Selling at the Farmgate or Traveling to the Market: A Conditional Farm-Level Model

This paper seeks to indentify the determinants of smallholder farmer's market participation decisions using a farm level approach. By opening the black box which conceals the complex mechanism guiding farmers' market participation decision, this paper's contribution resides on its ability to take account of the conditional nature of farmers' decision to participate in the market. The paper develops a farm level sequential market participation model while taking account of the conditional nature of farmer's decision to participate in the market. In fact, the paper argues that the farmer's decision to participate in the market of a certain crop is dependent on producing the crop. Therefore, failing to account for this may bias the results. From a policy implication standpoint, the highlights of the results suggest that providing affordable and easily accessible fertilizers will incentivize both greater market participation and market volume supplied of both cash and food crop types.