Abstract:
The present study was designed to analyze technical efficiency and to estimate the
profitability of maize production in six villages under Harirampur and four villages
under Bagha upazila of Manikgonj and Rajshahi districts respectively. Primary data
were collected through random sampling from 131 farmers. The main findings of the
study reveal that maize production is a profitable enterprise. Total cost of production
was Tk. 107012.19 per hectare. Gross returns, gross margin were Tk. 151323.72 per
hectare, Tk. 69003.91 per hectare and net returns was Tk. 44311.53 per hectare. Per
hectare yields of maize was found 8563.421 kg. Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR) was found
to be 1.41 which implies that one taka investment in maize production generated Tk.
1.41 in the study area. BCR were found to be 1.26 and 1.59 at Harirampur and Bagha
upazila respectively. The Cobb-Douglas stochastic frontier production function was
used to measure technical efficiency of maize farmers. The coefficients of parameters
e.g. land preparation cost, seed and irrigation were positive where seed and irrigation
were highly significant and land preparation cost was significant at 5 percent level.
Technical efficiency ranged from 0.71 to 0.99 with a mean of 0.93. In the technical
inefficiency effect model, experience, extension service and farm size have negative
coefficients indicating that this helps in reducing technical inefficiency of maize
farmers. The value γ-parameter associated with the variance in the stochastic frontier
model was 0.9531, indicates that inefficiency effects have a significant contribution in
determining the level and variability of output of maize farms. Among various
problems, high price of seeds, natural calamities and low price of grains ranked 1
,
2
nd
and 3
rd
respectively on the basis of magnitude of problem faced by farmers.
Development of new varieties, reduction of price of seed, fair price of produced
maize, adequate extension service, available credit and storage facility can improve
the present production situation.
st
Description:
A Thesis
Submitted to the Faculty of Agribusiness Management,
Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Dhaka
In partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of
MASTER OF SCIENCE
IN
AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS
SEMESTER: JANUARY-JUNE, 2018
