Measuring Perceptions and the Drivers of Membership Commitment of Cocoa Farmers’ Cooperative Societies in Atwima Mponua District, Ghana

Abstract

Limited studies exist on the commitment of members to cooperative societies. Therefore, the study sought to measure perceptions of membership and the drivers of membership commitment of cocoa farmers' cooperative societies in the Atwima Mponua District of Ashanti Region, Ghana. Data was collected from a sample of 400 cocoa farmers through a multi-stage sampling technique. Descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (binary logit regression) were used in analyzing the data. Results show that cocoa farmers agree that they benefit from the cooperative and they appreciate the management, marketing and business, internal dynamics and public interest of their cooperatives. The study also discovered that farm age, access to extension service, farming experience, farmer status, cooperative benefits and internal dynamics are critical to obtaining commitment in cooperative societies. The study shows the need for the Ghana Cocoa Board to improve farmers’ access to extension services so as to improve their commitment in cooperative societies. Cooperative organizations are encouraged to consider the perceptions of the cocoa farmers and their socio-economic characteristics in order to elicit the desired commitment.

Local Voices for Cocoa Production: Experiences of Ghanaian Cocoa Farmers on Community Radio

“…About 89.6% of the cocoa farmers who listen to agricultural programs on community radio were Christians, 8.6% of the respondents were Muslims while the traditionalists were 1.8%. The finding is similar with [25] who reported that the majority (76.50%) of cocoa farmers in their study were Christians. The results further revealed that 69.9% of the respondents were married, 9.6% were single, and 6% and 14.5% were divorced and widowed respectively.…”

“…The majority (61.6%) of the cocoa farmers who listen to agricultural programs on community radio practice sharecropping, 27% farm on family lands, 10.6% own their lands and 0.8% represented those with lease/rent land arrangements. The result differs from that of [25] who reported that 82.50%, 15.50%, and 1% of cocoa farmers were landowners, caretakers and sharecroppers respectively.…”

Agronomic Practices Adopted by Farmers in Kharar Division SAS Nagar, Punjab, India

“…The soil in this region is ideal for growing crops including sorghum, wheat, maize, rice, and vegetables. For the production of crops, farmers in this region use standard or fundamental agronomical approaches [5,6]. It was essential in ensuring improved agricultural practices in nations like India and allaying worries that we had reached the point of food surplus capacity, which happens when agricultural production cannot keep up with the demand from the population.…”

Perceived Effectiveness of Agricultural Cooperatives by Smallholder Farmers: Evidence from a Micro-Level Survey in North-Eastern South Africa

“…A critical review of the available literature shows that past research studies carried out in Africa, and especially in South Africa, have focused more attention on financial investment and efficiency [1,16,17], determinants of membership of cooperative societies [18,19], and on the administrative governance and management [20,21] of agricultural cooperatives or farmer-based organizations. Additionally, similar perception-related studies found poor performance of agricultural cooperatives [22][23][24]. However, there has been a dearth of empirical research, especially in the study area that focuses directly on the disposition of smallholder farmers, who are agricultural cooperative members, on the effectiveness of these organizations in supporting and meeting their needs.…”