THE IMPACT OF GLOBAL-GAP CERTIFICATION ON WELFARE INDICATORS AMONG SMALLHOLDER FRENCH BEAN FARMERS IN KENYA

Abstract Small-scale French bean farmers in Kenya increasingly embrace Global-GAP standards to increase household income, expenditure, and wealth accumulation. To date, limited evidence exists on the role of Global-GAP certification in improving the welfare indicators among smallholder French bean farmers in Kenya. Using the Propensity Score Matching approach on single cross-sectional data from 492 randomly selected French bean farmers; the study determined the effect of Global-GAP certification on household welfare indicators. The results indicate that Global-GAP certification significantly increases net French beans income per acre by KES 17,790.30, daily total household income per adult equivalent by KES 157.991, and daily total household expenditure per adult equivalent by KES 119.74. The results suggest that Global-GAP certification improves farmers’ welfare. Farmers should therefore expand the area under Global-GAP-certified French beans to earn more income, spend more, accumulate more assets, and thus improve their household welfare. Key Words: Global-GAP certification; French beans farmers; Welfare indicators; Propensity Score Matching