Raju Ghimire | Michigan State University (original) (raw)

Papers by Raju Ghimire

Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education

This study examines factors that appear to contribute to farmers' adoption and discontinuation of... more This study examines factors that appear to contribute to farmers' adoption and discontinuation of poly house technology for off-season vegetable production. We collected cross-sectional survey data from a sample of 151 households in Kaski district, Nepal during October 2018. The data are analyzed using Heckman's two stage sample selection model. The study reveals that the family members report being engaged in nonfarm sector that there is an increased probability of discontinuation of poly house technology. Farmers may be diverting their labor towards nonfarm activities that result in higher returns to labor and different risks. At the same time, the results indicate that farmers who did not receive training on vegetable production were more likely to discontinue poly house technology. It was also found that increasing farmers' engagement with marketing activities increased the likelihood of farmers to continue poly house technology and increase household income. The provision of continued technical support (e.g., training), input supply (e.g., seeds, fertilizers) and market information are essential to sustain the adopted technologies. The study sheds light on the sustainability of technology adoption by underpinning the importance of extension services for longer-term adoption. We believe that the combined effect of various technologies would be associated with sustained adoption of the improved off-season technologies. This provides a new direction to operationalize farmer-oriented policies in agricultural extension and helps in devising programs for sustained adoption of technology.

Journal of International Society for Southeast Asian Agricultural Sciences, 2018

Determinants of adoption of wet-and dry-season improved rice varieties in Cambodia were analyzed.... more Determinants of adoption of wet-and dry-season improved rice varieties in Cambodia were analyzed. Selection pattern and intensity of information sources, and barriers to adopt agricultural technologies by rice farmers were examined. Probit model was used to analyze household survey data, covering 24 provinces, 48 districts, 95 communes and 192 villages. The results show that farmers use a combination of information sources to meet their needs indicating that any single source does not satisfy all the farmers' information needs. The most used information sources were farm radio and television, followed by farm extension meetings/workshops. Frequent service providers for both male and female farmers were NGOs, local commune/village office and local extension service centers. The frequently-mentioned barriers to adopting new farm technologies are lack of technical knowledge/skills and technological incompatibility-farmers stated that technologies were not suitable to their farms. This may mean either that the technology is not climatically fit or it is labor-intensive, costly or not suitable to smallholder farmers. Other frequently mentioned barriers were unavailability of credit to invest in new technology and access to market information. Adopters and non-adopters were significantly different in educational levels, access to improved seeds, and contact with extension agents. The study highlights how the farmer's age, educational level, family size, and extension-related variables influenced the farmer's behavior in selecting wet-and dry-season rice varieties. Use of seed from their own harvest showed a negative effect on adoption, suggesting that access to seed from reliable sources will benefit the farmers by increasing production and income. Incorporating researchers' and extension officials' message in television and radio programs, and implementing educational learning programs may be the policy alternatives to enhance adoption and rice productivity in Cambodia.

The Journal of Agricultural Education and Extension, 2017

Purpose: This paper examines the factors affecting farmers' participation in extension programs a... more Purpose: This paper examines the factors affecting farmers' participation in extension programs and adoption of improved seed varieties in the hills of rural Nepal. Methodology/approach: Cross-sectional farm-level data were collected during July and August 2014. A sample of 198 farm households was selected for interviewing by using a multistage, random sampling technique. We employed a logistic regression model, frequency counts, and percentages to analyze the data. Findings: Adoption decisions were mainly affected by extensionrelated variablestraining, membership in a farmers' group, and off-farm employment. Extension participation was found to be influenced by socioeconomic variablesage, education, household size, and distance to the extension office. Our findings reveal that distance to the extension office and off-farm employment limited participation in extension activities and adoption, respectively, and education, household size, and group membership stimulated participation in extension programs. Practical implications: Recognition of the determinants of farmers' participation in extension services and innovation adoption ensures that targeted extension approaches are used to address these factors in various stages of planning, delivering, and evaluating extension programs. Theoretical implications: Innovation adoption follows a systematic decision-making process. Although personal characteristics are important, widespread use of new technology requires a conducive social and institutional context. Because contexts vary by country or region, extension services providers should create institutions favorable for innovation adoption within a social system. Originality/value: This research is original and highly valuable to identify the factors associated with extension participation and innovation adoption in the rural hilly region of Nepal. This also provides a new direction to operationalize farmer-oriented policies of agricultural extension and so can be helpful for agricultural policy-makers in devising programs of extension services.

