Incentivizing and retaining public servants in remote areas: A discrete choice experiment with agricultural extension agents in Ethiopia
Increased deployment of agricultural extension agents (EAs) in rural areas is grounded on their importance to spur agricultural productivity and mitigate spatial imbalances in welfare. However, the high turnover and the low motivation levels of EAs in remote areas pose challenges for equitable servi...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Artículo preliminar |
| Language: | Inglés |
| Published: |
International Food Policy Research Institute
2020
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/143232 |
| _version_ | 1855537101345390592 |
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| author | Regassa, Mekdim D. Abate, Gashaw T. Kubik, Zaneta |
| author_browse | Abate, Gashaw T. Kubik, Zaneta Regassa, Mekdim D. |
| author_facet | Regassa, Mekdim D. Abate, Gashaw T. Kubik, Zaneta |
| author_sort | Regassa, Mekdim D. |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | Increased deployment of agricultural extension agents (EAs) in rural areas is grounded on their importance to spur agricultural productivity and mitigate spatial imbalances in welfare. However, the high turnover and the low motivation levels of EAs in remote areas pose challenges for equitable service provision and, in some cases, exacerbates geographic disparities. We assess the effectiveness of selected potential policy interventions to incentivize and retain EAs in remote areas of Ethiopia. To this end, we conducted a choice experiment to elicit preferences for job attributes of 761 EAs. We applied a random parameters logit model to estimate parameters of interest and to simulate the impact of possible policy interventions. The main results show that offering continuing education opportunities after two years of service increases uptake of an extension job in remote locations by 77 percentage points, which is significantly higher than the effect from doubling current salary levels (70 percentage points). EAs also expressed a strong preference for work environments with basic amenities, housing, transportation services, and wellequipped Farmer Training Centers (FTCs). Furthermore, the results from sub-sample analyses show that female EAs are less responsive to pecuniary incentives and are more concerned with the availability of infrastructure and services. Current salary levels, years of employment, and location of work are also important sources of heterogeneity in the response of EAs to potential policy changes. |
| format | Artículo preliminar |
| id | CGSpace143232 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2020 |
| publishDateRange | 2020 |
| publishDateSort | 2020 |
| publisher | International Food Policy Research Institute |
| publisherStr | International Food Policy Research Institute |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1432322025-11-06T07:24:12Z Incentivizing and retaining public servants in remote areas: A discrete choice experiment with agricultural extension agents in Ethiopia Regassa, Mekdim D. Abate, Gashaw T. Kubik, Zaneta agricultural extension incentives public policies public services workforce rural areas Increased deployment of agricultural extension agents (EAs) in rural areas is grounded on their importance to spur agricultural productivity and mitigate spatial imbalances in welfare. However, the high turnover and the low motivation levels of EAs in remote areas pose challenges for equitable service provision and, in some cases, exacerbates geographic disparities. We assess the effectiveness of selected potential policy interventions to incentivize and retain EAs in remote areas of Ethiopia. To this end, we conducted a choice experiment to elicit preferences for job attributes of 761 EAs. We applied a random parameters logit model to estimate parameters of interest and to simulate the impact of possible policy interventions. The main results show that offering continuing education opportunities after two years of service increases uptake of an extension job in remote locations by 77 percentage points, which is significantly higher than the effect from doubling current salary levels (70 percentage points). EAs also expressed a strong preference for work environments with basic amenities, housing, transportation services, and wellequipped Farmer Training Centers (FTCs). Furthermore, the results from sub-sample analyses show that female EAs are less responsive to pecuniary incentives and are more concerned with the availability of infrastructure and services. Current salary levels, years of employment, and location of work are also important sources of heterogeneity in the response of EAs to potential policy changes. 2020-05-01 2024-05-22T12:12:39Z 2024-05-22T12:12:39Z Working Paper https://hdl.handle.net/10568/143232 en https://doi.org/10.2499/1037800843 https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.133323 Open Access application/pdf International Food Policy Research Institute Regassa, Mekdim D.; Abate, Gashaw T.; and Kubik, Zaneta. 2020. Incentivizing and retaining public servants in remote areas: A discrete choice experiment with agricultural extension agents in Ethiopia. ESSP Working Paper 147. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.133805. |
| spellingShingle | agricultural extension incentives public policies public services workforce rural areas Regassa, Mekdim D. Abate, Gashaw T. Kubik, Zaneta Incentivizing and retaining public servants in remote areas: A discrete choice experiment with agricultural extension agents in Ethiopia |
| title | Incentivizing and retaining public servants in remote areas: A discrete choice experiment with agricultural extension agents in Ethiopia |
| title_full | Incentivizing and retaining public servants in remote areas: A discrete choice experiment with agricultural extension agents in Ethiopia |
| title_fullStr | Incentivizing and retaining public servants in remote areas: A discrete choice experiment with agricultural extension agents in Ethiopia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Incentivizing and retaining public servants in remote areas: A discrete choice experiment with agricultural extension agents in Ethiopia |
| title_short | Incentivizing and retaining public servants in remote areas: A discrete choice experiment with agricultural extension agents in Ethiopia |
| title_sort | incentivizing and retaining public servants in remote areas a discrete choice experiment with agricultural extension agents in ethiopia |
| topic | agricultural extension incentives public policies public services workforce rural areas |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/143232 |
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