MEASUREMENT OF TECHNICAL EFFICIENCY DISPARITY OF COCOA PRODUCTION BY CERTIFICATION STATUS IN OGUN STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

The study Compared the technical efficiency disparity of cocoa Production by certification status among farmers in Ogun State, Nigeria. A multistage sampling technique was used in selecting 240 respondents from the study area. Data were collected through the administration of well-structured questionnaire and analysed using descriptive statistics, stochastic frontier analysis, and probit regression model. The results revealed that cocoa farming is dominated by middle-aged to older men (51years and 53years), with majority (87% and 77%) respondents married and having more than 40years of farming experience (about 21 years and 25years). Majority (38.3% and 28.3%) of Certified farmers attained primary education and tertiary education respectively while 25.0% and 21.7% of non-certified farmers had primary and tertiary education. Most (89.2%) of the certified farmers had contact with extension agents while majority (51.7%) of the non-certified farmers had no contact with extension agents and achieved greater productivity (643.50kg/ha) compared to non-certified farmers (496.02kg/ha), despite non-certified farmers having larger average farm sizes (3.32ha) and slightly higher incomes (₦821,524.16). Stochastic frontier estimates indicated higher mean technical efficiency among certified farmers (0.678) relative to non-certified farmers (0.623), underscoring the role of certification in enhancing resource use and productivity. Ordinary Least Square regression results showed that age (0.086; p<0.01), gender(0.314; p<0.05), household size(0.092; p<0.10), farming experience (0.021; p<0.01), extension contacts(1.512; p<0.05), and farm size (0.109; p<0.10) significantly influenced the certification status of cocoa farmers. The study concluded that certified cocoa farmers have higher technical efficiency compared to their non-certified counterparts in the study area. The study recommends strengthening extension services, expanding access to credit, and promoting farmer training on certification requirements to improve cocoa productivity and sustainability.