IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v17y2025i3p1148-d1580738.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Factors Influencing the Adoption of Agroecological Vegetable Cropping Systems by Smallholder Farmers in Tanzania

Author

Listed:
  • Essy C. Kirui

    (International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology, Nairobi P.O. Box 30772-00100, Kenya
    Department of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness Management, Egerton University, Njoro P.O Box 536-20115, Kenya)

  • Michael M. Kidoido

    (International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology, Nairobi P.O. Box 30772-00100, Kenya)

  • Komivi S. Akutse

    (International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology, Nairobi P.O. Box 30772-00100, Kenya
    Unit of Environmental Sciences and Management, North-West University, Private Bag X6001, Potchefstroom 2520, South Africa)

  • Rosina Wanyama

    (World Vegetable Center Eastern and Southern Africa, Duluti, Arusha P.O. Box 10, Tanzania)

  • Simon B. Boni

    (World Vegetable Center Eastern and Southern Africa, Duluti, Arusha P.O. Box 10, Tanzania)

  • Thomas Dubois

    (International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology, Nairobi P.O. Box 30772-00100, Kenya)

  • Fekadu F. Dinssa

    (World Vegetable Center Eastern and Southern Africa, Duluti, Arusha P.O. Box 10, Tanzania)

  • Daniel M. Mutyambai

    (International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology, Nairobi P.O. Box 30772-00100, Kenya
    Department of Life Sciences, South Eastern Kenya University, Kitui P.O. Box 170-90200, Kenya)

Abstract

Vegetable production is vital to smallholder farmers, who often struggle to overcome pests, diseases, and extreme weather. Agroecological cropping systems offer sustainable solutions to these issues but their adoption rates in Tanzania remain low. This study examines the factors influencing smallholder farmers’ adoption of selected agroecological cropping systems for vegetable production in Tanzania, which remains underexplored. Using a multistage sampling technique, cross-sectional data were gathered from 525 crucifer and traditional African vegetable farming households within the Arusha and Kilimanjaro regions. Multivariate probit regression analysis, which accounts for the simultaneous adoption of multiple systems, revealed several significant variables influencing adoption. The number of training sessions attended and access to market information positively influenced adoption ( p < 0.01), while gross income from vegetable production also had a positive influence ( p < 0.05). Conversely, the age of the household head and the region where the farm was located showed negative effects on adoption ( p < 0.05). These findings highlight the need for targeted extension services and training sessions focusing on the benefits, methods, and management techniques of agroecological cropping systems. Gender-sensitive policies and interventions should also be developed to address the factors influencing the adoption of agroecological cropping systems.

