Bridging the Maize Yield Gap: Empirical Evidence on the Adoption of BH660 Hybrid Variety in West Gojjam, Ethiopia

Abstract

The adoption of agricultural technology by smallholder farmers plays a pivotal role in accelerating Ethiopia′s economic transformation, particularly within the agricultural sector. Despite government policy initiatives that actively support agricultural technology, there is still a significant adoption gap among smallholder farmers because of institutional, environmental, and resource limitations. This study is aimed at exploring the factors influencing the adoption of the improved maize variety, BH660, among smallholder farmers in Womberma district, West Gojjam Zone, Amhara Regional State. The research utilized primary cross‐sectional data collected from a total sample of 370 smallholder farmers. A multistage sampling method was employed, with respondents selected using a probability proportional technique. The collected data were analyzed using a binary logit model to identify the most significant determinants of BH660 adoption. With 79.08% of the observations properly classified (80.85% sensitivity and 77.20% specificity), the empirical model showed a strong fit. The results of the regression analysis showed that BH660 adoption was positively and statistically significantly impacted by gender, educational attainment, and access to training, market information, positive behavioral attitudes, and agricultural experience. In particular, calculated marginal effects showed that the likelihood of adopting the hybrid seed was raised by 43.5% and 28.4%, respectively, by having a favorable behavioral attitude and receiving regular market information. Adoption likelihood was also raised by 25.4%, 28.2%, and 25.5% for men, literacy, and training and by 0.8% for every year of farming experience. Based on these results, regional policy actors can take advantage of these important drivers by putting in place functional adult literacy programs, growing Farmer Training Center activities, and adopting gender‐responsive extension frameworks to effectively increase adoption rates and foster sustainable agricultural development.