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Social learning in agriculture: does smallholder heterogeneity impede technology diffusion in Sub-Saharan Africa?

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  • Macours, Karen
  • Behaghel, Luc
  • Gignoux, Jérémie

Abstract

Evaluating a large-scale program for dairy farmers in Uganda, we show that a simple version of the “contact farmer†extension model can meaningfully increase smallholder farmers’ revenues. While the program provides no monetary incentives, we find evidence that two other ingredients – backstopping by professional extension agent and advertising pro-social motivation – reinforce its impacts. Though it has been hypothesized to be a major impediment to social learning in Sub- Saharan African agriculture, we do not find smallholder heterogeneity to condition the effectiveness of the approach: farmer trainers trained to take this heterogeneity into consideration do not perform better; moreover, we find no statistical evidence that program effects vary by farmers’ characteristics.

Suggested Citation

  • Macours, Karen & Behaghel, Luc & Gignoux, Jérémie, 2020. "Social learning in agriculture: does smallholder heterogeneity impede technology diffusion in Sub-Saharan Africa?," CEPR Discussion Papers 15220, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:15220
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    3. Mohamed Abouaziza, 2022. "Farmer constraints and relational contracts: evidence from agricultural value chains in East Africa," Economics PhD Theses 0122, Department of Economics, University of Sussex Business School.
    4. Olivia Bertelli & Fatou Fall, 2024. "Reaching out to socially distant trainees: experimental evidence from variations on the standard farmer trainer system," European Review of Agricultural Economics, Oxford University Press and the European Agricultural and Applied Economics Publications Foundation, vol. 51(2), pages 533-588.
    5. Berazneva, Julia & Maertens, Annemie & Mhango, Wezi & Michelson, Hope, 2023. "Paying for agricultural information in Malawi: The role of soil heterogeneity," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 165(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Agricultural productivity; Heterogeneity; Extension; Livestock; Social learning;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O12 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development
    • O13 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Agriculture; Natural Resources; Environment; Other Primary Products
    • O33 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes
    • Q16 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - R&D; Agricultural Technology; Biofuels; Agricultural Extension Services

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