Person: Rahut, D.B.
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Rahut
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D.B.
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Rahut, D.B.
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0000-0002-7505-5271 11 results
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- Impacts of drought-tolerant maize varieties on productivity, risk, and resource use: evidence from Uganda(Elsevier, 2019) Simtowe, F.P.; Amondo, E.I.; Marenya, P.P.; Rahut, D.B.; Sonder, K.; Erenstein, O.Weather variability is an important source of production risk for rainfed agriculture in developing countries. This paper evaluates the impacts of the adoption of drought-tolerant maize varieties on average maize yield, yield stability, risk exposure and resource use in rainfed smallholder maize farming. The study uses cross-sectional farm household-level data, collected from a sample of 840 farm households in Uganda. The adoption of drought-tolerant maize varieties increased yield by 15% and reduced the probability of crop failure by 30%. We further show that the adoption of these varieties increased investments in maize production at the extensive margin through maize area increase and to a more limited extent at the intensive margin through mechanization. The findings show promise for further uptake and scaling of drought-tolerant maize varieties for increased productivity, reduced risk, and the transformation of the maize sector.
Publication - Do market shocks generate gender-differentiated impacts? Policy implications from a quasi-natural experiment in Bangladesh(Elsevier, 2019) Mottaleb, K.A.; Rahut, D.B.; Erenstein, O.Using information collected from two rounds of household income and expenditure surveys (HIES 2005 and 2010) in Bangladesh, this study examines the gender-differentiated impacts of the commodity price hikes in 2008 on food and non-food consumption behavior based on the sex of the household head. Applying the difference-in-difference estimation method in a quasi-natural experiment setting, this study demonstrates that, in general, commodity price hikes more adversely affect female-headed households. In 2010, they reduced expenditures on food and non-food items, and particularly cereal, non-cereal, and education expenditures, more than male-headed households did. This study also shows that the impacts of commodity price hikes were lower on the female-headed households headed by educated females as well as those who owned larger pieces of land and received remittances. These subsets were not affected by the commodity price shocks as examined in 2010. The findings strongly suggest that the provision of both human and physical capital is instrumental in developing countries to empower female-headed households to enhance their buffering capacity to withstand economic shocks.
Publication - Small businesses, potentially large impacts: the role of fertilizer traders as agricultural extension agents in Bangladesh(Emerald Publishing Limited, 2019) Mottaleb, K.A.; Rahut, D.B.; Erenstein, O.Constraints associated with public agricultural extension services imply that farmers increasingly rely on input providers for agricultural innovations and knowledge. Yet such providers are typically commercial profit-making agents and may have an incentive to suggest relatively costly inputs and/or high rates. The purpose of this paper is to look into the case of Bangladesh and the role of fertilizer traders in terms of farmers’ decisions on which fertilizer to apply and at what rate. Using primary data, the authors examine farmers’ chemical fertilizer use and the associated rice production efficiency, based on different information sources (fertilizer traders, government extension agents or own/peer experience). Using primary data, the present study estimates an ordered probit model and production functions separately based on whether or not a farmer relied on information from fertilizer traders or own experience and government extension agents, and examines the efficiency score of each type of farmer. The findings demonstrate that the resource-poor farmers rely more on traders’ suggestions for fertilizer application than public extension – but the actual fertilizer information source has no significant effect on the production efficiency of the rice farmers. This study, therefore, does not find exploitative behavior of fertilizer traders. Thus, this study concludes that small rural traders in Bangladesh are working as agricultural extension agents and provide necessary fertilizer application information to resource-poor farmers. This is a case study based on Bangladesh – an emerging economy in South Asia. The findings of the study may not be generalized for other countries. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that confirms the role of agricultural input sellers as the extension agent in developing countries.
