Factors Affecting Adoption of Management Practices in Smallholder Oil Palm Plantations of Banten Province, Indonesia

Abstract

The fifth Nucleus Estate Smallholder (NES) oil palm development project was introduced for smallholders in Banten province (Indonesia) to generate incomes and to provide employment to rural communities. This paper presents an analysis of the factors that hindered an extensive project implementation to benefit smallholder oil palm producers, and proposes appropriate strategies to revive oil palm production. Interviews with 127 farmers revealed that individual smallholders or family members had no obligation to work in their oil palm fields. Besides, smallholders felt that oil palm cultivation was a second priority after food crops. Most of the smallholders were not aware of managing oil palm plantations due to the unsatisfactory management strategy formulated, as well as due to the technology-dissemination approach used, which was highly dependent on the capacity of the leader of the joint farmer group. Oil palm still provides 30% of the total smallholder income. However, the FFB yield was significantly correlated with smallholders' total income. Besides, it was found that 30% of respondents each owned more than 1.5 hectares of oil palm plantation. Therefore improvement of smallholder oil palm plantations will have a high impact on smallholders' livelihoods. Lack of attention and assistance from institutions, lack of funds, insufficient human capacity, poor extension service, lack of replanting programmes, poor leadership skill, and poor accountability among the farmer group members, were the other contributory factors to the failure of the project.