Gender and Cotton Productivity in the Northern Region

Abstract

This study examined gender differences in land productivity in cotton production in the Northern Region of Ghana. Data were collected from a sample of two hundred (200) cotton farmers made up of 120 males and 80 females with the help of Cotton Production Assistants. Data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics and regression analysis. The Z test was used to test for the significance in the difference between the mean land productivities of male and female cotton farmers. A Cobb-Douglas production function was used to estimate the factors that affect land productivity of cotton farmers. Respondents between the ages of 31 years to 45 years made up 42.5% for males and 50% for females. The proportion of females having between 11years to 20 years of farming experience in cotton production was 61.25% compared to 54.17% of males with no significant difference. Cotton farm sizes for both male and female farmers were small ranging between 1 to 3 acres. The results showed that males were more productive than females with a productivity difference of 71.06% and statistically significant at 1% level. Males on the average had 310.54kg/ha of seed cotton as compared to 181.55kg/ha for women. Regression results showed that gender of farmer, labour used on the farm, household size, ploughing in the months of May and June and the interaction term of gender and multiple farms were significant determinants of land productivity of male and female cotton farmers in the study area. One major recommendation from this study is that labour is a significant resource that contributes to productivity in cotton production. The study suggests that cotton companies should help women overcome the problem of limited access to labour by financing them to be able to hire labour for their cotton farms.