Metafrontier Analysis of Technical Efficiency of Wheat Farms in Sudan

The major objective of this study is to estimate the technical efficiencies and technological gap of wheat farms in the major wheat producing areas of Sudan, namely Northern, River Nile, Gezira, and Kassala States of Sudan. A total sample of 951 wheat farms was selected and surveyed in the whole country during 2013. Non-parametric Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model has been applied to measure the technical efficiency and technological gaps among the regions by means of metafrontier approach. Results show that there is significant inefficiency in wheat farms. The estimated average technical efficiencies with respect to group frontiers for Gezira, Kassala, Northern and River Nile are- 0.52, 0.61, 0.48 and 0.41, respectively. The average technological gap ratios for Gezira, Kassala, Northern and River Nile were 0.82, 0.50, 0.75 and 0.92, respectively. Therefore, the Kassala farms frontier has the most distant to the metafrontier, while the Gezira, Northern and River Nile frontiers have the closest. Our results suggest that farms in the Gezira, Northern, and River Nile regions could improve their productivity through more efficient use of inputs using the existing technologies such as sowing, fertilizer application, irrigation water scheduling, and harvesting at the right time. In contrast, improved technologies generation and dissemination such as integrated pest management in the Kassala region are required to improve wheat productivity.