Technical efficiency in the spice based agroforestry sector in Matale, Sri Lanka

This paper looks at factors affecting the efficiency of the spice based agroforestry sector. The technical efficiency of spice based agroforestry systems was estimated in order to identify the potential increase in production without incurring additional costs for farm inputs. The paper also identifies factors causing technical inefficiency of spice based agroforestry and identifies the causes of unsustainability of the spice based agroforestry system.

Main findings include:

• according to a stochastic frontier production function using a Cobb-Douglas model, hired labour, organic fertilizer, inorganic fertilizer, land size, and soil fertility maintenance cost showed significant positive effects on the agroforestry production
• the average technical efficiency of the spice based agroforestry sector is 84.32 percent. Technical efficiency level of farmers ranged from 30.53 to 97.35 percent; there is a vast difference between technical efficiency levels of farmers even if they used the same level of inputs
• efficiency was found to increase significantly as a result of farm visits by extension officers, participation in farmer training, less sloping lands, more experience, and higher diversity of the agroforestry system
• technical efficiency decreased with higher education level of the farmer and with higher off farm income
• farm income from the spice based agroforestry system is low due to low productivity, market constraints, lack of technology, and institutionally related constraints
• there is a good possibility for stepping up production of high value export crops in the agroforestry system in marginal lands through appropriate crop diversification, and there is a high potential for expanded agroforestry if government and other related institutions pay more attention to this sector

[Adapted from authors]