Tractor Service Utilization, Profitability, and Adoption Determinants Among Smallholder Maize Farmers in Ejura-Sekyedumase Municipality, Ghana

Abstract

Although tractor services are increasingly used in the Ejura-Sekyedumase Municipality, access remains uneven, and some smallholder maize farmers still rely on labour-intensive production methods. This study investigated the profitability effects and adoption determinants of tractor service utilisation in Ejura-Sekyedumase Municipality, Ashanti Region, Ghana. Cross-sectional data were collected from 359 farmers using multi-stage proportionate random sampling. A multivariate probit model identified simultaneous adoption determinants across ploughing and shelling services. Propensity score matching (PSM) estimated a positive profitability effect of GHS 471 per acre after controlling for observable selection bias. Users achieved a net profit margin of 29.87 percent and a return-to-cost ratio of 42.60 percent, compared with 25.10 percent and 33.51 percent for non-users, respectively. Farming experience and fertiliser intensity positively predicted adoption, while farm size exerted a consistent negative influence; this may suggest supply-side availability constraints, including potential fleet-capacity limitations. The negative FBO result may reflect labour-sharing functions that substitute for paid mechanized services; this mechanism should be tested directly in future work. Kendall's W (0.381) indicated moderate agreement in farmers' rankings, with financial constraints ranked as the leading barrier. The study recommends targeted credit facilitation, possible AMSEC fleet expansion pending supply-side verification, intensified extension services, gender-responsive mechanisation policies, and redesigned FBO programmes.