Rice Science, 2015

The use of improved high yielding crop varieties is an important avenue for reducing hunger and f... more The use of improved high yielding crop varieties is an important avenue for reducing hunger and food insecurity in developing countries. Using cross-sectional data obtained from a survey conducted during 2013 crop season, we performed a probit model (plot-level analysis) to determine the probability of adopting new improved rice varieties (NIRVs) by smallholder farmers particularly from two main agro-ecological regions (hills and tropical plain terai regions) of Central Nepal. The results revealed that education, extension services and seed access play significant roles in adoption decisions. Additionally, farm and field characteristic variables such as farm size, endowment of favorable land type (e.g. lowlands), and animal power (e.g. oxen) are the key factors influencing the probability of adopting NIRVs. The results showed that technology specific variables (e.g. yield potential and acceptability) are significant for explaining adoption behavior, implying that it is important to take farmers' preferences to varietal characteristics into consideration in the design of a research and development program. Given the significant role played by extension and access related variables, increased emphasis on information dissemination, field demonstration, and farmers' participatory research and training programs to popularize new rice varieties and enhance their adoption rate are required. This also suggests that policy intervention should be made on improving the educational status of farming households, and developing programs on varietal package of rice seed which offer farmers a variety of choices among the appropriate pools of germplasm. Such programs ultimately help farmers develop more profit-oriented behavior which are necessary to enhance adoption rate, production and food security in the long run.

N onfarm activities play an important role in the determination of rural household income, consum... more N onfarm activities play an important role in the determination of rural household income, consumption expenditure, and household food security. However, much less studies have been devoted to the factors that influence nonfarm income diversification by farm household in developing countries. Using cross-sectional data and a probit model, this study attempts to determine the factors influencing nonfarm income diversification decisions by farm households in Central Nepal. The result reveals that household characteristics such as age, gender and education of the household head, and family size play a significant role in nonfarm work decisions. The households with larger farm size are less likely to participate in nonfarm work than their counterpart. Additionally, for those remains in the rural households, distance to road and market hinders the opportunities for nonfarm work. Finally, regional differences also exist in participating nonfarm activities among farm households. This study...

International Journal of Food and Agricultural Economics, 2014

Market price cointegration is a critical issue in Nepalese vegetable industry. This study intende... more Market price cointegration is a critical issue in Nepalese vegetable industry. This study intended to analyze the market price cointegration of tomato and its effect on Nepalese farmers, using secondary monthly time series of wholesale price data (since 2000 to 2010) of the Government of Nepal. The results of error correction model (ECM) showed that the series were stationary, and Kathmandu market was well cointegrated with source markets (Chitwan and Morang). Meanwhile, the vector error correction model (VECM) revealed that price adjustment process was much faster in source markets especially in negative price shocks in response to Kathmandu market, which affected the farmers for speedy price adjustment that leads to be hurt and discouraged. The study recommend policies to establish alternative vegetable markets that reduce the price dependency of farmers on Kathmandu market, encourage traders in involving vegetable marketing, and enhance effective market information services.

Food Security, 2020

Increasing agricultural production and reducing poverty through a modernized agricultural system ... more Increasing agricultural production and reducing poverty through a modernized agricultural system has been a priority of the government of Ghana. We analyzed the trends of major crop yields, cultivated area, and fertilizer input in two villages – Tongoli and Gbullung – of Tolon-Kumbung district in northern Ghana. Using longitudinal panel data from 67 households from 2004 to 2015, we performed statistical analyses such as percentage, average, frequency, and trend analysis, and used time fixed effect regression model to determine the relationship between the value of crop production and independent variables such as labor, input cost, area, income, and occupation. The results show that total cultivated area continues to decrease as family size and the number of farmers per compound decrease. The number of cultivated crops decreased, and the yield of major crops became unstable. However, the number of farmers aiming to increase production by using chemical fertilizer on maize and rice i...

