Effect of resource endowment, difference in resource endowment and return on gender agricultural Productivity gap among smallholder farmers in Busia county Kenya

Abstract

The Food and Agriculture Organization highlights agriculture's crucial role in Africa's livelihoods and economic growth. However, productivity has declined recently; a Central Bank of Kenya survey reported a 6.6% drop in output per acre from 2020 to 2023, affecting food security. In Busia County, despite extensive farming areas for food crops, yields per acre have fallen, as noted in the CIDP. The gender productivity gap may be a key factor explaining this decline. This study investigated how resource endowments and returns contribute to this gap among Busia County's smallholder farmers, essential for boosting food security. The study aimed to assess how resource endowments, differences in endowments, and variations in returns to resource endowments impact the gender productivity gap in Busia County, Kenya. It used a framework based on Production theory and feminist theories, applying a pragmatist approach, quantitative methods, and correlational design. The study targeted 149,675 smallholder farmers, with a sample of 384, determined by Cochran’s formula and selected through multistage sampling. Data was collected via structured questionnaires, analysed descriptively and inferentially using t-tests, p-values, and confidence intervals, and processed through multiple regression and Oaxaca–Blinder decomposition techniques.The study revealed that fertilizer usage (β= -0.012, p=0.002), improved seed (β=0.016, p=0.006), plot size (β= -0.048, p=0.000), good soil quality (β= -0.029,p=0.003), university education (β= -0.057, p=0.000), college education (β= -0.025, P=0.027), commute time (β= -0.083, p=0.000), intercropping (β= 0.023, p=0.022), hired labour (β= 0.029,p=0.010), female family labour (β= 0.002, p=0.013), joint plot ownership (β= 0.05, p=0.0000), monthly income (β= -0.072, p=0.000), monthly expenditure (β= 0.033,p=0.013), and farmers’ age (β= -0.032, p=0.045) have significant effect on productivity gap. Additionally, Male endowment advantage (β= 0.0144, p=0.850) and female structural disadvantage (β= 0.573, P=0.00) have significant effect on gender agricultural productivity gap. This study concluded that resource endowments have significant effect on gender agricultural productivity gap. The gap is significantly explained by female structural disadvantages. To reduce the gap, implementation of policies and programs to ensure equiTable access to agricultural resources, empowerment of female farmers through on-farm education, strengthening land tenure rights for women, address gender disparities in labour allocation, promote multi-cropping practices, and build capacity for gender-responsive agricultural practices among stakeholders. The study contributed to a more comprehensive understanding of the differences between male and female farmers, shedding light on structural inequalities within the agricultural sector.