Factors Informing the Smallholder Farmers' Decision to Adopt and Use Improved Cassava Varieties in the South-east Area of Nigeria

The factors influencing farmers’ adoption and use intensity decisions on improved cassava varieties were investigated. Data collected from 510 cassava farmers randomly selected among the users (62.9%) and non-users (37.1%) from Abia State, south-east, Nigeria were used for the study. Descriptive and inferential statistics and tobit regression technique, with its associated elasticity decomposition framework were used in data analysis. Results revealed that plot size (p<0.01), farmer’s age (p<0.01), education status (p<0.01), and awareness through workshop and trainings (p<0.05) had significant positive influences on adoption and use while awareness through friends (p<0.01) and radio/television (p<0.01) had negative influences. Results were consistent for all three variants of the regression output considered. Elasticity results showed that the marginal effects of changes in all variables increased the elasticity of the probability of use more than they increased the probability of adoption for all households. The implication is that constant training and retraining of farmers on best farming and management practices would foster adoption and use of improved varieties to impact on the farmers’ wellbeing. Interactions among farmers during meetings, co-operatives, and other non-formal forums should be encouraged, but appropriately monitored, to ensure that only right messages were circulated to avoid distortion and negative outcomes. Keywords: adoption decisions, Manihot esculenta , improved varieties, rural farmers, tobit, use intensity