Assessment of technical efficiency and its determinants among smallholder pepper farmers in Tolon district of Ghana

Abstract

The main purpose of the study was to assess technical efficiency (TE) and its determinants among smallholder pepper farmers in a less developed country, Ghana. The study used a stochastic frontier approach and the translog production function to analyze TE of the selected pepper farmers. The mean technical efficiency was estimated at 81.4% implying high efficiency of production among the producers. Pepper output increased with the cost of ploughing as well as the quantity of seed used in production. Furthermore, respondent’s age, years of formal education, household size, weeding frequency, livestock ownership and access to credit were identified as significant factors affecting TE. The study recommends provision of credit to farmers, training on effective weed control and soil fertility management alongside integration of livestock rearing as measures necessary to boost TE of pepper farmers.