Disrupting Demand for Commercial Seed: Input Subsidies in Malawi and Zambia

Abstract

The Indaba Agricultural Policy Research Institute is a non-profit company limited by guarantee and collaboratively works with public and private stakeholders. IAPRI exists to carry out agricultural policy research and outreach, serving the agricultural sector in Zambia so as to contribute to sustainable pro-poor agricultural development.

Motivations and Mental Models Associated with Smallholder Farmers’ Adoption of Improved Agricultural Technology: Evidence from Use of Quality Seed Potato in Kenya

“…212-219) summarized these drivers into five constructs, namely relative advantage, complexity, observability, compatibility, and trialability, with the first construct being an incentive while the rest are capacity constructs. However, this model of the farmer decision-making process has come under increased criticism for not taking into account some of the institutional factors that influence individuals' behavior in the modeling of human decision-making process and behavior (Lynne 1995;Mason and Ricker-Gilbert 2013). It especially has been criticized for ignoring the role that human/personal values, and mental models in general, play in the decision-making process (Heisey and Brennan 1991;Gowdy and Olsen 1994;Lynne 1995;Kaufman 2007;Mason and Ricker-Gilbert 2013).…”

“…However, this model of the farmer decision-making process has come under increased criticism for not taking into account some of the institutional factors that influence individuals' behavior in the modeling of human decision-making process and behavior (Lynne 1995;Mason and Ricker-Gilbert 2013). It especially has been criticized for ignoring the role that human/personal values, and mental models in general, play in the decision-making process (Heisey and Brennan 1991;Gowdy and Olsen 1994;Lynne 1995;Kaufman 2007;Mason and Ricker-Gilbert 2013). Recent studies acknowledge that human beings are influenced by social, psychological, and cultural factors, and that these factors in turn influence the decision-making process (Demeritt and Hoff 2015); For instance, while neoclassical microeconomic theory considers economic actors to be selfish (i.e., act in self-interest), there is evidence that individuals' decision-making and actions are influenced by what others in their circle of influence (i.e., network) are thinking and expect from them (Fourcade 2011).…”

Analysis of Technical Efficiency of Small Holder Maize Growing Farmers of Horo Guduru Wollega Zone, Ethiopia: A Stochastic Frontier Approach

“…Politicians tend to allocate more funds for maize subsidies to their favourable electorates and the voters respond positively to such incentives (Mason and Ricker-Gilbert, 2013). Urban and male bias are the two major biases -towards towns rather than rural areas and towards men, not women -are principal factors in explaining Africa's food insecurity.…”

Do Organic Inputs in African Subsistence Agriculture Raise Productivity? Evidence from Plot Data of Malawi Household Surveys

“…The fiscal sustainability of this arrangement for hybrid maize cultivation remains an open question (see e.g. Dorward and Chirwa, 2011;Mason and Ricker-Gilbert, 2013) 14 .…”

“…This appears to apply particularly to (aggregate) data distributed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security. Mason and Ricker-Gilbert (2013) find evidence that input subsidy programs may be politically motivated. Whatever is the case, we avoid any suspicion of using data manipulated for these purposes by focusing on local maize.…”