Journal of Geoscience and Eco Agricultural Studies

Abstract

This article aims, firstly, to measure the technical efficiency of cassava producers in the Madimba territory of Kongo province in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and secondly, to identify the main variables on which this efficiency depends. The data used comes from a household survey administered to 775 producers. The data envelopment method was used to generate the technical efficiency scores. Furthermore, a truncated regression model was used to explain the variance of these scores. The results reveal an average efficiency of 0.89 under Crs, 0.97 under Vrs, and 0.91 under Scale. Additionally, 85.5% of producers work in the zone of increasing returns to scale, 13.5% operate in the zone of constant returns to scale, and 1% in the zone of decreasing returns to scale. This highlights that further improvement in efficiency is still possible. This study shows that the technical efficiency of cassava production among producers in the study region is significantly and positively associated with education level, agricultural experience, household income, and yield. Conversely, technical efficiency is significantly and negatively associated with marital status, production constraints, land tenure, and the lack of suitable varieties.