IJSAR, 7(4), 2020; 01-12 International Journal of Sciences & Applied Research www.ijsar.in Determinants of vegetables market supply in case of Habru district, North Wollo Zone, Ethiopia Ebrahim Endris1*, Jema Haji2, Bosena Tegegne3 1Department of Agricultural Economics, Woldia University, Woldia, Ethiopia. 2School of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness, Haramaya University, Haramaya, Ethiopia. 3School of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness, Haramaya University, Haramaya, Ethiopia. Corresponding author: *Ebrahim Endris, Department of Agricultural Economics, Woldia University, Woldia, Ethiopia. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ Abstract The development of vegetable subsector in Habru district faces various marketing problems to supply their produce to the market. Therefore, this study was aimed to identify the determinants of vegetables market supply in Habru district. Data for the study were collected from primary and secondary sources. Primary data were collected from a randomly selected 147 vegetable producer households. Descriptive statistics and multiple regression econometric methods were used for identifying determinants of vegetable market supply. The test for assumptions of the classical linear regression model showed endogeneity in market supply analysis and hetero skedasticity problem in tomato supply analysis. Two-stage least squares result showed that quantity produced, farming experience and extension contact significantly and positively affected the quantity of onion supplied to the market whereas the age of the household head significantly and negatively affected it. Robust multiple linear regression results showed that quantity produced, education level, family size and extension contact positively and significantly affected the quantity of tomato supplied to the market whereas distance to the market affected it negatively and significantly. The study recommends the need to boost production and provision of market-oriented extension, support technological advancement in production and marketing, enhance farmers experience and education status. Keywords: Habru district, Market Supply, Multiple Linear Regression, Vegetable 1. INTRODUCTION Netherland, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia is one of the countries in Africa, Norway, Belgium, France, Japan, Italy, and which has huge potential for the United States, among others.The volume of development of different varieties of vegetables and fruits exported was 166 horticultural crops (EHDA, 2012). thousand tons (EHPEA, 2013). Horticulture creates in excess of 180 Fruit and vegetable production covered thousand of employment opportunities, out about 0.13% and 3.29% of the total area of which 85% are for women. Nationally, coveredby cereal crops in Amhara region, over 130 foreign investors are operating in respectively. The regions’ total production Ethiopia’s horticulture sector, exporting to of vegetables in 2016/17 meherseason was 1 IJSAR, 7(4), 2020; 01-12 7,003,925Qt produced by 3,417,357 private fruits and vegetables, which ignored only smallholder farmers on 115,011 hectares of vegetable producers.Therefore, this study cultivated land. The production of attempted to fill the existing research and vegetables including root crops in North information gaps by identifying the Wollo zone for the 2016/17meher season determinants of vegetable market supply in was 315,719.88Qtwhich produced Habru district. by234,435 smallholder farmers in 3,787.74 The objectives of the study wereto identify hectares (CSA, 2017).Habru district the determinants of onion and tomato naturally endowed for vegetable production supplied to the market by farm households due to its favorable agroecology and in the study area. availability of irrigation water. It is mainly for commercial vegetable production in two 2. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY rounds per year. Even though the district has 2.1.Description of the Study Area high potential in vegetable production and The study was conducted in Habru district, its economic role is huge, farmers are which is located in North Wollo unlikely to extract the opportunity due to Administrative zone, Amhara National lack of market linkage, the nature of Regional State of Ethiopia. The district is products and production(OHWARD, 2017). bordered in the south by the Mille River, Vegetables are an integral part of the which separatesNorth Wollo from the South farming system, which plays a crucial role in Wollo zone, on the west by Gubalafto the economy of Ethiopia. Vegetable Woreda, on the north by theAlawuha river, production is increasing due to increased which separates Habru from Kobo Woreda area allocation as well as increased yield per and on the east by the