Insecticide use, farmers’ self-reported health status, and genetically modified cowpea in Nigeria: Findings from a clustered randomized controlled trial with causal
Excessive insecticide use in smallholder agriculture can threaten human health and the environment. We evaluate the effects of receiving a genetically modified cowpea variety that confers resistance to the legume pod borer (Maruca vitrata) using a clustered randomized controlled trial with an encour...
| Autores principales: | , , , , , , |
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| Formato: | Artículo preliminar |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés |
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International Food Policy Research Institute
2025
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/179030 |
| _version_ | 1855538680902451200 |
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| author | Amare, Mulubrhan Andam, Kwaw S. Spielman, David J. Bamiwuye, Temilolu Nwagboso, Chibuzo Zambrano, Patricia Chambers, Judith A. |
| author_browse | Amare, Mulubrhan Andam, Kwaw S. Bamiwuye, Temilolu Chambers, Judith A. Nwagboso, Chibuzo Spielman, David J. Zambrano, Patricia |
| author_facet | Amare, Mulubrhan Andam, Kwaw S. Spielman, David J. Bamiwuye, Temilolu Nwagboso, Chibuzo Zambrano, Patricia Chambers, Judith A. |
| author_sort | Amare, Mulubrhan |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | Excessive insecticide use in smallholder agriculture can threaten human health and the environment. We evaluate the effects of receiving a genetically modified cowpea variety that confers resistance to the legume pod borer (Maruca vitrata) using a clustered randomized controlled trial with an encouragement design in Nigeria. We find that farmers who received the pod borer-resistant (PBR) cowpea with complementary inputs significantly reduce insecticide volumes and report fewer days of insecticide-related illness compared to farmers who only received a conventional cowpea variety. Farmers receiving PBR cowpea alone experience smaller, mostly insignificant reductions. To explore heterogeneous responses, we combine ANCOVA (analysis of covariance) interactions with machine learning-based Causal Forest estimates of Conditional Average Treatment Effects (CATEs). Results reveal that smaller, less wealthy, and labor-constrained households experience the largest reductions in insecticide use and health improvements, whereas wealthier farmers or those with higher baseline spraying practices experience lower reductions. Women-managed plots exhibit modestly higher responsiveness. Our findings highlight the importance of moving beyond average effects and seed distribution toward targeted, context-specific interventions that account for behavioral and resource constraints in smallholder farming systems. |
| format | Artículo preliminar |
| id | CGSpace179030 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| publisher | International Food Policy Research Institute |
| publisherStr | International Food Policy Research Institute |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1790302025-12-19T15:53:45Z Insecticide use, farmers’ self-reported health status, and genetically modified cowpea in Nigeria: Findings from a clustered randomized controlled trial with causal Amare, Mulubrhan Andam, Kwaw S. Spielman, David J. Bamiwuye, Temilolu Nwagboso, Chibuzo Zambrano, Patricia Chambers, Judith A. insecticides farmers health genetically modified foods cowpeas randomized controlled trials machine learning Excessive insecticide use in smallholder agriculture can threaten human health and the environment. We evaluate the effects of receiving a genetically modified cowpea variety that confers resistance to the legume pod borer (Maruca vitrata) using a clustered randomized controlled trial with an encouragement design in Nigeria. We find that farmers who received the pod borer-resistant (PBR) cowpea with complementary inputs significantly reduce insecticide volumes and report fewer days of insecticide-related illness compared to farmers who only received a conventional cowpea variety. Farmers receiving PBR cowpea alone experience smaller, mostly insignificant reductions. To explore heterogeneous responses, we combine ANCOVA (analysis of covariance) interactions with machine learning-based Causal Forest estimates of Conditional Average Treatment Effects (CATEs). Results reveal that smaller, less wealthy, and labor-constrained households experience the largest reductions in insecticide use and health improvements, whereas wealthier farmers or those with higher baseline spraying practices experience lower reductions. Women-managed plots exhibit modestly higher responsiveness. Our findings highlight the importance of moving beyond average effects and seed distribution toward targeted, context-specific interventions that account for behavioral and resource constraints in smallholder farming systems. 2025-12-18 2025-12-18T22:05:37Z 2025-12-18T22:05:37Z Working Paper https://hdl.handle.net/10568/179030 en https://hdl.handle.net/10568/145073 https://hdl.handle.net/10568/145074 https://hdl.handle.net/10568/178553 Open Access application/pdf International Food Policy Research Institute Amare, Mulubrhan; Andam, Kwaw S.; Spielman, David J.; Bamiwuye, Temilolu; Nwagboso, Chibuzo; et al. 2025. Insecticide use, farmers’ self-reported health status, and genetically modified cowpea in Nigeria: Findings from a clustered randomized controlled trial with causal. IFPRI Discussion Paper 2388. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/179030 |
| spellingShingle | insecticides farmers health genetically modified foods cowpeas randomized controlled trials machine learning Amare, Mulubrhan Andam, Kwaw S. Spielman, David J. Bamiwuye, Temilolu Nwagboso, Chibuzo Zambrano, Patricia Chambers, Judith A. Insecticide use, farmers’ self-reported health status, and genetically modified cowpea in Nigeria: Findings from a clustered randomized controlled trial with causal |
| title | Insecticide use, farmers’ self-reported health status, and genetically modified cowpea in Nigeria: Findings from a clustered randomized controlled trial with causal |
| title_full | Insecticide use, farmers’ self-reported health status, and genetically modified cowpea in Nigeria: Findings from a clustered randomized controlled trial with causal |
| title_fullStr | Insecticide use, farmers’ self-reported health status, and genetically modified cowpea in Nigeria: Findings from a clustered randomized controlled trial with causal |
| title_full_unstemmed | Insecticide use, farmers’ self-reported health status, and genetically modified cowpea in Nigeria: Findings from a clustered randomized controlled trial with causal |
| title_short | Insecticide use, farmers’ self-reported health status, and genetically modified cowpea in Nigeria: Findings from a clustered randomized controlled trial with causal |
| title_sort | insecticide use farmers self reported health status and genetically modified cowpea in nigeria findings from a clustered randomized controlled trial with causal |
| topic | insecticides farmers health genetically modified foods cowpeas randomized controlled trials machine learning |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/179030 |
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