Review on the Determinants of Smallholder Farmers’ Commercialization in Ethiopia and Limitations in Commercialization Methodology

Abstract

This review has focused on the determinants of smallholder farmers’ commercialization in Ethiopia and limitations in commercialization methodology. The phrase smallholder implies the existence of small farm size, low level of income and low level of market participation. Agricultural commercialization is an indication of selling the produce to the market by smallholder farmers though the level of selling is different from farmer to farmer. The objectives of the review were to review on the determinants of smallholder farmers’ commercialization in Ethiopia and the Limitations of commercialization methodology. To achieve these objectives the published journal articles and reports have been reviewed. Moreover, there was a sort of discussion with my classmates to be clearer on some ambiguous issues on the concept of smallholder farmers’ commercialization. Based on the review, there are both internal and external factors that determine smallholder farmers’ commercialization in Ethiopia. Internal factors include land and other natural capital, labor, physical capital, human capital. On the other hand, the external factors include population growth and demographic change, technological change, infrastructural development, development of non-farm sector, property rights and land tenure system. The methodology agricultural commercialization has limitations which include biasedness to crop, absence of comprehensive definition of commercialization thereby the level of commercialization may lead to wrong conclusion.

DOI: 10.7176/EJBM/14-15-04

Publication date:August 31^st 2022