Gendered Determinants of Cost Efficiency among Smallholder Arable Crop Farmers in Abia State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study analyzed the gendered determinants of cost efficiency among smallholder arable crop farmers in Abia State, Nigeria, using a stochastic cost frontier model. Primary data were collected from 240 farmers using a multistage sampling technique. Results revealed significant gender differences in cost efficiency: for male farmers, γ = 0.8033 indicated that 80.3% of cost variation was due to inefficiency, while for female farmers, γ = 0.8760 indicated that 87.6% was attributable to inefficiency. For male farmers, land price, labour, planting materials, and agrochemicals significantly increased production costs, while age and household size reduced inefficiency. Marital status and credit access increased inefficiency for men, likely due to resource diversion and household obligations. For female farmers, the cost of planting materials significantly increased production expenses, whereas age, farming experience, education, and credit access improved efficiency. Overall, the study showed that, male inefficiency stemmed mainly from high input and labour costs, while female inefficiency was linked to constrained access to productive resources and rising input prices. The study recommends enhanced input subsidies, gender-sensitive credit monitoring, and capacity‑building programs to improve cost efficiency and profitability among smallholder arable crop farmers in Abia State.

Keywords: Gender, determinants, Economic efficiency, and Arable crop farmers