The effect of smallholder livestock production on income of farm households in northern Ghana

Abstract

This paper investigates the effect of smallholder livestock production on income among farm households in northern Ghana. Questionnaires were administered to 300 household heads and ordinary least squares estimation technique was applied to the dataset. The dependent variable was income and measured by total annual income received from farm and non-farm activities by household heads. The independent variable of interest was tropical livestock unit measured by flock size. We also included farm size, household size, gender, age, educational level, distance to market, dependency ratio and access to formal credit as control variables. We found that smallholder livestock production and farm size increase income whilst distance to market and dependency ratio reduce income. Based on evidence of the positive relationship between livestock production and household income in this paper, it is recommended that policies to promote smallholder livestock production should be embarked upon to increase income. This is likely to improve livelihood and reduce poverty among the poor rural folks in the northern regions of Ghana