In this paper, we analyze the factors that influence the productivity of maize among smallholder farmers, given that unfavourable output and input market conditions throughout the 1990s have compelled smallholder farmers into unsustainable agricultural intensification. We use farm-household survey data in order to compare the productivity of smallholder maize production under integrated (ISFM) ...

Natural resource degradation and water scarcity are a global concern, which typically threatens the sustainability of smallholder farmers’ livelihoods in semi-arid developing areas. As part of research efforts, a number of water-conservation technologies (WCT) have been developed, yet with low adoption rates in smallholder farming environments. This paper discusses the concepts of adoption and ...

The agricultural research and development institutions in most developing countries are poorly equipped to support the needs of millions of smallholder farmers that depend upon them. The research approaches taken by these systems explicitly or implicitly seek simple, one-size-fits-all solutions for problems and opportunities that are extremely diverse. Radical change is needed to facilitate the...

Access to agricultural markets and marketing information are essential factors in promoting competitive markets and improving agricultural sector development. The agricultural sector employs majorities in developing countries and it contributes greatly to the development of these countries. Unluckily, majorities of the farmers are smallholders living in isolated rural areas and thus lack approp...

Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) is a highly productive tuber crop growing on marginal land, providing rural communities in India with nutritious food, as well as income generated by huge industrial demand for sago and starch. In Tamil Nadu (TN) alone it supports over 10,000 smallholder farmers. To sustain the livelihoods of this community of smallholder farmers, the Indo-Swiss Collaboration ...

Crop production risk caused by climate variability cannot be managed in the absence of climate information. Despite the use of various communication strategies by rural communities in Tanzania, access and use of agricultural information is inadequate to cope with challenges in crop production. This study aims at assessing farmers information needs, examine communication strategies used and henc...

— It is widely agreed that smallholder-led agricultural growth would contribute most to improved food security and reduced poverty. Yet, how to achieve broader and more sustainable access by smallholder farmers to productivity-enhancing inputs for food crop production remains a largely unsolved riddle. In light of the great institutional diversity across cotton sectors in Sub-Saharan Africa, th...

Agriculture is the human enterprise that is most vulnerable to climate change. Tropical agriculture, particularly subsistence agriculture is particularly vulnerable, as smallholder farmers do not have adequate resources to adapt to climate change. While agroforestry may play a significant role in mitigating the atmospheric accumulation of greenhouse gases (GHG), it also has a role to play in he...

The study was designed to ascertain priorities of smallholder oil palm producers in Ika local government area. One hundred and twenty randomly selected farmers were used. Data were collected by the use of structured interview schedule and analysed using meanscore, percentage and factor analysis. The study showed that smallholder oil palm producers constituted of farmers with mean age of 56year,...

The study compared economic efficiency among smallholder farmers who practiced low external input technology [LEIT] and high external input technology [HEIT] agriculture in a harsh macroeconomic environment typified by inadequate fertilizer subsidy in Imo State, Nigeria. Cross sectional data generated from 160 smallholder farmers randomly selected from 2 out of the 3 agricultural zones in Imo S...