Impact Of Agricultural Market Reforms On Smallholder Farmers In ...

Input use Fertilizer and pesticide use have grown significantly over the 1990s. Fertilizer
use has increased from 11.0 thousand tons of nutrient equivalent in 1990 to 37.7 thousand tons of
nutrient equivalent in 1998. This represents an annual growth rate of 17 percent. In fact, the
growth in fertilizer use in Benin over the past decade is one of the highest in sub-Saharan Africa.
This growth is attributed to the expansion in cotton production and continued provision of input
credit to cotton farmers. It should be noted that fertilizer use grew at a markedly higher rate (17
percent) than did cotton production (11 percent). This suggests that farmers are using higher
application rates on their cotton and/or farmers are using more fertilizer on other crops.
2.4 Review of Previous Research on Benin
In this section, we review the findings of recent research on agriculture, poverty, and economic
reform in Benin. The review is by necessity somewhat selective, but provides an overview of the
main issues of debate in Benin’s agricultural and rural development.
Food markets Food markets have been the topic of several studies. Lutz et al (1995)
examines the degree of integration of maize markets in southern Benin using data from the 1980s.
The study applies co-integration econometric methods to data on wholesale and retail maize prices
in four markets: Bohicon, Azove, Dogbo, and Dassa. The data were collected at four-day intervals
(every market day) from September 1987 to September 1989. The results indicate that maize prices
are integrated in the long-run, but prices in one market respond slowly to changes in prices in other
markets. Within eight days, 48-89 percent of the change in wholesale prices had been transmitted
to other markets. Prices in Dassa appeared to be less responsive to prices in the other markets, and
the authors speculate that this may be related to barriers to entry or inadequate market information.
Jansen and Perthel (1990) examine the supply responsiveness of maize in the department of
Atlantique. The authors note that the maize produced in the first season is used for subsistence. If
the first harvest is small, farmers will plant maize in the second season, whereas if the first harvest
is sufficient, they will plant “cash crops” such as beans and groundnuts in the second season. They
test this hypothesis using time-series data on prices and production in each season. The effect of
maize prices on maize production was significant only in the second season, consistent with the
idea that farmer decisions are more market oriented in the second season. Furthermore, the supply
of beans and groundnuts in the second season is positively and significantly influenced by maize
yield in the previous main season.
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