Book Description

The research presented in this volume analyses the impact of market orientation on agricultural production and household food security; identifies determinants of farmer groups marketing; and investigates the effect of rural out-migration on agricultural intensification considering the case of banana and legume based systems in Central Africa. Based on a comprehensive field survey, the results show that market orientation enhances input use, yields, and food security by increasing rural households’ dietary diversity. They also demonstrate that the quality of marketing performance increases with the age of the farmer groups, the strengths of their internal structures and the extent of member participation in product bulking. Under the given conditions, policies that promote market orientation particularly by improving road infrastructure, provision of market information, and extension services would address production, marketing and food insecurity challenges while smart input subsidy programs targeting poor households can create additional employment and discourage massive rural out-migration. Besides, a transition of farmer groups into formal business entities could considerably support their marketing performance and hence their production efficacy.