Agricultural Commercialization, Fertilizer Use and Non-Farm Employment: What Options for Smallholder Farmers in Nigeria?

S. Salau, O. Omotesho and Aishat Lawal

No 277180, 2018 Conference, July 28-August 2, 2018, Vancouver, British Columbia from International Association of Agricultural Economists

Abstract: Abstract Agricultural commercialization is necessary for increased agricultural intensification and productivity in Nigeria. However, there is paucity of empirical information on the effects of agricultural commercialization on input use, labor demand and engagement in non-farm employment across the country. This study examined the effects of agricultural commercialization at the household level on fertilizer use, demand for hired labor and participation in non-farm employment in Northern Nigeria. Household Commercialization Index (HCI), Two-stage Least Squares (2SLS) and Instrumental Variable (IV) estimations were used to analyze the primary data collected from 270 maize farming households in Kaduna and Kano States. The study revealed that commercialization had the potentials for increasing the demand for fertilizer usage and hired labor among maize farming households. However, it reduced the tendency for households to participate in non-farm employment. Smallholder commercialization of maize should therefore be promoted through adoption of complementary technologies that free labor from on-farm activities. Keywords: agricultural commercialization, input market, staple, Instrumental variable, Nigeria JEL: C26, D13, Q12 Acknowledgement :

Keywords: Research; Methods/; Statistical; Methods (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018-07
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-agr and nep-dev
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ags:iaae18:277180

DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.277180

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