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Utilization, Profitability, and the Adoption of Animal Draft Power in West Africa

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  • William K. Jaeger
  • Peter J. Matlon

Abstract

Farmers in West Africa's semi-arid tropics have been slow to adopt animal draft power to replace manual cultivation, defying the logic of conventional choice-of-technique analyses. This paper demonstrates that farmers can profitably adopt animal draft power when household characteristics and exogenous factors permit high utilization of animals and equipment. Empirical analysis of farm-level data indicates that low utilization is the key cause of low returns, and that a long learning period precedes achieving high utilization and benefits. Linear programming models are used to establish the importance of family size, access to land, and appropriate implements in achieving profitable adoption.

Suggested Citation

  • William K. Jaeger & Peter J. Matlon, 1990. "Utilization, Profitability, and the Adoption of Animal Draft Power in West Africa," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 72(1), pages 35-48.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:ajagec:v:72:y:1990:i:1:p:35-48.
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.2307/1243143
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. M. Meltzer, 1995. "Livestock in africa: The economics of ownership and production, and the potential for improvement," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 12(2), pages 4-18, March.
    2. Takeshima, Hiroyuki, 2017. "The roles of agroclimatic similarity and returns on scale in the demand for mechanization: Insights from northern Nigeria," IFPRI discussion papers 1692, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    3. Fleming, Euan M. & Hardaker, J. Brian, 1993. "Micro-Level Approaches to Analysing Rural Development Problems," Review of Marketing and Agricultural Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 61(02), pages 1-14, August.
    4. Savadogo, Kimseyinga & Reardon, Thomas & Pietola, Kyosti, 1998. "Adoption of improved land use technologies to increase food security in Burkina Faso: relating animal traction, productivity, and non-farm income," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 58(3), pages 441-464, November.
    5. Xiaoshi Zhou & Wanglin Ma & Gucheng Li, 2018. "Draft Animals, Farm Machines and Sustainable Agricultural Production: Insight from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-16, August.
    6. Jolly, Curtis M. & Gadbois, Millie, 1996. "The effect of animal traction on labour productivity and food self-sufficiency: The case of mali," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 51(4), pages 453-467, August.

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