The Role of Input Vouchers in Improving Agricultural Productivity Among the Smallholder Farmers in Geita District, Tanzania
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The University of Dodoma University of Dodoma Institutional Repository http://repository.udom.ac.tz Social Sciences Master Dissertations 2015 The Role of Input Vouchers in Improving Agricultural Productivity among the Smallholder Farmers in Geita District, Tanzania Bukombe, Joseph The University of Dodoma Bukombe, J. (2015). The Role of Input Vouchers in Improving Agricultural Productivity among the Smallholder Farmers in Geita District, Tanzania (Masters dissertation). The University of Dodoma, Dodoma. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12661/1862 Downloaded from UDOM Institutional Repository at The University of Dodoma, an open access institutional repository. THE ROLE OF INPUT VOUCHERS IN IMPROVING AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY AMONG SMALLHOLDER FARMERS IN GEITA DISTRICT, TANZANIA By Joseph Bukombe A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Development Studies of the University of Dodoma The University of Dodoma October, 2015 CERTIFICATION The undersigned certifies that he has read and hereby recommends for acceptance by the University of Dodoma a dissertation entitled “The Role of Input Vouchers in Improving Agricultural Productivity among the Smallholder Farmers in Geita District, Tanzania,” in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Development Studies of the University of Dodoma. …………………………………… Prof. Davis G. Mwamfupe (Supervisor) Date………………………………. i DECLARATION AND COPRIGHT I, Joseph Bukombe, do hereby declare that this is my own original work and has not been submitted and will not be submitted to any other University for a similar or any other Degree award. ……………………………………………. No part of this dissertation may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without prior written permission of the author or the University of Dodoma. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First and foremost let me praise and honour the Almighty God for the opportunity and capacity given to me to realize my aspiration, your name shall be glorified. I wish to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisor, Prof. Davis G. Mwamfupe for his encouragement and willingness to offer time for discussing and critiquing my work. His contribution to the completion of this dissertation is priceless. Appreciation should also go to all academic staff members of the Department of Development Studies at the University of Dodoma for their advice, counseling and encouragement during the entire period of the study. My sincere appreciation and thanks also go to my brothers and sisters; Christopher, Gregory, Herman, Raymond, Scholastica, Rosemary, Marietha and Magdalena for their moral and financial support in pursuing this degree of master, without their support I could not reached anywhere. I have always felt that you are behind my achievements and I will forever count on you, please keep the good spirit. I extend my sincere thanks to Geita District Council for giving me permission to collect data, cooperation and support during data collection within the district. My special gratitude is due to my lovely wife; Pausia Muhamila for taking care of the family and supporting me while I was away. Also, special thanks and appreciation are due to my beloved daughters; Salome and Cresencia for enduring my absence and being patient. iii DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to my beloved parents; my late father Mr. Sebastian Kumalija Bukombe my mother Salome Suki Mashini who laid foundation of my education. iv ABSTRACT This work is about the Role of Input Vouchers in Improving Agricultural Productivity among Smallholder farmers in Geita District, Tanzania. The study was carried out in four villages of Geita District, namely Nyakamwaga, Ntono, Imalampaka and Buyagu. The study was associated with the use of improved inputs like inorganic fertilizer, seeds and pesticides in the study area with its adoption rate in improving agricultural productivity. A sample size of 100 respondents was selected using random sampling and purposive sampling techniques. Primary data were collected using interviews, observation, survey and Focus Group Discussions. Descriptive statistics were applied in analyzing data, Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 16.0 and MS excel computer packages as tools for quantitative data were used to obtain frequencies and percentages which were presented in tables. The findings from the study reveal that the productivity per acre in maize and rice increased, for instance there was great changes in maize productivity from 4bags/acre to 16bags – 28bags/acre. While in rice changes were from 13bags/acre to 35bags – 40bags/acre. Also, input vouchers enabled smallholder farmers to access improved agricultural inputs closer to the village or ward agro-dealers at subsidized prices. The study recommends that actors in agricultural sector should look for possibility of lowering farmers’ level of contribution to the voucher value to be less than 50% due to existence of poverty in most of smallholder farmers. Furthermore, smallholder farmers should be encouraged to form associations of crop producers for their agricultural produces. v TABLE OF CONTENTS CERTIFICATION ........................................................................................................ i DECLARATION AND COPRIGHT .......................................................................... ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ......................................................................................... iii DEDICATION ........................................................................................................... iv ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................ v TABLE OF CONTENTS ........................................................................................... vi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ..................................................................................... x CHAPTER ONE: BACKGROUND INFORMATION ......................................... 1 1.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Background Information ....................................................................................... 2 1.3 Statement of the Problem ...................................................................................... 7 1.4 Objectives of the Study ....................................................................................... 10 1.4.1 General Objective ............................................................................................. 10 1.4.2 Specific Objectives ........................................................................................... 10 1.4.3 Research Questions .......................................................................................... 10 1.5 Significance of the Study ..................................................................................... 11 1.6 Scope and Limitation of the Study ...................................................................... 11 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW ...................................................... 13 2.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................... 13 2.2 Definitions of Key Terms .................................................................................... 13 2.3 Theoretical Review .............................................................................................. 14 2.3.1 The New Institutional Economics Theory ........................................................ 14 2.3.2 Structural Constructivism Theory .................................................................... 15 2.4 Empirical Review ................................................................................................ 17 2.4.1 The Universal Subsidy Programmes in Sub-Saharan Africa ........................... 17 2.4.2 The Market Smart Input Subsidy Programmes in Sub-Saharan Africa ........... 19 2.4.3 Case Studies of Market Smart Subsidies in Sub-Saharan Africa ..................... 21 2.4.3.1 Market Smart Subsidies in Malawi ............................................................... 21 2.4.3.2 Market Smart Subsidies in Zambia ............................................................... 24 2.4.4 Improved Agricultural Technologies ............................................................... 27 vi 2.4.5 An Overview of Input Farm Input Supply in Tanzania .................................... 29 2.4.6 The National Agricultural Input Scheme (NAIVS) .......................................... 31 2.4.7 Significance of Input Vouchers ........................................................................ 33 2.4.8 Factors on Agricultural Productivity of Smallholder Farmers ......................... 34 2.4.9 Agriculture Sector in Tanzania ......................................................................... 37 2.4.10 Maize and Rice Production and Productivity ................................................. 38 2.5 Research Gap ....................................................................................................... 39 2.6 Conceptual Framework ....................................................................................... 40 CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ...................................... 42 3.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................