Analysis of the productive potential and determinants of the technical efficiency of women cabbage growers in the district of Korhogo in Ivory Coast

Abstract

This study assesses production capacity and technical efficiency of women cabbage growers in Korhogo. To achieve this, a stochastic production frontier model was specified in order to estimate the efficiency scores of women farmers and to identify the factors that explain the technical inefficiency of women farmers. The results showed that the gap between observed and potential production is partly due to inefficiency. In addition, an increase in surface area leads to an increase in work time, which in turn reduces productivity. Nevertheless, the application of fertiliser and labour had a significant and positive impact on the productivity of women. However, the average level of technical efficiency was low across all the studied sites, although some strong performances were reported in certain localities. In addition, socio-demographic variables are likely to have a positive influence on these efficiency scores. These variables are «membership of a farmers' organisation», «agricultural training» and «number of years' experience».

 Keywords: cabbage, technical efficiency, stochastic frontier, Ivory Coast