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  • Publication | 2023

Impacts of crossbreed dairy cow adoption on women dietary diversity in southwestern Ethiopia

Global Food and Nutrition Security

Highlights

  • Dairy is the imperative activity for life of dairy farmers and cross-breed dairy cow adoption has been increasing in the study area.

  • Women are often constrained in most agricultural technology access, while they are dairy managers and processers of dairy products.

  • The adoption of crossbreed dairy cow is essential particularly for women nutrional security and income.

  • Stakeholders should provide proper services that increase women's access to dairy technology in study area.

Abstract

Most of agricultural technology increases women's labor burdens without associated benefits. This paper envisages one of the dairy technology types “crossbreed dairy cow” adoption and its impacts on women's nutrition security in Southwestern Ethiopia. The quasi experimental research design was applied by using the quantitative and qualitative cross sectional data. To get specific study area and the study respondents (266 women) we applied a multi-stage sampling procedure. Data was collected through interview schedule; focused group discussion and key informant interview. Descriptive statistics, Binary logit and Propensity Score Matching (PSM) were used to analyze the data. The study results showed that crossbreed dairy cow adoption was found to be affected by age, education level, livestock size, training participation, mobile phone ownership, and cooperative membership significantly and positively. Meanwhile, dairy production experience and market distance affected negatively. About 58.6% of women reached minimum dietary diversity for women (MDD-W) and the mean of women's dietary diversity score (WDDS) is 6.1 ± 2. The result of PSM indicated that the adoption of crossbreed dairy cows has increased the dietary diversity of women by 15.6%. In general, crossbreed dairy cow adoption have a positive and significant influence on women's nutrition security. Therefore, scaling up of crossbreed cows should be strengthened in the study area. The paper can add empirical evidence to the adoption of dairy technology for the improvement of women's nutrition security.