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Commercializing smallholder agriculture is a critical factor in the role played by agriculture in poverty reduction and food security in developing countries. While participation in markets offers opportunities for smallholder farmers to profit from agriculture and access essential resources, many still face limited market access and struggle to integrate into modern supply chains. At the same time, the same interventions that enhance commercialization could also negatively impact social cohesion in farming and result in deagrarianization which could indirectly explain the reported low market participation. A sociological perspective is needed to explore other possible determinations of market participation with special reference to vegetable growers using irrigation technology. This study, conducted in South Africa's Eastern Cape Province, examines the factors that influence irrigated smallholder vegetable farmers' market participation Data from 234 smallholder vegetable growers were collected using a multi-stratified sampling technique and analyzed using the double hurdle model. The results reveal that while some smallholder vegetable farmers engage in the market, overall participation rate stands at just 38%. The study revealed that market participation was influenced by a number of economic, technical, institutional, social and cultural factors. The study recommends that government and non-government organizations provide support, enhance input availability, improve rural education, and implement proactive extension services to bolster vegetable marketing among smallholders. IMPACT STATEMENT: Commercializing smallholder agriculture is vital for poverty reduction and food security in developing countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). However, many smallholder farmers struggle to access markets and integrate into modern supply chains. This study, conducted in South Africa's Eastern Cape Province, focuses on factors hindering market participation among smallholder vegetable farmers using irrigation technology. Findings reveal that while some farmers engage in the market, overall participation is low at 38%. Economic, technical, institutional, social and cultural factors influence market participation. To improve participation, support for farmers, input availability, rural education and extension services must be enhanced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Efforts to meet the Millennium Development Goal 1 (MDG1), which was to reduce by half the proportion of the population living below the poverty line by 2015, and the demands of democratization in South Africa have directed attention at the agricultural sector's potential for reducing poverty. Expectedly, agriculture has attracted considerable interest and public investment. This article explores the linkages between public spending in agriculture, agricultural growth, and poverty in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The identification of the critical linkages will contribute to improving decision making on the use of public funds in agriculture. Methodologically, the study simulates the required agricultural investment and required agricultural growth rate that is sufficient to meet MDG1 by 2025 by employing partial equilibrium modeling based on the System Dynamics Analyses approach. This entailed the application of growth decomposition technique and growth elasticity of poverty concepts with a specific emphasis on policy interventions for promoting agricultural growth. The drivers and cause-effect relationships between agriculture and poverty reduction were investigated. The employed models allowed for an exploration of plausible future growth in public spending in agriculture, agricultural growth elasticity of poverty, and the possibility of reducing poverty levels in the province while evaluating strategies for meeting the MDG1 by 2025. Estimates for the required agricultural growth rate and the increase in public spending on agriculture required in order to reach MDG1 by 2025 were calculated for each district municipality in the Eastern Cape Province. All the district municipalities were then evaluated in terms of their need to increase public investment in agriculture and the ability to achieve MDG1 by 2025 and beyond. Estimates for both the required public spending and the required agricultural growth were then calculated following both the business-as-usual scenario and the best-case scenario., Introduction Agriculture has since occupied the center stage in meeting the Millennium Development Goal 1 (MDG1) in many developing countries, which sought to reduce poverty worldwide by half by 2015. [...]

Renewable energies, which include biogas, have been identified as a possible panacea for the energy challenges faced by the poor and can potentially ensure that they obtain cheaper energy that is more accessible and environmentally sustainable. However, its adoption and use has been limited despite the important trade-offs it offers to rural households. Literature on agricultural innovations show that perceptions have an impact on decision-making in respect of adoption of new technology, and biogas is no exception. Nevertheless, there is a paucity of systematic studies on the adoption and perception of biogas. This study aimed to assess the use and perceptions of biogas among rural farming households and identify factors affecting adoption of biogas digesters. A cross-sectional survey of 48 households, randomly selected from Melani village, was conducted. Descriptive statistics and the Binary Logistic Regression (BLR) model were employed to address the study objectives. Descriptive statistics showed remarkable disparities between biogas adopters and non-adopters. Findings from the BLR show that age has a negative influence on biogas adoption, whilst employment status, land size and education have positive impacts on biogas adoption. Information on the economic benefits of low cost biogas should be accessible to rural households. We recommended that rural households be made aware of biogas digesters and the design of small-scale rural biogas policies take cognisance of the socio-economic characteristics of biogas adopters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]