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Nudging Boserup? The Impact of Fertilizer Subsidies on Investment in Soil and Water Conservation

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  • Vondolia, Godwin Kofi
  • Eggert, HÃ¥kan
  • Stage, Jesper

Abstract

The new fertilizer subsidies in sub-Saharan Africa are intended to increase agricultural production and ensure development of a fertilizer market. Fertilizer adoption requires complementary inputs, such as investment in soil and water conservation (SWC), for efficient and optimal nutrient uptake, and many fertilizer subsidy programs implicitly assume that fertilizer subsidies crowd in such investments. The results of our study of the impact of fertilizer subsidies on SWC efforts in Ghana indicate that beneficiaries of the program do not invest significantly more in SWC. This suggests that policies should not expect farmers to respond to fertilizer subsidies with substantial investment in SWC. Thus, in order to achieve increased investment in SWC for sustainable agricultural development, more comprehensive measures that include fertilizer investments explicitly (such as integrated soil fertility management programs) may be needed.

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  • Vondolia, Godwin Kofi & Eggert, HÃ¥kan & Stage, Jesper, "undated". "Nudging Boserup? The Impact of Fertilizer Subsidies on Investment in Soil and Water Conservation," RFF Working Paper Series dp-12-08-efd, Resources for the Future.
    • Handle: RePEc:rff:dpaper:dp-12-08-efd
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    Cited by:

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    2. Ragasa, Catherine & Dankyi, Awere & Acheampong, Patricia & Wiredu, Alexander Nimo & Chapoto, Antony & Asamoah, Marian & Tripp, Robert, 2013. "Patterns of adoption of improved rice technologies in Ghana:," GSSP working papers 35, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    3. Levine, N. Kendra & Mason, Nicole M. & Morgan, Stephen N., 2016. "Do input subsidies crowd in or crowd out other soil fertility management practices? Panel survey evidence from Zambia," 2016 Fifth International Conference, September 23-26, 2016, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia 246393, African Association of Agricultural Economists (AAAE).
    4. Van Asselt, Joanna & Grogan, Kelly A., 2020. "Do Fertilizer Subsidies Improve Soil Quality: Myopic vs. Dynamic Analysis of Smallholder Farmers in Ghana," 2020 Annual Meeting, July 26-28, Kansas City, Missouri 304546, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    5. Olson, David W. & Mason, Nicole M., 2017. "Maize Marketing Boards and Sustainable Intensification: Panel Survey Evidence from Kenya," 2017 Annual Meeting, July 30-August 1, Chicago, Illinois 258093, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    6. Jayne, T.S. & Sitko, Nicholas J. & Mason, Nicole M., 2017. "Can Input Subsidy Programs Contribute To Climate Smart Agriculture?," Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Security Policy Research Papers 270626, Michigan State University, Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics, Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Security (FSP).
    7. Houssou, Nazaire & Andam, Kwaw S. & Collins, Asante-Addo, 2017. "Can better targeting improve the effectiveness of Ghana's Fertilizer Subsidy Program? Lessons from Ghana and other countries in Africa south of the Sahara," IFPRI discussion papers 1605, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    soil and water conservation; soil fertility; fertilizer subsidy; endogenous switching;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N57 - Economic History - - Agriculture, Natural Resources, Environment and Extractive Industries - - - Africa; Oceania
    • Q15 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Land Ownership and Tenure; Land Reform; Land Use; Irrigation; Agriculture and Environment
    • Q18 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Agricultural Policy; Food Policy; Animal Welfare Policy

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