Publication - Productivity and production risk effects of adopting drought-tolerant maize varieties in Zambia(Emerald Publishing Limited, 2019) Amondo, E.I.; Simtowe, F.P.; Rahut, D.B.; Erenstein, O.Productivity and production risks affect the use of agricultural production practices and inputs, particularly in developing countries. This paper aims to investigate the effects of adopting drought-tolerant maize varieties (DTMVs) on farm productivity, yield variance and downside risk exposure of maize growing households of Zambia. The study uses household survey data collected from 11 maize producing districts of Eastern, Southern and Copperbelt provinces of Zambia using a structured questionnaire. The Antle’s flexible moment-based approach was used in specifying, estimating and testing a stochastic production function. The study further applied an endogenous switching regression model to control for both observable and unobservable sources of bias. The study revealed that DTMV adoption increases maize yield by 15 per cent and reduces the risk of crop failure: reducing yield variance by 38 per cent and exposure to downside risk by 36 per cent. This study establishes the benefits of DTMV adoption in Zambia with regards to productivity, yield stability and downside risk in the face of climate change. Results from this study underscore the need for more concerted efforts to scale-out DTMVs for both maize productivity enhancement and for risk mitigation against weather shocks.
Publication - Heterogeneous seed access and information exposure: implications for the adoption of drought-tolerant maize varieties in Uganda(Springer, 2019) Simtowe, F.P.; Marenya, P.P.; Amondo, E.I.; Regasa, M.W.; Rahut, D.B.; Erenstein, O.Frequent droughts in sub-Saharan Africa imply water stress for rainfed agriculture and, ultimately, food insecurity, underlining the region’s vulnerability to climate change. Yet, in the maize-growing areas, farmers have been given new drought coping options following the release and availability of drought-tolerant maize varieties (DTMVs). These varieties are being disseminated through the National Agricultural Research and Extension Systems in collaboration with seed companies; however, their adoption still appears somewhat modest, and empirical studies on their adoption potential and associated drivers are scarce. We use empirical data from Uganda to estimate the actual and potential adoption rates and the adoption determinants of DTMVs under information and seed access constraints. Adoption rates for DTMVs could have been up to 22% in 2015 instead of the observed sample adoption rate of 14% if the whole population had been exposed to them. The adoption rate could increase to 30% if seed were availed to the farming population and to 47% if seed were sold at a more affordable price to farmers. The observed adoption rate of 14% implies gaps in the potential adoption rates of 8%, 16%, and 33% because of a lack of awareness, a lack of seed access, and high seed prices, respectively. The findings underscore the role of both market and non-market-based approaches and the potential to further scale the cultivation of DTMVs in Uganda.
Publication - Impact of direct rice-sowing technology on rice producers' earnings: empirical evidence from Pakistan(Taylor & Francis, 2014) Ali, A.; Erenstein, O.; Rahut, D.B.Using the comprehensive data set collected from 238 rice producers during 2011, this study estimates the impact of direct seeding of rice-sowing technology on rice and wheat crop yields and farmers' earnings in Pakistan. The propensity score-matching approach was employed to correct for potential sample selection bias that may arise due to systematic differences between the adopters and non-adopters of the direct rice-sowing technology. The empirical results indicate that the adopters of the direct rice-sowing technology have higher rice and wheat crop yields as compared to non-adopters. The rice yields are high, in the range of 8–9 maunds per acre, while the wheat yields are higher, in the range of 2–3 maunds per acre, indicating that the direct rice-sowing technology also has a positive impact on the following wheat crop. Results show that the adopter households have a higher income compared to non-adopter households. Most importantly, the new technology is a water-saving technology and on average it requires four times less irrigation than the traditional rice transplanting method. With the direct rice-sowing technology, the demand for skilled labor was less compared to the traditional transplanting method. However, the new technology is associated with a weed control problem, which needs to be addressed in order to maximize the benefits from the new technology.
Publication - Input subsidies or extension: which policy should take precedence when supporting farmers?(CIMMYT, [2017?]) Marenya, P.P.; Kassie, M.; Debello, M.J.; Erenstein, O.; Rahut, D.B.The Sustainable intensification of maize legume systems in eastern and southern Africa (SIMLESA) R4D project in conjunction with the adjunct Adoption Pathways project were designed to test the agronomic, economic and institutional requirements for CA-based sustainable agricultural intensification practices (CA-SAIPs) in five countries in Eastern and Southern Africa. One of the research efforts towards understanding some of the micro-level and policy enablers of CA-SAIPs looked at key household and farm-specific and macro (country specific) factors as predictors of adoption of two critical components of CA-SAIPs: minimum tillage and mulching. The study was done in four SIMLESA and Adoption Pathways project countries (Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, and Malawi. Many studies in the agricultural development literature that look at the adoption of agricultural technologies often study factors observed at the farm level and policy variables are often discussed as part of the broad interpretation of these results. In this brief we report on results from a study that is based both on adoption and policy simulations models.
