Key factors influencing smallholder market participation in the former homelands of South Africa : case study of the Eastern Cape

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study uses a double-hurdle (DH) model to examine the key factors influencing market participation decisions among maize-producing households in the former homelands of South Africa. In the first stage of the double-hurdle model, using data on South African rural maize growers, the decision whether or not to participate (binary variable) is used to estimate the maximum likelihood estimation (MLE), which is assumed to follow a probit model. In the second stage, the conditional quantity sold (continuous variable) is assumed to follow a truncated normal regression model, whereby the MLE is estimated by fitting a truncated normal regression into the quantity sold.The results of the double-hurdle regression point specifically to five key factors that were found to have a positive statistical effect on rural smallholders' market participation decisions, and on the conditional quantity of maize they traded (viz. household size, land size, access to credit and government transfers for the first stage, which was estimated using the probit model, and age, education and employment status of the household head, use of tractor when cultivating, government transfers, quantity produced, market price, and own transport to the market for the second stage which was estimated using truncated normal regression).Based on the findings highlighted above, it is recommended that the integration of rural smallholders as market participants cannot be achieved without effective policy interventions that create and sustain an enabling environment that encourages greater participation. This includes improving access to land and road infrastructure; providing extension services and making available relevant advice and information related to both production and marketing aspects; and enhancing the accessibility of both credit and production input.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University