Are adopters of improved rice varieties more productive than non-adopters? Empirical evidence from northern Ghana

Technology adoption is important to enhance agricultural productivity and production efficiency of smallholder farmers in developing countries where productivity and efficiency gaps remain high. Technology adoption, however, remains low among smallholders due to a myriad of factors. This study explores the effect of adoption of improved rice varieties on productivity of smallholder farmer households in northern Ghana. The study relies on farm household survey data collected in 2014 using multi-stage stratified random sampling technique. Adoption was modelled using a binary probit model while propensity score matching was used to estimate the average treatment effect of adoption on productivity. The results indicated that adoption of improved rice varieties is influenced by age, sex and years of formal education of the household head, household size, adoption of mechanization, herd size, and the location of the farm. Estimates of the average treatment effect of adoption on productivity indicated that adopters of improved rice varieties were more productive than non-adopters. The study concludes that adoption of improved varieties enhances productivity of smallholder rice farmers. The author therefore recommends public investment in developing and disseminating improved planting materials to smallholder farmers to enhance agricultural productivity, food security and rural incomes.Keywords: Adoption, Smallholder Farmers, Productivity, Propensity Score Matching, Ghan