Trends in crop production and land productivity in northern Ghana: A case study of Tolon-Kumbung
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ORIGINAL PAPER
Trends in crop production and land productivity in northern Ghana: A case study of Tolon-Kumbung Katsushige Nakasone 1 & Raju Ghimire 2 & Murari Suvedi 2 Received: 11 April 2019 / Accepted: 16 November 2020 # International Society for Plant Pathology and Springer Nature B.V. 2020
Abstract Increasing agricultural production and reducing poverty through a modernized agricultural system has been a priority of the government of Ghana. We analyzed the trends of major crop yields, cultivated area, and fertilizer input in two villages – Tongoli and Gbullung – of Tolon-Kumbung district in northern Ghana. Using longitudinal panel data from 67 households from 2004 to 2015, we performed statistical analyses such as percentage, average, frequency, and trend analysis, and used time fixed effect regression model to determine the relationship between the value of crop production and independent variables such as labor, input cost, area, income, and occupation. The results show that total cultivated area continues to decrease as family size and the number of farmers per compound decrease. The number of cultivated crops decreased, and the yield of major crops became unstable. However, the number of farmers aiming to increase production by using chemical fertilizer on maize and rice increased. Fertilizer greatly increases the yield of maize and rice, but the decision to use fertilizer depends on price, which continues to rise. To improve this situation, it is necessary to improve the agricultural input distribution system. The study results show that all types of labor, cropped area, income, and input cost play important roles in increasing the value of production and productivity. But the situation in the study district is opposite – it is experiencing reduction of the labor force due to outmigration, decreased family size, and reduction in the number of farmers. Provisions for selective mechanization and an improved input distribution system may address the requirement of labor in agriculture and sustain crop production and land productivity. Keywords Agricultural production . Trend analysis . Field crops . Input use . Land productivity . Ghana
1 Introduction Ghana’s agriculture sector contributes 23.3% of the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP), with the crop sector as the largest share – 17.3% (GSS 2016). Out of total employable population (i.e., 12.04 million in 2013), 45.2% is engaged in agriculture (ILO 2017). The growth rate of the agriculture sector increased from 0.9% to 7.4% during 2008–2015, and it continues to grow. The Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) has focused its efforts in developing policies to increase the production of staple crops and improve food security (MOFA 2007). * Katsushige Nakasone [email protected] 1
Faculty of International Agriculture and Food Studies, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Tokyo, Japan
2
Department of Community Sustainability, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA
The national development plan of Ghana has given a top priority to the moderniza
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