Is agricultural lime a profitable investment for African smallholders? Evidence from Rwanda
Soil acidity is a major constraint to crop production in tropical regions. Although agricultural lime is one option to remediate acid soils, there is limited information on the potential returns on investments to liming by smallholders. Using survey data collected from 261 households in Rwanda, we e...
| Autores principales: | , , , , , , , |
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| Formato: | Journal Article |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés |
| Publicado: |
AAAE
2024
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/172595 |
| _version_ | 1855536600902008832 |
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| author | Debello, Moti Jaleta Silva, João Vasco Ruganzu, Vicky Mvuyekure, Simon Martin Mujanama, Erick Voss, Rachel C. Chamberlin, Jordan Baudron, Frédéric |
| author_browse | Baudron, Frédéric Chamberlin, Jordan Debello, Moti Jaleta Mujanama, Erick Mvuyekure, Simon Martin Ruganzu, Vicky Silva, João Vasco Voss, Rachel C. |
| author_facet | Debello, Moti Jaleta Silva, João Vasco Ruganzu, Vicky Mvuyekure, Simon Martin Mujanama, Erick Voss, Rachel C. Chamberlin, Jordan Baudron, Frédéric |
| author_sort | Debello, Moti Jaleta |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | Soil acidity is a major constraint to crop production in tropical regions. Although agricultural lime is one option to remediate acid soils, there is limited information on the potential returns on investments to liming by smallholders. Using survey data collected from 261 households in Rwanda, we estimated the crop -specific yield response to lime application and associated financial benefits. The estimated average yield gain from lime ranged from 941 kg/ha to 1 579 kg/ha for Irish potato, 562 kg/ha to 709 kg/ha for maize, and 453 kg/ha to 520 kg/ha for beans. With the existing lime and farmgate crop prices, reliable returns on investment from lime were observed for Irish potato, while applying lime to maize and bean was only profitable at a 50% lime price subsidy. As maize and beans are the major staple crops in Rwanda, the subsidy for ag-lime use in improving crop productivity is highly justifiable. The results inform policy decisions in considering market -oriented crops and subsidies when promoting agricultural lime in acid soils under smallholder conditions. |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | CGSpace172595 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2024 |
| publishDateRange | 2024 |
| publishDateSort | 2024 |
| publisher | AAAE |
| publisherStr | AAAE |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1725952025-12-08T09:54:28Z Is agricultural lime a profitable investment for African smallholders? Evidence from Rwanda Debello, Moti Jaleta Silva, João Vasco Ruganzu, Vicky Mvuyekure, Simon Martin Mujanama, Erick Voss, Rachel C. Chamberlin, Jordan Baudron, Frédéric soil management acid soils soil quality yield response factor inputs profitability technology adoption Soil acidity is a major constraint to crop production in tropical regions. Although agricultural lime is one option to remediate acid soils, there is limited information on the potential returns on investments to liming by smallholders. Using survey data collected from 261 households in Rwanda, we estimated the crop -specific yield response to lime application and associated financial benefits. The estimated average yield gain from lime ranged from 941 kg/ha to 1 579 kg/ha for Irish potato, 562 kg/ha to 709 kg/ha for maize, and 453 kg/ha to 520 kg/ha for beans. With the existing lime and farmgate crop prices, reliable returns on investment from lime were observed for Irish potato, while applying lime to maize and bean was only profitable at a 50% lime price subsidy. As maize and beans are the major staple crops in Rwanda, the subsidy for ag-lime use in improving crop productivity is highly justifiable. The results inform policy decisions in considering market -oriented crops and subsidies when promoting agricultural lime in acid soils under smallholder conditions. 2024-03-30 2025-01-30T21:17:09Z 2025-01-30T21:17:09Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/172595 en Open Access application/pdf AAAE Debello, M.J., Silva, J.V., Ruganzu, V., Mvuyekure, S.M., Mujanama, E., Voss, R.C., Chamberlin, J., & Baudron, F. (2024). Is agricultural lime a profitable investment for African smallholders? Evidence from Rwanda. African Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, 19(1), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.53936/afjare.2024.19(1).1 |
| spellingShingle | soil management acid soils soil quality yield response factor inputs profitability technology adoption Debello, Moti Jaleta Silva, João Vasco Ruganzu, Vicky Mvuyekure, Simon Martin Mujanama, Erick Voss, Rachel C. Chamberlin, Jordan Baudron, Frédéric Is agricultural lime a profitable investment for African smallholders? Evidence from Rwanda |
| title | Is agricultural lime a profitable investment for African smallholders? Evidence from Rwanda |
| title_full | Is agricultural lime a profitable investment for African smallholders? Evidence from Rwanda |
| title_fullStr | Is agricultural lime a profitable investment for African smallholders? Evidence from Rwanda |
| title_full_unstemmed | Is agricultural lime a profitable investment for African smallholders? Evidence from Rwanda |
| title_short | Is agricultural lime a profitable investment for African smallholders? Evidence from Rwanda |
| title_sort | is agricultural lime a profitable investment for african smallholders evidence from rwanda |
| topic | soil management acid soils soil quality yield response factor inputs profitability technology adoption |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/172595 |
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