Afarregion. The unit area. However, the perishable nature of district has 36 rural kebeles and 3 sub-urban vegetables aggravated the poor vegetable kebele administrations, with a totalarea of market performance in Ethiopia (Bezabih et 1,239.79 km2 (1, 23979 ha). The town Mersa al., 2014).The study conducted by is the center of the district, which is 491km Mohammed and Afework (2016) identified Northeast of Addis Ababa and 30 km south the major factors affecting post-harvest loss of Woldia, capital of North Wollo zone and quality deterioration of horticultural (OHWARD, 2016). crops in Dire Dawa region arepoor According to SARC (2015),the mean annual postharvest handling, distance to the market, maximumand minimum temperatures of the low price, poor transportation and conditions district is 28.5 °C and 15 °C,respectively. It of the road. has a latitude and longitude of 11°40′N Vegetable production is a source of income 39°39.5′E/ 11.667°N 39.6583°E, with an and home consumption for a large elevation of 1600 meters above sea level. proportion of rural households in the district. The pattern of rainfall is erratic with an However, the perishable nature of product, annual average of 300mm but sometimes it low price and intermediary malpractices, ranges from 600-1200 mm. The main rainy lack of market linkage, price volatility, season (summer) lasts from June to unidentified market behavior and character September, while the short rainy season altogether impede the potential gains that (spring) is between January and April. could have been attained from the existing According to CSA (2013) population opportunities in the district (OHWARD, projection, in 2016/17 the district has a total 2016).Mengesha (2015) conducted a study projected population of 235,347, an increase on marketing system analysis of vegetables of 22.1% over the 2007 census, of whom and fruits in North Wollo zone, the author 118,088 are men and 117,259 women. The taken sample respondents jointly supply projected total urban residence was 37,659, 2 IJSAR, 7(4), 2020; 01-12 which is 16% of the population in the producers. Secondary data were collected district and an increase of 74.34% of urban from different published and unpublished population over the 2007 population census sources, such as Habru District Irrigation (CSA, 2007; CSA, 2013). and Development Office, CSA, OHWARD, The dominant crops produced in the district SARC, published and unpublished reports, are sorghum, barley, wheat, and maize, and bulletins. which are the main food crops produced under rain-fed farming. The rain-fed 2.3.Sampling Procedure and Sample Size production system is most dominant and is A multi-stage random sampling method was being practiced by the majority of the used to select vegetableproducing kebeles farmers. Moreover, fruit and vegetable crops and sample farm households. In thefirst are often produced using irrigation and stage, from 36 rural kebeles in the district 10 ground water-based drip irrigation scheme majorvegetables (onion and/or tomato) has boosted the production of onion producing kebeleswere purposively selected. andtomato in the district.Major types of In thesecond stage, four kebeleswere vegetable crops grown in the district include selected randomly from 10 onion and/or onion, tomato, cabbage, watermelon, tomato producing kebeles.Finally, from the beetroot, and some leafy randomly selected kebeles, 147 sample vegetables.(OHWARD, 2016). households wereselected randomly using a formula developed by Yamane (1967). 2.2.Types, Sources, and Methods of Data Accordingly, out of 2,312 onion and/or Collection tomato producers in randomly selected In this study, both qualitative and kebeles of the district 147 sample producers quantitative cross-sectional data were were determined using simple random collected from primary and secondary sampling method at 95% confidence level sources. Primary data were collected by with degree of variability of 5% and level of using pre-testedsemi-structured precision equal to 8%. questionnaires designed for sample Table 1. Sample kebeles and vegetables (onion and/or tomato) producers No Name of kebelles Population size Sample size 1 Girana 960 61 2 Gorarba 750 48 3 Woldia-kurkura 292 18 4 Libso 310 20 Total 2,312 147 Source:Agricultural offices of Habru Woreda and own design (2017) 2.4.Methods of Data Analysis The econometric analysis used to estimate Both descriptive statistics and econometric the causal relationship between the models were employed for analyzing the dependent variable and the explanatory data obtained from producers and traders variables. Multiple linear regression was sample respondents. used to analyze the determinants of 3 IJSAR, 7(4), 2020; 01-12 vegetables supplied to the market as all According to Alemayehu et al. (2016),the