Contributions of Cluster Farming to The Livelihood of Farmers, A Comparative Study at Siyadebrina Wayu Woreda, North Shewa, Ethiopia

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Date

2020-07

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Addis Ababa University

Abstract

The idea of the Agricultural cluster was introduced in Ethiopia together with Agricultural commercialization cluster as a means of integrating different prioritized interventions in the transformation Agenda, within specific geographies targeting a limited number of high-value commodities during the first Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP) of Ethiopia. This research paper is focused on studying the contributions of cluster farming to the livelihood of farmers, at Siyadebrina Wayu woreda, North Shewa, Ethiopia. The major problems related to cluster farming are like poor financial access, low market linkage, low mechanization and poor infrastructure. The overall objective of this research was to examine the contributions of cluster farming to the livelihood of the farmers at Siyadebrina Wayu woreda of North Shewa zone. The study used both qualitative and quantitative methods. Primary and secondary data’s were generated by employing both qualitative and quantitative methods. Purposive and simple random sampling techniques were applied to select 130 cluster farming participants’ farmers and 80 businesses as usual farmers were involved farmers. In the process of the research both cluster farming participants’ as well as farmers who were not involved in the cluster farming were involved. The quantitative data generated were analyzed using SPSS software. The research finding reveals that farmers, who were engaged in Cluster farming, get better amount production of wheat per hectare of land as compared to business as usually farmers The research further reveal as the market linkage created among the cluster participant farmers and the Farmer union of the kebele, with the aim of creating better opportunities for cluster participant farmers, was not as such strong due to the overall limited capacity of the farmer union. Interms of getting modern inputs like fertilizers and improved seeds the research proved as there were delays in getting them on timely bases. On the other hand in relation to combiners and harvesters, even though there was a high demand in getting them on rental bases to overcome the high costs of daily laborers and untimely rain which affects their products while in the field, the research proved as farmers were not able to get combiners and harvesters. Interms of other social indicators the research further proved as the cluster participants farmers have better improvement in terms of sending their children to school, depositing money and having an assets, constructing separate house for their cattle’s and changing their life style as compared to the non-cluster participant farmers. Finally this study recommends that cluster farming should be strengthened to the extent of involving more number of farmers and by being introducing different improved seeds in the system and by providing all the necessary advisor service to the farmers through the woreda office of Agriculture and to strengthening the market linkage with the farmers union.

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Keywords

Cluster, cluster farming, Business as usual, Mechanization, Improved seeds, Market linkage, Farmers Union

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