Factor Market Activity and the Inverse Farm Size-Productivity Relationship in Tanzania

Wineman, Ayala; Jayne, Thomas S.

doi:10.1080/00220388.2020.1797686

Cited by 16 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 52 publications

(82 reference statements)

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“…A specific correlation between farm size and productivity was found. Most studies have concluded there is an inverse relationship between farm size and agriculture productivity [48][49][50], even though several scholars have reported a U-shaped relationship [51]. Under this assumption, if there is a correlation between land fragmentation and farm size, a confounding effect in which farmers are allocating inputs due to farm size rather than LF can be considered.…”

Section: Description Of Variablesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Land Use Transitions and Farm Performance in China: A Perspective of Land Fragmentation

Wang

et al. 2021

Land

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Land fragmentation (LF) is widespread worldwide and affects farmers’ decision-making and, thus, farm performance. We used detailed household survey data at the crop level from ten provinces in China to construct four LF indicators and six farm performance indicators. We ran a set of regression models using OLS methods to analyse the relationship between LF and farm performance. The results showed that (1) LF increased the input of production material and labour costs; (2) LF reduced farmers’ purchasing of mechanical services and the efficiency of ploughing; and (3) LF may increase technical efficiency (this result, however, was not sufficiently robust and had no effect on yield). Generally speaking, LF was negatively related to farm performance. To improve farm performance, it is recommended that decision-makers speed up land transfer and land consolidation, stabilise land property rights, establish land-transfer intermediary organisations and promote large-scale production.

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Section: Description Of Variablesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…productivity [48][49][50], even though several scholars have reported a U-shaped relationship [51]. Under this assumption, if there is a correlation between land fragmentation and farm size, a confounding effect in which farmers are allocating inputs due to farm size rather than LF can be considered.…”

Section: Description Of Variablesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Land Use Transitions and Farm Performance in China: A Perspective of Land Fragmentation

Wang

et al. 2021

Land

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“…Considering the model assumes non-linear prices, the Hessian matrix will, therefore, not be positive semi-definite, as (7) demonstrates. This implies that the ability to participate in the markets is further a function of non-linear transaction costs that can raise the household shadow value on factors of production, rationing potential market participants into the non-participating group.…”

Section: Maxmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Land scarcity is particularly challenging for farm households in SSA that rely on land and labor factors of production for income and food security [3,4], with the extant literature indicating a declining owned-land-to-labor-endowment ratio among farm households, especially in areas of SSA with high population densities [5,6]. This change has resulted in farm households using more family labor relative to their farmland due to imperfections in the labor market and limited opportunities to trade their labor outside the agricultural sector [5,7]. Such labor usage would be considered less profitable if households could trade in the labor and land factor markets [7].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This change has resulted in farm households using more family labor relative to their farmland due to imperfections in the labor market and limited opportunities to trade their labor outside the agricultural sector [5,7]. Such labor usage would be considered less profitable if households could trade in the labor and land factor markets [7]. Therefore, understanding the choices made by farm households is important for developing policies that can improve factor markets in SSA.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Agricultural Resources and Trade Strategies: Response to Falling Land-to-Labor Ratios in Malawi

Tione

2020

Land

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This study assesses how growing land scarcity relative to family labor is influencing farm household decisions to trade in agricultural land and labor markets to improve their livelihood. Using the farm household model, I analyze decisions to rent-in land or hire out labor among smallholders in Malawi. I use data from two rounds of a nationally representative balanced-household panel and apply a systems approach to jointly estimate land rental and labor market decisions while controlling for simultaneity and unobserved heterogeneity. The results indicate that the falling owned-land-to-labor-endowment ratio can push households to participate in either land rental or seasonal agricultural labor markets. However, the probability of hiring out labor for casual work and short-term gains decreases when potential tenant households rent-in land. Based on asset-wealth-to-labor-endowment ratios, wealthier households are more likely to rent-in land while poorer households, including most smallholder households, are more likely to hire out labor. These results suggest higher friction in the land rental market compared to the agricultural labor markets and liquidity constraints dictating what is necessary to support agricultural operations and household needs. Accordingly, agricultural policy in Malawi should aim to reduce friction in factor markets.

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Balancing the trade-offs between land productivity, labor productivity and labor intensity

Chiarella

Meyfroidt

Abeygunawardane

et al. 2023

Ambio

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Agricultural intensification, through increased yields, and raising incomes, through enhanced labor productivity, are two dimensions prioritized for sustainable agricultural development. Prioritizing these two outcomes leaves labor intensity as a hidden adjustment variable. Yet, when agriculture is mainstay and the prospects of labor absorption in other sectors are scarce, the density of agricultural employment is central for livelihoods. We revise relationships of land and labor productivity and labor intensity with farm size, using standardized data for 32 developing countries. We show that labor productivity increases with farm size, while land productivity and labor intensity decrease with farm size nonlinearly. Technical efficiency increases with farm size. We further systematize the evidence on how, beyond the farm level, local contexts can be pivotal in choosing how to prioritize the dimensions of the trade-off space. Our findings contribute to debates on the fate of small-scale farmers, and call for contextualized decisions.

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Factor Market Activity and the Inverse Farm Size-Productivity Relationship in Tanzania

Cited by 16 publications

References 52 publications

Land Use Transitions and Farm Performance in China: A Perspective of Land Fragmentation

Land Use Transitions and Farm Performance in China: A Perspective of Land Fragmentation

Agricultural Resources and Trade Strategies: Response to Falling Land-to-Labor Ratios in Malawi

Balancing the trade-offs between land productivity, labor productivity and labor intensity

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