The role of farmers’ organisations in enhancing economic efficiency in potato production in Musanze District, Rwanda.

Abstract

This study to identify the role of farmers’ organizations in enhancing economic efficiency in potato production in Rwanda was carried out in Musanze district. The study aimed to analyse the contribution of farmers’ organisations in improving economic efficiency in potato production in Rwanda. The study was conducted in four sectors of Musanze district. A sector is an administrative entity equivalent to a Gombolora of Uganda. The analytical tools used included descriptive statistics, the probit model and the stochastic production frontier. The results indicate that cooperative members had significantly (p<0.01) higher education levels than the non members. The results further indicated that cooperative members were older (p<0.01) and accessed more extension services than the non members (p<0.01). Factors that significantly increased the likelihood of farmer participation in the cooperative include age of the household head (p<0.01), education level of the head (p<0.05), access to extension services (p<0.01), total land owned (p<0.05) and price of land (p<0.01). Household size (p<001) and experience in growing potatoes (p<0.1) reduced the probability of farmers to join a cooperative. The study shows that farmers in organizations had a mean technical efficiency of (44.2%) while those who farmed individually had a mean technical efficiency of (43.5%). It was further revealed that all the farmers whether in organizations or as individuals had the same level of allocative efficiency which is (1%). There was no frontier (100% efficient) farm. The average level of economic efficiency among sampled farms in the area was 51%. The results of allocative efficiency indicate that all the production factors had the expected positive signs. The coefficient of fertilizer has a significant and positive relationship with the cost of potato production. This implies that fertilizer positively and significantly affects costs in potato production.