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  • Publication | 2025
Synopsis: Unlocking agricultural efficiency: A stochastic frontier analysis of smallholder farmers in Rwanda
Global Food and Nutrition Security

This study assesses the technical efficiency of smallholder farmers in Rwanda, with a focus on maximizing crop output value and identifying the socioeconomic drivers that shape technical efficiency.

  • The analysis shows that farmers are operating at just 45% of their potential productivity, revealing substantial opportunities for increasing crop output value.
  • Key drivers of crop production value include effective fertilizer use, pesticide application, labor, seed usage, and land size.
  • The study finds that household size, access to extension services, participation in the Smart Nkunganire System, irrigation practices, land consolidation, land ownership, and monocropping all positively influence technical efficiency. However, female-headed households, wage income, and market distance have a detrimental impact on efficiency.
  • These findings underscore the need for targeted interventions to optimize resource use, improve labor allocation, enhance farm management practices, and strengthen access to advanced inputs, extension services, and government programs. Such measures will contribute to increased agricultural productivity and long-term transformation in Rwanda’s smallholder farming system.