Suggested Citation

  • Essy C. Kirui & Michael M. Kidoido & Komivi S. Akutse & Rosina Wanyama & Simon B. Boni & Thomas Dubois & Fekadu F. Dinssa & Daniel M. Mutyambai, 2025. "Factors Influencing the Adoption of Agroecological Vegetable Cropping Systems by Smallholder Farmers in Tanzania," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(3), pages 1-21, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:3:p:1148-:d:1580738
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/3/1148/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/3/1148/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Ennio Cascetta, 2009. "Random Utility Theory," Springer Optimization and Its Applications, in: Transportation Systems Analysis, chapter 0, pages 89-167, Springer.
    2. Jha, Srijna & Kaechele, Harald & Sieber, Stefan, 2021. "Factors influencing the adoption of agroforestry by smallholder farmer households in Tanzania: Case studies from Morogoro and Dodoma," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 103(C).
    3. Ardina Hasanbasri & Talip Kilic & Gayatri Koolwal & Heather Moylan, 2023. "Multidimensionality of Landownership among Men and Women in Sub-Saharan Africa," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 66(3), pages 581-608.
    4. Shilpa Aggarwal & Brian Giera & Dahyeon Jeong & Jonathan Robinson & Alan Spearot, 2024. "Market Access, Trade Costs, and Technology Adoption: Evidence from Northern Tanzania," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 106(6), pages 1511-1528, November.
    5. Benitez-Altuna, Francisco & Trienekens, Jacques & Materia, Valentina C. & Bijman, Jos, 2021. "Factors affecting the adoption of ecological intensification practices: A case study in vegetable production in Chile," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 194(C).
    6. Bichaye Tesfaye & Monica Lengoiboni & Jaap Zevenbergen & Belay Simane, 2023. "Rethinking the Impact of Land Certification on Tenure Security, Land Disputes, Land Management, and Agricultural Production: Insights from South Wello, Ethiopia," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(9), pages 1-25, September.
    7. Frank Mmbando & Emmanuel Mbeyagala & Papias Binagwa & Rael Karimi & Hellen Opie & Justus Ochieng & Tarcisius Mutuoki & Ramakrishnan Madhavan Nair, 2021. "Adoption of Improved Mungbean Production Technologies in Selected East African Countries," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-15, June.
    8. Stephen R. Gliessman, 2020. "Transforming food and agriculture systems with agroecology," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 37(3), pages 547-548, September.
    9. Juventia, Stella D. & Selin Norén, Isabella L.M. & van Apeldoorn, Dirk F. & Ditzler, Lenora & Rossing, Walter A.H., 2022. "Spatio-temporal design of strip cropping systems," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 201(C).
    10. repec:plo:pone00:0237337 is not listed on IDEAS
    11. Khutlang Lekhisa & Brian Muroyiwa, 2024. "Determinants of Market Outlet Choice for Smallholder Broiler Farmers in Leribe District of Lesotho," Journal of Social and Development Sciences, AMH International, vol. 14(2), pages 13-26.
    12. De Blasis, Fabio, 2020. "Global horticultural value chains, labour and poverty in Tanzania," World Development Perspectives, Elsevier, vol. 18(C).
    13. Stephane Hess & Andrew Daly & Richard Batley, 2018. "Revisiting consistency with random utility maximisation: theory and implications for practical work," Theory and Decision, Springer, vol. 84(2), pages 181-204, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Andrés Campoverde Caicedo & Orlando Meneses Quelal, 2025. "Challenges and Opportunities of Oxalis tuberosa Molina Cultivation, from an Andean Agroecological and Biocultural Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(14), pages 1-22, July.
    2. Rubab Shafique & Sharzil Haris Khan & Jihyoung Ryu & Seung Won Lee, 2025. "Weather-Driven Predictive Models for Jassid and Thrips Infestation in Cotton Crop," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-17, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Kappenberger, Jakob & Stuckenschmidt, Heiner & Gerdon, Frederic, 2025. "Pricing parking for fairness — A simulation study based on an empirically calibrated model of parking behavior," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 193(C).
    2. Xuezhen Xu & Fang Wang & Tao Xu & Sufyan Ullah Khan, 2023. "How Does Capital Endowment Impact Farmers’ Green Production Behavior? Perspectives on Ecological Cognition and Environmental Regulation," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(8), pages 1-27, August.
    3. Aragón, Fernando M. & Restuccia, Diego & Rud, Juan Pablo, 2022. "Are small farms really more productive than large farms?," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 106(C).