Efficiency in vegetable production is a critical issue for enhancing productivity, generating inc... more Efficiency in vegetable production is a critical issue for enhancing productivity, generating income and supplying nutrients for Nepalese rural people. The study aimed to measure and to analyze the production efficiency of smallholder vegetable farms in eastern hill, Nepal, using Nepal vegetable crops survey (2010) data of the Central Bureau of Statistics, Government of Nepal. The results of maximum likelihood estimates of Stochastic Frontier Analysis revealed that the mean technical efficiency score was 0.77, implied that 23 percent production could increase by simply improving vegetable farming practices. The production was contributed by land, labor, seed, compost, fertilizer, pesticide, farm capital, seed types, credit, technical support and sex of household head. Therefore, this study recommend policies on improvement of land, develop skillful labor, promote improve seed, encourage composting, easily access of fertilizer, pesticide and farm capitals, promoting women farmer, enh...

International Journal of Agriculture Innovations and Research, 2015

– The use of improved high yielding crop varieties by farm households remains an option to increa... more – The use of improved high yielding crop varieties by farm households remains an option to increase agricultural production and ensure food security in developing countries. This study investigated the key factors associated with improved maize varieties (IMVs) adoption and intensity of adoption by farm households in Central Nepal. A multistage random sampling technique was used to select a sample of 416 farm households and interviewed by using structured survey questionnaires. We used Cragg's double-hurdle model to analyze the data. The results showed that education appeared to be positively influencing the adoption decisions while age of the household head had the negative influence on adoption decision. Additionally, farm size and livestock asset showed significant positive effect on adoption of IMVs. After the adoption, varietal characteristics such as yield potential and pest/disease resistance significantly affected the adoption intensity. Developing mechanisms to help promote IMVs adoption and its intensity by varietal specific characteristics for example yield, pest/disease resistance, palatability and storability is therefore a reasonable policy instrument to increase the adoption rate and use intensity. However,a comprehensive package that includes effective extension services and efficient input distribution system is certainly a requirement for increasing production and ensuring food security in rural areas.

In the last decades, rice yields in South Asian countries grew tremendously in one hand and a not... more In the last decades, rice yields in South Asian countries grew tremendously in one hand and a noticeable yield fluctuation on the other. The objective of this study was to examine the rice yield distributions, estimate yield risks at country level, and compare risks between five countries namely Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan. Anderson Darling (AD) test was applied to test the goodness-of-fit for four distributions by using country level de-trended rice yields from 1961 to 2010. Results showed the Normal distribution was fitted well in Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, whereas the Weibull distribution in Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan. The average yield risks at 85% of the expected yield were found 5.29, 4.27, 3.86, 1.55, and .15% in Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh, respectively. Wilcoxon signed rank test results of mean absolute percentage differences showed yield risk in Bangladesh was significantly lower than the rest four counties and t...

Technological advances in agriculture potentially can improve the productivity and income of farm... more Technological advances in agriculture potentially can improve the productivity and income of farmers. However, it is unclear how rural and smallholder farmers can best learn about, adopt, and benefit from technological advances. Extension services with multiple linkages to organizations and farmers have been identified as a positive factor in successful adoption of new technologies. Participatory action research was undertaken in Kaski district of Nepal focused on introducing new (for the local context) technologies for off-season vegetable. The project sought to demonstrate best practices in agricultural extension and showcase a demand-driven, participatory, and pluralistic model of agricultural extension. It was hypothesized that doing so would enhance the productivity, income, and food security of participating rural households. Two household surveys were conducted-a baseline survey in 2013 (before the project) and endline survey in 2015 (after the project)-to collect data and study the impact of the intervention, if any, on household wellbeing. The results show the participatory approaches used to be associated with enhanced productivity, income, and food security for participant households. The results show that the area under off-season vegetable production, marketed vegetable volume, and income increased significantly. It appears that vegetable production and income tripled while the area of land dedicated to off-season vegetable production doubled at the end of the project. The types of crops grown by participant households also significantly increased over the project period. Furthermore, participant farmers were found to organize into groups for knowledge sharing, adopting new technology, and increasing household income. The results suggest that phase-wise learning and scaling up approach used in the off-season vegetable production can be replicated to disseminate new technologies in other contexts to strengthen extension service delivery.

