Determinants of maize smallholder farmers’ choice to sell their maize to the National Food Reserve Agency (NFRA) in Kalambo District, Tanzania

Elimeleck P. Akyoo; Hassanal Issaya

doi:10.51867/scimundi.6.1.11

Auteurs

Elimeleck P. Akyoo
eparmena@gmail.com
Tanzania Institute of Accountancy, Tanzania https://orcid.org/0009-0005-2390-1850
Hassanal Issaya Tanzania Institute of Accountancy, Tanzania

Mots-clés :

Market Participation, Marketing Channel, National Food Reserve Agency, Smallholder Farmers

Résumé

Maize farming represents one of the most valuable staple foods worldwide. However, smallholder maize farmers are constrained by many factors to effectively participate in the market activities. The study examines the factors influencing smallholder maize farmers' decision to sell their produce to NFRA in Kalambo District, Tanzania. The study employed a cross-sectional study design and used a questionnaire for gathering data. Quantitative data were collected from 395 respondents, while qualitative data were collected from 5 Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) and 10 Key Informant Interviews (KIIs). Quantitative data were entered into IBM-SPSS version 25 and thereafter analyzed descriptively and through a binary logistic regression model. Qualitative data were analyzed using thematic content analysis with a constant comparison. The research found that age, sex, land size, maize farming experience, and maize market information were significant determinants at the p<0.05 significance level. The study revealed that smallholder decisions to sell their maize to NFRA are significantly influenced by farmers' socio-economic characteristics and market factors. This supports the claim by transaction cost theory that socio-economic characteristics and market factors influence smallholder farmers' participation in the market. This implies that market access is not a neutral, automatic process but rather a complex outcome driven by a farmer's individual, household, and institutional constraints. It means that simply producing a crop does not guarantee participation, and that the ability to sell surplus is heavily determined by factors like education, land ownership, infrastructure, and access to information. The study recommends policy interventions addressing access to land for maize farming and improved maize market information. It is also recommended that gender-sensitive approaches should be used in order to increase female participation in maize market activities. The government and other interested parties should avail smallholder maize farmers with market information.

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