Adoption of Kilimo Kwanza Policy by Smallholder Citrus Farmers in Muheza District, Tanga Region

Smallholder farmers in the citrus sub-sector of Tanzania particularly in Tanga Region are adversely faced by many challenges compared to other groups of farmers. Poor farming practices, poor post harvest management skills, low quality of produce and limited information to external markets compound the impediments to their production. This study assessed the adoption of Kilimo Kwanza Policy by Smallholder citrus farmers in Muheza District, Tanga Region. This policy was initiated by the Tanzania government in 2009 to support a “green revolution” in the agricultural sector through “10-pillars” with multistakeholder involvement. A multistage sampling technique was employed at three stages to get the study sample. In the first stage a purposive selection of Wards from different Divisions was done followed by proportionately allocation of farmers from each Village within the Wards in the second stage. Finally, a random selection of farmers was done in each of the Villages resulting to one-hundred farmers from the district. Six executive agricultural officers from the district were also included in the sample. Data was gathered using survey questionnaires for structured interviews and observations. Some descriptive statistics and Logit model were used to analyze both quantitative and qualitative data collected. About 21 percent of farmers were found to be adopters of Kilimo Kwanza Policy. The model results indicated that, the socio-economic, farm and institutional factors were the determinants of the policy’s adoption. The results further revealed that, the policy was more likely to be adopted by elderly farmers or those with larger farms or those who were registered in farmers’ associations. Challenges and opportunities in the sub-sector toward adoption of the policy were identified. Low levels of adoption were found in application of fertilizers; in membership of farmers’ associations as well as in accessing reliable sources of farm credit and market information. More effort should be put on implementing these recommendations so as to bring about the necessary changes to the farmers and the sub-sector in general.