Unveiling the Economic Potential of Smallholder Pepper Production in the Kumbungu District of Northern Ghana

This study examines the economic benefits and constraints associated with smallholder pepper production in the Kumbungu District of Northern Ghana. Using a multistage sampling method and semi-structured questionnaire, data were gathered from 200 pepper producers from various communities within the district. Gross Margin analysis, descriptive statistics and Kendall's Concordance method were employed to analyze the data. The results revealed that male farmers dominated with 88% whiles the remaining 12% were women, the mean age of the respondent was 34.21. Majority of the respondents were married (72.5%) while the remaining were single (27.5%) with no divorcees or widows. 85.5% cultivate pepper on farm size between 1.1 to 2.0 hectares with relatively highest mean productivity. In addition, pepper production in the study area is profitable due to GH₵1.98 return for every GH₵1 invested. Major factors identified and ranked as the main constraints in order of importance were; Insufficient working capital, High cost of production inputs, Low level of government support, Inadequate storage facilities, Perishable nature of pepper, Poor mode of transportation, long distance to market, difficulty in getting land for production and insufficient knowledge in pepper production. Therefore, NGOs and Financial institutions who have interest in agriculture should offer credit facilities to pepper farmers for expanding production. The provision of incentive in the form of subsidy, cost-sharing, price control among others should be instituted by the Government, MOFA and Non-Governmental Organization to aid in the expansion of pepper production in the study area.