Sustainable Agricultural Intensification: understanding the role of
institutional and socio-economic factors on Adoption and Adoption
Intensity in smallholder farmer context
Abstract
Despite the critical role Sustainable Agricultural Intensification
Practices (SAIPs) play in improving crop productivity, limited knowledge
exists on the factors that affect their adoption and adoption intensity.
This paper examined the influence of institutional and socio-economic
factors on the adoption and adoption intensity of SAIPs in maize
production. Data were collected using a questionnaire from 320 maize
farmers randomly selected from the Kamuli and Jinja districts in Eastern
Uganda. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and binary
regression. Results revealed that the highest adopted SAIP was improved
maize varieties (at 58%) while conservation tillage was the least
adopted (at only 36%). Institutional factors i.e., access to extension
services, access to credit, market access, and group membership
influenced both the adoption and adoption intensity of SAIPs, while
socio-economic factors i.e., gender, family labor, and land ownership
mainly influenced the adoption intensity. While the paper underscores
the critical role of extension institutions in promoting technology
adoption, it also underlines the need to consider individual constraints
in intensifying technology adoption. The paper concludes that public and
private extension agencies need to tailor-make agricultural technology
promotion to ensure the adoption and adoption intensity of these
technologies. Tailor-making agricultural technology promotion strategies
will ensure that farmers with the appropriate socio-economic
characteristics are reached for effective technology adoption and
intensity.