Unpacking cassava market dynamics: exploring the determinants affecting market participation and channel choices in South Ethiopia

Cassava is a vital food source for Africans and is increasingly gaining status as a cash crop. However, Ethiopian farmers have yet not benefited from cassava marketing. This paper aims to explore the determinants of market participation, intensity, and channel choice of cassava producers in rural Ethiopia. Data were collected from 1040 cassava producers through three-stage random sampling techniques. Double Hurdle Model was employed to estimate the determinants affecting market participation decision and intensity and multivariate probit model (MVP) was employed to estimate the determinants of channel choice decision. The study revealed that market participation decision was positively affected by cell phone use, share of land allocated, and extension support while negatively related to access to credit and negotiating strength of farmers. The intensity of market participation is negatively related to distance to nearby markets while positively related to extension service and the quantity of cassava produced. Market channel choice was negatively affected by cell phone use, access to credit, knowledge of channels, and negotiating strength while positively affected by the share of land under cultivation and the quantity of cassava sold (log). The study suggests cassava producers consider forming an association that increases their bargaining power, increase information searching behavior while the government has to play an active role in advancing rural micro financial institutions to address financial challenge and improving access to market information to boost cassava production and marketing.