Publication - Potential benefits of drought and heat tolerance for adapting maize to climate change in tropical environments(Elsevier, 2018) Fantaye, K.T.; Kruseman, G.; Cairns, J.E.; Zaman-Allah, M.; Dagne Wegary Gissa; Zaidi, P.H.; Boote, K.; Rahut, D.B.; Erenstein, O.Climate change and population growth pose great challenges to the food security of the millions of people who grow maize in the already fragile agricultural systems in tropical environments. There is an urgent need for maize varieties that are both drought and heat tolerant given the already prevailing drought and heat stress levels in many tropical environments, which are set to exacerbate with climate change. In this study, the crop growth simulation model for maize (CERES-Maize) was used to quantify the impact of climate change on maize and the potential benefits of incorporating drought and heat tolerance into the commonly grown (benchmark) maize varieties at six sites in Eastern and Southern Africa and one site in South Asia. Simulation results indicate that climate change will have a negative impact on maize yield at all the sites studied but the degree of the impact varies with location, level of warming and rainfall changes. Combined hotter and drier climate change scenarios (involving increases in warming with a reduction in rainfall) resulted in greater average simulated maize yield reduction (21, 33 and 50% under 1, 2 and 4 °C warming, respectively) than hotter only climate change scenarios (11, 21 and 41%, respectively). Incorporating drought, heat and combined drought & heat tolerance into benchmark varieties increased simulated maize yield under both the baseline and future climates. The average simulated benefit from combined drought & heat tolerance was at least twice that of heat or drought tolerance and it increased with the increase in warming levels. The magnitude of the simulated benefits from drought tolerance, heat tolerance and combined drought & heat tolerance and potential acceptability of the varieties by farmers varied across sites and climate scenarios indicating the need for proper targeting of varieties where they fit best and benefit most. It is concluded that incorporating drought and heat tolerance into maize germplasm has the potential to offset predicted yield losses and sustain maize productivity under climate change in vulnerable sites.
Publication - Predicting minimum tillage adoption among smallholder farmers using microlevel and policy variables(SpringerOpen, 2017) Marenya, P.P.; Kassie, M.; Debello, M.J.; Rahut, D.B.; Erenstein, O.Minimum tillage combined with mulching (MTM) is critical to conservation agriculture, yet its use by smallholder farmers raises challenging questions regarding adoption, diffusion and scaling at farm level. In this paper, we used probit regression and post-estimation simulations to identify the key micro (farm specific) and macro (country specific) factors as predictors of MTM adoption in four countries spanning a north-south gradient in eastern and southern Africa (ESA): Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Malawi. We found that farmers’ access to markets and social capital empirically predicted MTM adoption. Policies that increased fertilizer subsidies and extension-staff-to-farmer ratios had similar effects, even if only modestly. Conceivably, subsidies specifically targeted at MTM could also be considered based on their potential environmental and social benefits. We conclude that adoption of MTM still faces the same micro- and macro-level hurdles common to all agricultural technologies. Long-term investments in agricultural extension and reductions in the costs of complementary inputs are critical for the diffusion of MTM.
Publication - Enhancing smallholder access to agricultural machinery services: lessons from Bangladesh(Taylor & Francis, 2016) Mottaleb, K.A.; Rahut, D.B.; Ali, A.; Gerard, B.; Erenstein, O.Resource poor smallholders in developing countries often lack access to capital goods such as farm machinery. Enabling adequate access through machinery services can thereby significantly contribute to food security and farm incomes. At the core of the service provision model is the lead farmer, who makes the initial investment in agricultural machinery, and provides services to others on a fee-for-service basis. Profiling the lead farmers can thereby provide important lessons and scaling implications. The present paper provides a case study of Bangladesh, using primary data to characterise the lead farmers. General education, credit availability and risk taking attitude play significant roles in whether or not a farm household will be a lead farmer in Bangladesh.
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