The Effect of Aspirations on Agricultural Innovations in Rural Ethiopia

Abstract

Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen:Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden.Sie dürfen die Dokumente nicht für öffentliche oder kommerzielle Zwecke vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, öffentlich zugänglich machen, vertreiben oder anderweitig nutzen.Sofern die Verfasser die Dokumente unter Open-Content-Lizenzen (insbesondere CC-Lizenzen) zur Verfügung gestellt haben sollten, gelten abweichend von diesen Nutzungsbedingungen die in der dort genannten Lizenz gewährten Nutzungsrechte. Terms of use: Documents in AbstractThis paper identifies the effect of aspirations on the adoption of agricultural innovations in the context of rural Ethiopia. While most studies on agricultural innovations have focused on identifying observable and resource-related deprivations or 'external' constraints, a related stream of literature suggests that 'internal' constraints, such as the lack of aspirations, could reinforce external constraints and lead to self-sustaining poverty traps. Since both aspirations and the adoption of innovations are forward-looking, they are likely to be intimately linked. Aspirations are motivators that can enhance innovations or their adoption not only in their own right but also through their determinants, including self-efficacy, locus of control and other internal traits that may be unobserved. This implies that aspirations may affect innovations through multiple channels and hence may be endogenous. On the other hand, aspirations are also affected by a person's level of achievement, implying that aspirations and innovations are simultaneously determined. To identify the effect of aspirations on the adoption of agricultural innovations, we conducted both plot-level and household-level analysis using purposely collected data from households in rural Ethiopia. Using econometric strategies that account for the endogenous nature of aspirations, we found that a narrow or a very wide gap between aspirations and achievement in a farming household is strongly associated with low levels of innovativeness and low adoption rate of innovation products such as chemical fertilizers.

Promoting value addition among farmers in the cassava food value chain in Nigeria

“…In general, the recent extant studies suggest that gender (male), age, education, household size, farm size, off-farm income, access to extension services, access to credit and farmer association exert positive effects on the adoption of agricultural innovations such as inorganic fertiliser, improved crop variety and pesticides in some African countries, notably Nigeria, DR Congo, Uganda, Ghana, Cameroon and Ethiopia (Abdoulaye et al , 2014, 2015; Lambrecht et al , 2014; Obisesan, 2014; Afolami et al , 2015; Abate et al , 2016; Donkor et al , 2016; Mekonnen and Gerber, 2016; Abay et al , 2017; Alirah et al , 2018). For instance, studies have shown that male farmers are associated with higher adoption rates of agricultural innovations (namely, irrigation, pesticides and inorganic fertiliser) than their female counterparts in Nigeria, Ethiopia, Cameroon and Ghana (Obisesan, 2014; Donkor et al , 2016; Fosso and Nanfosso, 2016; Abay et al , 2017).…”

Innovations to Overcome the Increasingly Complex Problems of Hunger

“…Other new research points at the important role aspirations or lack thereof play for innovation and technology adoption in agriculture. Mekonnen and Gerber (2016) find in Ethiopia that farmers with less aspiration adopt innovative practices less often, such as improved seeds and fertilizer. The upshot of this research is that innovation is endogenous to fundamental drivers, and not just a matter of transfer of knowledge and technology.…”

The Role of Information in Agricultural Technology Adoption: Experimental Evidence from Rice Farmers in Uganda

“…To investigate the causal chain, we will test whether the videos aected awareness of modern inputs and improved agronomic practices, as well as whether they led to a change in the perceived protability of intensication investments. Some researchers have found evidence that videos featuring successful farmers aect aspirations and forward-looking behavior (Bernard et al 2015), in turn resulting in dierential technology adoption (Mekonnen and Gerber (2015)). Therefore, it may be that the videos in our study aected outcomes through inuencing attitudes and perceptions without directly altering knowledge related to technologies or expected returns.…”