Vegetable diversification in cocoa-based farming systems Ghana

Abstract

Background: As part of dynamic livelihood coping strategies, some farmers in Ghana's cocoa belt have diversified away from traditional cocoa production to other high-value crops including vegetables, to the extent of diversifying within vegetables. This study assessed the extent of diversification of vegetables among farmers in Ghana's cocoa belt and determined the factors that explain the variability in the diversification indices. A small-sample-size formula ( http://www.surveysystem.com/sscalc.htm ) that was based on an estimated population of the sample was used to arrive at 621 farmer respondents from the Ashanti and Western Regions of Ghana. A combination of proportional and random sampling was employed to select farmers for the interview. Results: Marital status of the household head and total land endowment were the major determinants of diversification. Conclusions: Unlike most other studies found in the crop diversification literature, this study used econometric data reduction procedures to select the appropriate diversification indices, and selected the most appropriate fractional regression functional form from the four modelled. Vegetable diversification offers great potential for improving livelihoods of cocoa-based farm households in the study area.