Abstracts Law

Farmers willingness to pay for improved soil conservation practices: application of contingent valuation method

by Kasaye Belay

This study examines the farmers‟ willingness to pay for improved soil conservation practices on communal lands of Kuyu woreda in Ethiopia. The objective of this study is to investigate the farmers‟ willingness to pay for improved soil conservation practices on communal lands of Kuyu woreda. Both single and double-bounded dichotomous format of contingent valuation method is used to elicit respondents‟ WTP for improved soil conservation practice in terms of labor contribution. Data collected from 184 household heads were used for analysis. Both the Probit and Bivariate Probit models were estimated. The result of the study indicated that most of the respondents have perceived the problem of soil erosion and are willing to pay for conservation practices. Household characteristics such as sex of household head, education level of the head are significant determinants of farmers‟ WTP for soil conservation. Farmer‟s wealth indictors such as livestock and income were included and found to have a positive and significant influence on the probability of WTP for soil conservation. Variables such as slope of land, perception about soil erosion problem, and the frequency of extension visit have also a positive and significant effect on the WTP for soil conservation. The study also show that the mean willingness to pay estimated from the Double Bounded Dichotomous Choice and open ended formats was 85.36 and 83.22 Labor days per annum, respectively. The respective total aggregate value of soil conservation in the study varies from 10,649,907 Labor days per annum (191,698,326 ETB) in open ended to 10,909,349 person days per annum (196,368,282 ETB) from double bound CVM. Therefore, policy and program intervention designed to address soil erosion problems in the study area have needed to take in to account these characteristics. Advisors/Committee Members: Dr. Abebe Damte (advisor).