Adoption Intensity of Multiple Enhanced Technological Innovations among Small-scale Sunflower Farmers in the Central Zone Corridor of Tanzania

The study examined the adoption intensity of multiple enhanced technological innovations (ETIs) among small-scale sunflower farmers in the central zone corridor of Tanzania. The agricultural sector in Tanzania, particularly sunflower farming, has witnessed the introduction of various ETIs aimed at improving productivity. The ETIs considered in this study include improved seeds, inorganic fertilizer and contract farming practices. Data was collected from 371 agricultural households in the Kongwa and Iramba districts using multi-stage sampling techniques. Ordered probit model was applied to address the study hypothesis posit that there is no significant relationship between the adoption intensity of ETIs and socio economic, institutional and farm related variables among small-scale sunflower farmers in the study area. The results show that education (p<0.001), home-market distance (p<0.01), home-farm distance (p<0.05), farm size (p<0.01), number of plots (p<0.05), off-farm income (p<0.05), number of livestock owned (p<0.05), group membership (p<0.001), plot-level stress (p<0.05), land ownership (p<0.05), access to credit (p<0.05) and extension visits (p<0.05) had significant impacts on the adoption intensity of multiple ETIs. Despite the positive impact of these ETIs on productivity, challenges such as financial constraints, limited access to information, and inconsistent supply chains hinder widespread adoption. Therefore, the study concludes with recommendations that in designing effective strategies for the development and dissemination of ETIs, complementarity nature of ETIs should be taken together with socioeconomic, institutional and plot-specific factors for small-scale farmers to ensure maximum benefits of ETIs.