Assessment of the Status of Improved Forage Technologies and Factors Influencing Technology Adoption: Empirical Evidence from North Shewa, Oromia, Ethiopia

Abstract

The objective of this study is to assess the status of improved forage technologies and factors influencing technology adoption in the Debrelibanose district, North Shewa, Oromia, Ethiopia. In this study, survey study was used to collect primary data from 319 households, and Data was collected using a structured and semi-structured household survey questionnaire. Simple descriptive statistics were employed to analyze the collected data. As a result, 128 (40%) of the 319 respondents are adopters, while the remaining 191 (60%) are non-adopters of improved forage. Improved forage crops contributed approximately (14.1%) to the study area, with oats and vetch being the main sources of improved feed for animals. These technologies have been adopted and used by smallholder dairy farmers. The adopter households in the study area allocated only 6.4% of their farmland (0.17 ha on average) for the production of forage crops. Oats vetch and elephant grass were the main forage crops grown in study area and the two most important forage crops covers (58.9%) and (7.2%) respectively. Furthermore, the study attempted to assess gender disparities in the adoption of improved forage technology, and the results revealed that 115 (89.8%) of respondents were male-headed households, while 13 (10.2%) were female-headed households. In general, the study revealed that a small proportion of households have already begun using improved forage crops, while a large proportion of smallholder dairy farmers have yet to begin using improved forage technology. It was found that land scarcity (50.8%) and a lack of source technology (seed scarcity (40.7%) were critical constraints for the low adoption of this particular technology in the study area. Based on the findings of this study, it is recommended to emphasize the importance of addressing extension service, training, and access to forage seed and planting materials and others issues in the study area. In addition, the national agricultural research system, in collaboration with agricultural extension, should work rigorously to promote the uptake of the technology and bridge the huge adoption gap between adopters and non-adopters.

Keywords: Assessment; Debrelibanose; District; Improved forage; Status

DOI: 10.7176/JBAH/13-7-03

Publication date:May 31^st 2023