Nexus between market access and contract farming: a systematic review and meta-regression analysis

The impact of market access on contract farming participation and outcomes among smallholder farmers has remained a debatable issue in developing countries. This meta-analysis addresses gaps in the literature by synthesizing evidence on the effect of market access on contract farming among smallholder farmers from 38 peer-reviewed articles published between 1990 and 2024, using data from various databases including Web of Sciences, Dimensions and Scopus. Results show that market access has a moderate and positive effect on contract farming. Subgroup analysis indicates that in developing countries, a relatively high market access significantly affects contract farming by increasing farmers’ income. The analysis further indicates that education and income positively influence participation, while land size has a negative effect. These findings highlight the importance of policies that increase market access for smallholder farmers through investment in infrastructure such as roads, supporting farmer-based organizations, access to technology, access to electricity, building local knowledge-based information centers and addressing physical value-adding activities. In addition, there is a need for policy prioritization for farmer empowerment and regional-level market opportunities for contract farmers. This can be realized through investing in infrastructure and the harmonization of agronomic trade policies across borders.