Complementarities of Training, Technology, and Credit in Smallholder Agriculture: Impact, Sustainability, and Policy for Scaling-up in Uganda

Last registered on March 31, 2019

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Complementarities of Training, Technology, and Credit in Smallholder Agriculture: Impact, Sustainability, and Policy for Scaling-up in Uganda
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0004022
Initial registration date
March 28, 2019

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
March 31, 2019, 11:26 PM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Primary Investigator

Affiliation
GWU

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Affiliation
GWU and IADB

Additional Trial Information

Status
Completed
Start date
2013-03-01
End date
2017-04-15
Secondary IDs
AID-OAA-L-12-00001, award No.201121454-07,
Abstract
Many development programs are short-term interventions, either because of external funding constraints or an assumption of impact sustainability. Using a novel randomized phase-out research method, we provide experimental tests program phase-out effects of an extension program designed for women smallholder farmers in Uganda. We find that program phase-out does not diminish demand for improved seeds, as farmers shift purchases from NGO-sponsored village supply networks to market sources, indicating persistent learning effects. We find no evidence of declines in improved cultivation practices taught by the program. These results have implications for both efficient program design and for models of technology adoption.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Bobic, Vida and STEPHEN C SMITH. 2019. "Complementarities of Training, Technology, and Credit in Smallholder Agriculture: Impact, Sustainability, and Policy for Scaling-up in Uganda." AEA RCT Registry. March 31. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.4022-1.0
Former Citation
Bobic, Vida and STEPHEN C SMITH. 2019. "Complementarities of Training, Technology, and Credit in Smallholder Agriculture: Impact, Sustainability, and Policy for Scaling-up in Uganda." AEA RCT Registry. March 31. https://www.socialscienceregistry.org/trials/4022/history/44457
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Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Many development programs are short-term interventions, either because of external funding constraints or an assumption of impact sustainability. Using a novel randomized phase-out research method, we provide experimental tests program phase-out effects of an extension program designed for women smallholder farmers in Uganda. In particular we examine whether program phase-out diminishes demand for improved seeds, and or leads to changes in the source of seeds such as from the NGO-sponsored village supply networks to other market sources. In this, we look for the presence of persistent learning effects. We also study whether the phase-out leads to declines in improved cultivation techniques and practices taught by the program.
Intervention Start Date
2013-03-01
Intervention End Date
2016-12-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Input use (e.g. improved seeds, fertilizer, pesticides), application of improved cultivation techniques (e.g. crop rotation, line sowing, intercropping, pest management), number of crops grown, productivity (yield per acre), income, food security, household and farm decision-making.
Primary Outcomes (explanation)
We will use count-based (Alkire-Foster method) multidimensional measures including decision-making, access to finance, and work outside of family agriculture and home-based enterprises.

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
Four years after the start of the agricultural extension and input supply program, it was discontinued in a randomly selected subsample of the treatment population. There are three treatment groups: Continuation (which continued to receive treatment), Model Farmer phaseout (where the Model Farmer component of the program was discontinued first, and the CAP component one year later), and CAP phaseout (where the Community Agriculture Promoter component was discontinued first, followed by the MF component a year later). The experiment covers 15 BRAC branches (broadly corresponding to Ugandan districts) in the Eastern Region of Uganda; the experiment was stratified at the branch level. We use a clustered design, where a cluster is one village or a geographically proximate pair of villages in which both components of the program were active in the year preceding phaseout (2013). There are 99 clusters in total: 32 in Continuation, 33 in Model Farmer Phaseout, and 34 in CAP Phaseout. In addition to a baseline survey in 2013, there were three follow-up surveys: one agricultural season after phaseout started (while both Phaseout treatment arms still had one active component of the program), three seasons (1.5 years) after phaseout (after both Phaseout treatment arms had both types of treatment discontinued), and finally six seasons (three years) after phaseout.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
Randomization done in office by a computer
Randomization Unit
Village cluster
Was the treatment clustered?
Yes

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
99 village clusters.
Sample size: planned number of observations
1800
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
1800 farmers
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
George Washington University Institutional Review Boards
IRB Approval Date
2014-04-28
IRB Approval Number
031411

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials