Adoption and disadoption of the improved clay granary for maize storage: evidence from the northern and central regions of Benin

Abstract

This paper provides information on the adoption and disadoption of the improved clay granary for maize storage in the northern and central regions of Benin. The sample is 243 producers out of the 346 farmers who had been in contact with the improved clay granary in 2003. The data covered panel data of two periods (2003 and 2015). The descriptive statistics highlighted changes in the adoption status of the farmer from 2003 to 2015. 34.98% of farmers adopted the improved clay granary and 65.02 did not adopt it in 2003. Out of the 34.98% who adopted in 2003, 28.81% dropped out in 2015. However, 6.17 continued to use the improved clay granary in 2015. In contrast, among the 65.02% of producers who had not adopted in 2003, only 6.58% did in 2015. The analysis model used is the semi-parametric bivariate model with sample selection. The results showed that the choice to adopt an improved clay granary is specifically determined by the share of the stock held for sale and the ratio of dependents on the labor available in the household, the experience, the cost and efficiency of improved clay granary, the credit access. Specifically, disadoption of the improved clay granary is determined by the high level of education and experience, the quantity produced and stocked for the sale for the household, the availability of the improved clay granary building materials, the contact with extension agents working with storage innovations, no credit access, the efficiency of chemical protection products, the availability of building materials and the efficiency of improved clay granary. This study suggested that knowledge of disadoption factors is important for the development and dissemination of better technologies by agribusiness firms, institutions and policymakers.