Strategies to Promote Market-Oriented Smallholder Agriculture in Developing Countries: A Case of Kenya
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Date
2007Author
Omiti, John
Otieno, David
McCullogh, Ellen
Nyanamba, Timothy
Type
PresentationLanguage
enMetadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Smallholder Agriculture is key to livelihoods of many rural households in developing and transition economies.
In Kenya, small farms account for over 75% of total agricultural production and nearly 50% of the marketed
output. Despite favourable trends in global development drivers such as rising population, per capita incomes and
emerging urban dietary preferences, most smallholder farmers remain poor. This study sought to characterize
agricultural commercialization trends, identify and prioritize constraints to participation in markets, analyse
determinants of percentage of output sold, and explore strategies to promote market-oriented production. A
participatory Rapid Rural Appraisal approach, household survey and a Truncated Regression model were used. A
sample of 224 farmers: 76 of them growing maize, 77 involved in horticulture (kales and tomatoes) and 71
practising dairy, were interviewed in one peri-urban and one rural district (Kiambu and Kisii, respectively).
Results show that in rural areas, lower levels of output are sold and fewer farmers participate in markets
compared to the peri-urban areas. Opportunities for profitable commercial agriculture are observed in growing
demand, emerging food preferences and intensive farming. At village-level, market participation is hampered by
poor quality and high cost of inputs, high transportation costs, high market charges and unreliable market
information. At the household-level, the determinants of percentage of output sold are producer prices, market
information arrangement, output, distance to the market, share of non-farm income and gender. Strategies are
suggested to improve rural input supply, institutional and regulatory framework, enhance value addition and
strengthen market information provision.
Citation
John Omiti, David Otieno, Ellen McCullogh and Timothy Nyanamba (2007). Strategies to Promote Market-Oriented Smallholder Agriculture in Developing Countries: A Case of Kenya. AAAE Conference Proceedings 259-264Publisher
Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis (KIPPRA), Nairobi Department of Agricultural Economics, University of Nairobi, Kenya Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Rome