Mismeasurement and efficiency estimates : Evidence from smallholder survey data in Africa

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cg.contributor.affiliationInternational Food Policy Research Instituteen_US
cg.contributor.affiliationInternational Institute of Tropical Agricultureen_US
cg.contributor.affiliationInternational Maize and Wheat Improvement Centeren_US
cg.contributor.donorBill & Melinda Gates Foundationen_US
cg.contributor.donorCGIAR Trust Funden_US
cg.contributor.initiativeExcellence in Agronomyen_US
cg.coverage.regionSub-Saharan Africaen_US
cg.creator.identifierKibrom Abay: 0000-0003-1451-2421en_US
cg.creator.identifierJordan Chamberlin: 0000-0001-9522-3001en_US
cg.howPublishedFormally Publisheden_US
cg.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.1111/1477-9552.12514en_US
cg.identifier.projectIFPRI - Development Strategies and Governance Uniten_US
cg.identifier.publicationRankBen_US
cg.isijournalISI Journalen_US
cg.issn0021-857Xen_US
cg.issn1477-9552en_US
cg.issue2en_US
cg.journalJournal of Agricultural Economicsen_US
cg.placeUnited States of Americaen_US
cg.reviewStatusPeer Reviewen_US
cg.subject.actionAreaResilient Agrifood Systemsen_US
cg.subject.impactAreaPoverty reduction, livelihoods and jobsen_US
cg.volume74en_US
dc.contributor.authorAbay, Kibrom A.en_US
dc.contributor.authorWossen, Tesfamichaelen_US
dc.contributor.authorChamberlin, Jordanen_US
dc.date.accessioned2023-04-12T18:17:41Zen_US
dc.date.available2023-04-12T18:17:41Zen_US
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10568/129959en_US
dc.titleMismeasurement and efficiency estimates : Evidence from smallholder survey data in Africaen_US
dcterms.abstractSmallholder agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa is commonly characterised by high levels of technical inefficiency. However, much of this characterisation relies on self-reported input and production data, which are prone to systematic measurement error. We show theoretically that non-classical measurement error introduces multiple identification challenges and sources of bias in estimating smallholders' technical inefficiency. We then empirically examine the implications of measurement error for the estimation of technical inefficiency using smallholder farm survey data from Ethiopia, Malawi, Nigeria and Tanzania. We find that measurement error in agricultural input and production data leads to a substantial upward bias in technical inefficiency estimates (by up to 85% for some farmers). Our results suggest that existing estimates of technical efficiency in sub-Saharan Africa may be severe underestimates of smallholders' actual efficiency and what is commonly attributed to farmer inefficiency may be an artefact of mismeasurement in agricultural data. Our results raise questions about the received wisdom on African smallholders' production efficiency and prior estimates of the productivity of agricultural inputs. Improving the measurement of agricultural data can improve our understanding of smallholders' production efficiencies and improve the targeting of productivity-enhancing technologies.en_US
dcterms.accessRightsLimited Accessen_US
dcterms.available2022-09-22en_US
dcterms.bibliographicCitationAbay, K. A., Wossen, T., & Chamberlin, J. (2022). Mismeasurement and efficiency estimates: Evidence from smallholder survey data in Africa. Journal of Agricultural Economics 74(2): 413-434. https://doi.org/10.1111/1477-9552.12514en_US
dcterms.extentpp. 413-434en_US
dcterms.issued2023-06en_US
dcterms.languageenen_US
dcterms.licenseCopyrighted; all rights reserveden_US
dcterms.publisherWileyen_US
dcterms.subjectcropsen_US
dcterms.subjectdna fingerprintingen_US
dcterms.subjectmeasurementen_US
dcterms.subjectfield sizeen_US
dcterms.subjectsmallholdersen_US
dcterms.subjectsurveysen_US
dcterms.subjectdataen_US
dcterms.typeJournal Articleen_US

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