    4. Georges Sfeir & Gabriel Nova & Stephane Hess & Sander van Cranenburgh, 2025. "Can large language models assist choice modelling? Insights into prompting strategies and current models capabilities," Papers 2507.21790, arXiv.org.
    5. Pomi Shahbaz & Shamsheer ul Haq & Azhar Abbas & Zahira Batool & Bader Alhafi Alotaibi & Roshan K. Nayak, 2022. "Adoption of Climate Smart Agricultural Practices through Women Involvement in Decision Making Process: Exploring the Role of Empowerment and Innovativeness," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 12(8), pages 1-16, August.
    6. Mélanie Bourassa Forcier & Charles-Étienne Daniel & Arthur Oulaï & Natalia Torres Orozco & Olivia Toussaint-Martin & Mathieu Kiriakos, 2023. "Le déploiement de la cybersanté au Mali: considérations juridiques à partir de la perspective québécoise," CIRANO Working Papers 2023s-08, CIRANO.
    7. Fraser, Iain & Balcombe, Kelvin & Williams, Louis & McSorley, Eugene, 2021. "Preference stability in discrete choice experiments. Some evidence using eye-tracking," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    8. Delera, Michele, 2021. "Is production in global value chains (GVCs) sustainable? A review of the empirical evidence on social and environmental sustainabilitiy in GVCs," PEGNet Policy Studies 04/2020, PEGNet - Poverty Reduction, Equity and Growth Network, Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel).
    9. Mohamed Ghali & Maha Ben Jaballah & Nejla Ben Arfa & Annie Sigwalt, 2022. "Analysis of factors that influence adoption of agroecological practices in viticulture," Review of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Studies, Springer, vol. 103(3), pages 179-209, September.
    10. Stephane Hess & Andrew Daly & Maria Börjesson, 2020. "A critical appraisal of the use of simple time-money trade-offs for appraisal value of travel time measures," Transportation, Springer, vol. 47(3), pages 1541-1570, June.
    11. Amare, Dagninet & Darr, Dietrich, 2024. "Holistic analysis of factors influencing the adoption of agroforestry to foster forest sector based climate solutions," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 164(C).
    12. Yuying Liu & Ruiling Shi & Yiting Peng & Wei Wang & Xinhong Fu, 2022. "Impacts of Technology Training Provided by Agricultural Cooperatives on Farmers’ Adoption of Biopesticides in China," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 12(3), pages 1-17, February.
    13. Lenore Newman & Robert Newell & Colin Dring & Alesandros Glaros & Evan Fraser & Zsofia Mendly-Zambo & Arthur Gill Green & Krishna Bahadur KC, 2023. "Agriculture for the Anthropocene: novel applications of technology and the future of food," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 15(3), pages 613-627, June.
    14. Laurent Hazard & Nathalie Couix & Camille Lacombe, 2022. "From evidence to value-based transition: the agroecological redesign of farming systems," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 39(1), pages 405-416, March.
    15. Challand, Margot & Vismara, Philippe & de Tourdonnet, Stephane, 2025. "Combining constraint programming and a participatory approach to design agroecological cropping systems," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 222(C).
    16. van Cranenburgh, Sander & Garrido-Valenzuela, Francisco, 2025. "Computer vision-enriched discrete choice models, with an application to residential location choice," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 192(C).
    17. Baert, Midas & Kervyn, Matthieu & Kagou, Armand Dongmo & Guedjeo, Christian Suh & Vranken, Liesbet & Mertens, Kewan, 2020. "Resettlement preferences from landslide prone areas in Cameroon: Willingness to move, reasons to stay," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    18. Durrant, Eleanor & Howson, Pete & Sallu, Susannah M. & Shirima, Deo D. & Lala, Margherita & Milheiras, Sergio G. & Lyimo, Francis & Nyiti, Petro P. & Mwanga, Lilian & Kioko, Esther & Pfeifer, Marion, 2025. "Understanding farmers' attitudes and aspirations for tree-cover restoration in the Kilombero Valley, Tanzania," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 172(C).
    19. Günther Fink & Katharina Förtsch & Stefan Felder, 2023. "Subjective burden of government-imposed Covid-19 restrictions in Switzerland: Evidence from the 2022 LINK Covid-19 survey," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 18(7), pages 1-13, July.
    20. Richard Norman & Bram Roudijk & Marcel Jonker & Elly Stolk & Saskia Knies & Raoh-Fang Pwu & Ciaran O’Neill & Kirsten Howard & Nancy Devlin, 2025. "A Taxonomy for Assessing Whether HRQoL Value Sets Are Obsolete," PharmacoEconomics, Springer, vol. 43(5), pages 473-481, May.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:3:p:1148-:d:1580738. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.