from Rural Mozambique," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 20(4), pages 562-595, August.
    19. Kassa Belay & Degnet Abebaw, 2004. "Challenges Facing Agricultural Extension Agents: A Case Study from South‐western Ethiopia," African Development Review, African Development Bank, vol. 16(1), pages 139-168.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Asres Elias & Makoto Nohmi & Kumi Yasunobu & Akira Ishida, 2014. "Does Gender Division of Labour Matters for the Differences in Access to Agricultural Extension Services? A Case Study in North West Ethiopia," Journal of Agricultural Science, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 7(1), pages 138-138, December.
    2. Edward Martey & Wilson Dogbe & Prince Etwire & Alexander Wiredu, 2015. "Impact of Farmer Mentorship Project on Farm Efficiency and Income in Rural Ghana," Journal of Agricultural Science, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 7(10), pages 1-79, September.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Dettmann, E. & Becker, C. & Schmeißer, C., 2011. "Distance functions for matching in small samples," Computational Statistics & Data Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 55(5), pages 1942-1960, May.
    2. Maren Radeny & Elizaphan J. O. Rao & Maurice Juma Ogada & John W. Recha & Dawit Solomon, 2022. "Impacts of climate-smart crop varieties and livestock breeds on the food security of smallholder farmers in Kenya," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 14(6), pages 1511-1535, December.
    3. Naureen Fatema & Shahriar Kibriya, 2018. "Givers of great dinners know few enemies: The impact of household food sufficiency and food sharing on low intensity interhousehold and community conflict in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo," HiCN Working Papers 267, Households in Conflict Network.
    4. Fatema, Naureen & Kibriya, Shahriar, 2017. "Givers of great dinners know few enemies: The impact of household food security on micro-level communal conflict in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo," 2017 Annual Meeting, July 30-August 1, Chicago, Illinois 258482, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    5. Egziabher, Kidanemariam G. & Mathijs, Erik & Deckers, Jozef A. & Gebrehiwot, Kindeya & Bauer, Hans & Maertens, Miet, 2013. "The Economic Impact of a New Rural Extension Approach in Northern Ethiopia," Working Papers 146558, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Centre for Agricultural and Food Economics.
    6. Bola Awotide & Arega Alene & Tahirou Abdoulaye & Victor Manyong, 2015. "Impact of agricultural technology adoption on asset ownership: the case of improved cassava varieties in Nigeria," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 7(6), pages 1239-1258, December.
    7. Cunguara, Benedito & Darnhofer, Ika, 2011. "Assessing the impact of improved agricultural technologies on household income in rural Mozambique," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(3), pages 378-390, June.
    8. Fatema, Naureen & Kibriya,, Shahriar, 2022. "Givers of great dinners know few enemies: The impact of household food sufficiency and food sharing behavior on low-intensity, interhousehold conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo," 2022 Annual Meeting, July 31-August 2, Anaheim, California 322524, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    9. Froehlich, Anderson G. & Melo, Andrea S.S.A. & Sampaio, Breno, 2018. "Comparing the Profitability of Organic and Conventional Production in Family Farming: Empirical Evidence From Brazil," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 150(C), pages 307-314.
    10. Ellison, Richard B. & Ellison, Adrian B. & Greaves, Stephen P. & Sampaio, Breno, 2017. "Electronic ticketing systems as a mechanism for travel behaviour change? Evidence from Sydney’s Opal card," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 99(C), pages 80-93.
    11. Marco Caliendo & Stefan Tübbicke, 2020. "New evidence on long-term effects of start-up subsidies: matching estimates and their robustness," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 59(4), pages 1605-1631, October.
    12. Fatema, Naureen, 2019. "Can land title reduce low-intensity interhousehold conflict incidences and associated damages in eastern DRC?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 1-1.
    13. Solomon Asfaw & Silvio Daidone & Benjamin Davis & Josh Dewbre & Alessandro Romeo & Paul Winters & Katia Covarrubias & Habiba Djebbari, 2012. "Analytical Framework for Evaluating the Productive Impact of Cash Transfer Programmes on Household Behaviour – Methodological Guidelines for the From Protection to Production Project," Working Papers 101, International Policy Centre for Inclusive Growth.
    14. Shen, Chung-Hua & Wu, Meng-Wen & Chen, Ting-Hsuan & Fang, Hao, 2016. "To engage or not to engage in corporate social responsibility: Empirical evidence from global banking sector," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 207-225.
    15. Jérôme Ronchetti & Anthony Terriau, 2019. "Impact of unemployment on self-perceived health," The European Journal of Health Economics, Springer;Deutsche Gesellschaft für Gesundheitsökonomie (DGGÖ), vol. 20(6), pages 879-889, August.
    16. A. Smith, Jeffrey & E. Todd, Petra, 2005. "Does matching overcome LaLonde's critique of nonexperimental estimators?," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 125(1-2), pages 305-353.
    17. Estifanos, Tafesse Kefyalew & Polyakov, Maksym & Pandit, Ram & Hailu, Atakelty & Burton, Michael, 2020. "The impact of protected areas on the rural households’ incomes in Ethiopia," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    18. Ashok K. Mishra & Anjani Kumar & Pramod K. Joshi & Alwin D'Souza, 2018. "Cooperatives, contract farming, and farm size: The case of tomato producers in Nepal," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 34(4), pages 865-886, October.
    19. Jasmin Kantarevic & Boris Kralj, 2013. "Link Between Pay For Performance Incentives And Physician Payment Mechanisms: Evidence From The Diabetes Management Incentive In Ontario," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 22(12), pages 1417-1439, December.
    20. Dan Pan, 2014. "The Impact of Agricultural Extension on Farmer Nutrient Management Behavior in Chinese Rice Production: A Household-Level Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 6(10), pages 1-22, September.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • R00 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General - - - General
    • Z0 - Other Special Topics - - General

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:ibn:jasjnl:v:5:y:2013:i:8:p:163. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Canadian Center of Science and Education (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/cepflch.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.