IMPLICATIONS OF AGRICULTURAL SUBSIDIES ON AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY IN MEZAM, CAMEROON

Abstract

This study investigated the effect of agricultural subsidies on farm productivity in Mezam, Cameroon. The study made used of primary survey via a structured questionnaire and snowball sampling technique to obtain data from 352 farmers in Mezam. Regression analyses were done using the Generalised Linear Model. Results show that agricultural subsidies is negatively corroborating with agricultural productivity revealing that dispite the governmental effort to provide subsidies to farmers not all the entire subsidies is channel for the intended purpose. The result is both male and female phenomenon. The study suggests that the redesigning of subsidy programs to explicitly stimulate agripreneurial behavior and to improve productivity. Subsidy packages with market supports schemes like buyer linkages, agro-processing and cooperatives which can help convert productivity into sales is greatly encouraged by this study. Policy designers should consider supporting rural farmers with infrastructure and market access to fully leverage subsidies for agripreneurial activities and to improve farm productivity.