Smallholder Farmers' Demand for Rice Harvesting Technology: Analyzing Willingness to Pay Using One-and-One-Half Bounded Contingent Valuation Method in Northwestern Ethiopia

Background: This study was designed to measure farmers’ willingness to pay for mechanized rice harvesting technology rental service. Specifically, the study addresses how much they are willing to pay and what factors hinder farmers' WTP for mechanized rice harvesting technology by using a one and one-half bounded elicitation Contingent Valuation method and the Craggit econometric model. Methodology: Selecting representative samples for this study involved using a multi-stage sampling strategy. A total of 190 smallholder farmers were randomly selected to collect primary data. Results: The result revealed that nearly four-fifth of the sample respondents were willing to pay for mechanized rice harvesting technology rental service. Besides, smallholder farmers' willingness to pay for mechanized rice harvesting technology rental service varies between 200 and 1900 birr, with an average value of 890.46 birr per timad. Conclusion: Moreover, the model result indicated that sex of the respondent, family size, access to extension service, access to training, participation on field day, and livestock ownership had positive and statistically significant effect on mechanized rice harvesting technology rental service. Thus, in order to offer smallholder farmers with more access to technology at a reasonable rental cost, policymakers, development workers, researchers, and rental service providers should collaborate.