Effect of gender and extension on cassava profitability among smallholder farmers in Uganda

Abstract

The study assessed the effect of gender and extension on cassava profitability among farmers in Uganda. Understanding profitability by policymakers builds a trajectory toward policy discourse and evaluation. The Uganda National Panel Survey (UNPS) for 4 years; 2013/14, 2015/16, 2018/19 and 2019/20 data smallholder set , using a sample of 10, 000 households were used to contribute to existing rigor and empirical evidence. Descriptive statistics (panel t tests, gender analysis matrix and pairwise correlation were employed. Profitability was determined using stochastic frontier analysis, returns to land and family labour, net profit and total factor productivity. Sensitivity analysis was performed to model extension scenarios. Pooled OLS, fixed effects and random effects models were estimated to assess the effect of gender and extension on cassava profitability. Results revealed that female headed households were significantly different from male headed households regarding control of land ( P =0.003) and access to planting materials ( membe P =0.003). In addition, there was a significant difference in rship of farmer groups between households that accessed extension and those that did not ( P =0.023). M ale headed households earned a higher net profit (UGX 2,275,072 per acre/season) compared to female ones (UGX 1,935,767). Households that accessed extensio n earned a higher net profit (UGX 4,972,492) compared to those that did not (UGX 1,853,384). It was revealed that access to extension, group membership, female headed households, female plot decision maker, distance to bank, and distance to cassava market, total farm size, household size, wage employment and seasonality significantly affected cassava profitability. Therefore, functional adult literacy (FAL) should be integrated in extension programmes with an affirmative action in favour of women cassava farmers, gender should be mainstreamed in agricultural extension at all levels. The number of extension workers need to be increased to enhance contact with farmers and there is a need to embrace farmer institutional capacity building targeting farmer groups.