The use of improved high yielding crop varieties by farm households remains an option to increase... more The use of improved high yielding crop varieties by farm households remains an option to increase agricultural production and ensure food security in developing countries. This study investigated associated with improved maize varieties (IMVs) adoption and intensity of adoption by farm households in Central Nepal. A multistage random sampling technique was used to select a sample of 416 farm households and interviewed by using structured survey questionnaires. We used Cragg’s double-hurdle model to analyze the data. The results showed that education appeared to be positively influencing the adoption decisions while age of the household head had the negative influence on adoption decision. Additionally, farm size and livestock asset showed significant positive effect on adoption of IMVs. After the adoption, varietal characteristics such as yield potential and pest/disease resistance significantly affected the adoption intensity. Deve mechanisms to help promote IMVs adoption and its i...

The Cambodia Helping Address Rural Vulnerabilities and E cosystem Stability (Cambodia HARVEST) wa... more The Cambodia Helping Address Rural Vulnerabilities and E cosystem Stability (Cambodia HARVEST) was a five -year (December 2010 -June 2016) USAID Feed the Future (FTF) initiative implemented in selected districts across four provinces of Cambodia – Battambang, Pursat, Siem Reap, and Kampong Thom. HARVEST program interventions focused on increasing incomes to influence nutrition outcomes. This was achieved through an approach that integrated activities from a range of sectors —agriculture, fisheries, forestry, nutrition and more —to help families in rural areas grow, p urchase, and prepare more nutritious foods. Cambodia HARVEST was rolled out in phases over the 5 1/2-year period, which ended in June 2016. Over that time, the project’s strategy evolved as activities were scaled up, but the overall approach remained guided by the principles of linking agriculture and nutrition to achieve some of the overarching development goals of reducing poverty and malnutrition.

Nonfarm activities play an important role in the determination of rural household income, consump... more Nonfarm activities play an important role in the determination of rural household income, consumption expenditure, and household food security. However, much less studies have been devoted to the factors that influence nonfarm income diversification by farm household in developing countries. Using cross-sectional data and a probit model, this study attempts to determine the factors influencing nonfarm income diversification decisions by farm households in Central Nepal. The result reveals that household characteristics such as age, gender and education of the household head, and family size play a significant role in nonfarm work decisions. The households with larger farm size are less likely to participate in nonfarm work than their counterpart. Additionally, for those remains in the rural households, distance to road and market hinders the opportunities for nonfarm work. Finally, regional differences also exist in participating nonfarm activities among farm households. This study ...

Food Security, 2015

In the light of emerging debates about increasing agricultural production and food security for r... more In the light of emerging debates about increasing agricultural production and food security for rural farmers in developing countries, this paper examines the effects of household wealth on adoption and use intensity of improved maize varieties (IMVs) in two agro-ecological regions of central Nepal. Using cross-sectional farm-level data from 416 households, we first categorized households into two wealth groups – poorly endowed and well-endowed households – and then estimated Cragg's double-hurdle model for adoption and use intensity of IMVs for each group. The study found the presence of heterogeneous factors influencing adoption and intensity of adoption between poorly and well-endowed households, suggesting a need for wealth-group-specific policy interventions to increase adoption of IMVs and their subsequent impacts on food security. The results also indicated that the availability of seed in local retail outlets will benefit especially the poorly endowed farmers because distance to market showed a negative impact on adoption and intensity of adoption of IMVs. Therefore, government should establish a wide seed distribution network in rural areas, preferably by way of a public-private partnership (PPP), if the desired adoption rate and intensity of adoption are to be achieved. Linking farmers to markets by integrating farmers with potential buyers could help reduce transaction costs and make agriculture more profitable.

results reveal that dependency ratio, distance to labor market, and farm size restrain off-farm l... more results reveal that dependency ratio, distance to labor market, and farm size restrain off-farm labor supply, while the number of working adults, male head, and wealth index stimulate off-farm work participation. The result also shows that decisions to off-farm work positively affect the food expenditure of farm households. In particular, preference to dining at home reduces the food expenditure, while availability of food increases the food expenditure by farm households. The focus on promoting local food production, increasing food consumption and food security of rural people remain the foremost policy concern.