Nombre de page : 0

Date de publication : 30-11--0001

Edition : Non défini

Auteur : ired.org

Type : Ouvrages

Theme :

This article revisits a conventional wisdom that inorganic fertilizer use across sub-Saharan Africa is too low. This expectation that more farmers should be using inorganic fertilizer and at higher rates implies it is profitable to use rates higher than observed if farmers are rational expected profit maximizers. The article exploits the political economy of fertilizer access in Nigeria to get consistent estimates of the effects of applied nitrogen on rice production. We find the yield response to applied nitrogen to be low in the main rice growing farming system. Farmer behavior is not inconsistent with expected profitability which is limited by a low yield response to applied fertilizer, high transportation costs and low selling prices for rice in rural areas.