Comparative Analysis Of Productivity And Efficiency In Low And High External Inputs Technology Agriculture In Imo State

ABSTRACT The study was designed to compare productivity and efficiency of Low External Input Technology and High External Input Technology Farms in Imo State. Specifically, it aimed at comparing the socio- economic characteristics of the two groups of farmers as well as their productivities, ascertain the factors influencing aggregate and individual resource productivities, determine production efficiency and returns to scale in the two farm types.  The study was conducted in Imo State, Nigeria. Primary data used for the study were collected using structured questionnaire. The sample size comprised 80 Low external input technology and 80 High external input technology farmers who were selected using the multistage and purposive sampling techniques. The sampling frame comprised all the LEIT and HEIT farmers in Imo State.  Data were analyzed using both statistical techniques, the Ordinary Least Square (OLS), multiple regression and profit function. The results of data analysis for the two farm types showed that farmland was more productive in the HEIT than LEIT farms while planting materials and organic manure were more productive in LEIT than planting materials and inorganic fertilizer in HEIT farms. Furthermore, man-days of labour and capital inputs are statistically significant in LEIT farms but non significant in the HEIT farm type at the 5% and 1% levels of probability though they possess the expected positive signs.  The results of data analysis further showed that farm size, expenditure on planting materials, capital inputs, expenditure on organic manure, number of crops planted in a mixture in the farms, level of education and farming experience are the main determinants of aggregate agricultural productivity in LEIT farms. These variables are statistically significant at 1% and 5% levels. On the other hand farm size, capital input, number of crops planted in a mixture in the farm, distance to the nearest market, level of education, farming experience, man-days of labour, and non farm income are the main determinants of aggregate agricultural productivity in HEIT farms. These variables are statistically significant at 1% and 5% levels. A comparative analysis of aggregate agricultural productivity between LEIT and HEIT farms showed that LEIT farmers achieved higher aggregate agricultural productivity than HEIT farmers. The results of data analysis on production efficiency showed that HEIT farmers were relatively more technically efficient than the LEIT farmers, in the use of resources. However, both farm types are allocatively inefficient in the use of farmland, labour, planting materials, capital inputs and organic manure or inorganic fertilizer. The existence of resource use disequilibria in both farm types implies that there is still the possibility of increasing output at the current level of technology in the study area.  The result also showed that the LEIT and HEIT farm types are equally economically efficient in the use of productive resources as there is no significant difference in their levels of economic efficiency. The result further showed that LEIT farmers experienced increasing returns to scale while HEIT farmers experienced decreasing returns to scale.