Development literature has recently promoted the use of producer organization in linking farmers to better-paying commodity markets. However, empirical studies find mixed performance of such organizations. This study examines the producer organization’s internal factors that may explain the...

Contract farming is a form of vertical coordination largely aimed at correcting the market failure associated with spot markets that arise due to imperfect information. However there is still no consensus in the literature on the impact of contract farming on the welfare of smallholder farmers....

Contract farming is a form of vertical coordination largely aimed at correcting the market failure associated with spot markets that arise due to imperfect information. However the impact of contract farming on the welfare of smallholder farmers in Kenya is not well understood. While some...

Smallholder farmers’ access to markets has traditionally been constrained by lack of market information. The need to facilitate farmers’ access to markets has seen the emergence of many projects that employ electronic tools in the provision of market information services (MIS). This study...

Information Communication Technology (ICT)

Information asymmetry has traditionally constrained smallholder farmers’ access to markets. Past studies indicate that it contributes to low adoption of modern agricultural technologies that have the capacity to enhance the productivity of smallholder farms. Low use of inputs results in low...

This article analyses the technical efficiency of maize production in Zimbabwe's smallholder farming communities following the fast-track land reform of the year 2000 with a view of highlighting key entry points for policy. Using a randomly selected sample of 522 smallholder maize producers, a...

Smallholder farmers in developing countries are particularly vulnerable to climate shocks but often lack access to insurance. Weather index insurance (WII) is a promising innovation, but uptake has been lower than expected. WII contracts are not yet sufficiently tailored to the needs and...

Trust is crucial for successful collective action. A prime example is collective commercialization of agricultural produce through producer organizations. We conduct a cluster-randomized controlled trial in rural Senegal in which we vary the number and the type of smallholder farmers - members...

The last decade has seen a resurgence of parastatal crop marketing institutions in sub-Saharan Africa, many of which cite improving food security and incomes as key goals. However, there is limited empirical evidence on the welfare effects of these programs. This article considers one such...