Determinants of Adoption of Improved Rice Varieties in Northern Sindh, Pakistan

Adoption of certified and improved high-yielding crop varieties is important avenue for increasing agricultural productivity and improving the living standard of the farmers in developing countries. The main objective of the current study was to examine factors affecting adoption of improved rice varieties by smallholder farmers in Northern Sindh, Pakistan. The random sampling technique was used to collect data from 220 smallholder rice farmers through the face to face interview. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and probit regression model. The empirical results showed that year of education (P ≤ 0.093), farming experience (P ≤ 0.043), soil quality (P ≤ 0.077), farm machinery ownership (P ≤ 0.000), access to market information (P ≤ 0.055) and contact with extension agents (P ≤ 0.006) had significantly positive influence on adoption of improved rice variety, while age (P ≤ 0.053) had significantly negative effect.