Survey Measurement Errors and the Assessment of the Relationship between Yields and Inputs in Smallholder Farming Systems : Evidence from Mali
An accurate understanding of how input use affects agricultural productivity in smallholder farming systems is key to designing policies that can improve productivity, food security, and living standards in rural areas. Studies examining the relati...
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World Bank, Washington, DC
2021
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/undefined/711441636127459189/Survey-Measurement-Errors-and-the-Assessment-of-the-Relationship-between-Yields-and-Inputs-in-Smallholder-Farming-Systems-Evidence-from-Mali http://hdl.handle.net/10986/36553 |
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okr-10986-365532021-11-13T05:10:42Z Survey Measurement Errors and the Assessment of the Relationship between Yields and Inputs in Smallholder Farming Systems : Evidence from Mali Yacoubou Djima, Ismael Kilic, Talip SMALLHOLDER FARMING AGRICULTURAL INPUT CROP YIELD MEASUREMENT ERROR HOUSEHOLD SURVEY AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY CROP CUTTING MACHINE LEARNING An accurate understanding of how input use affects agricultural productivity in smallholder farming systems is key to designing policies that can improve productivity, food security, and living standards in rural areas. Studies examining the relationships between agricultural productivity and inputs typically rely on land productivity measures, such as crop yields, that are informed by self-reported survey data on crop production. This paper leverages unique survey data from Mali to demonstrate that self-reported crop yields, vis-à-vis (objective) crop cut yields, are subject to non-classical measurement error that in turn biases the estimates of returns to inputs, including land, labor, fertilizer, and seeds. The analysis validates an alternative approach to estimate the relationship between crop yields and agricultural inputs using large-scale surveys, namely a within-survey imputation exercise that derives predicted, otherwise unobserved, objective crop yields that stem from a machine learning model that is estimated with a random subsample of plots for which crop cutting and self-reported yields are both available. Using data from a methodological survey experiment and a nationally representative survey conducted in Mali, the analysis demonstrates that it is possible to obtain predicted objective sorghum yields with attenuated non-classical measurement error, resulting in a less biased assessment of the relationship between yields and agricultural inputs. The discussion expands on the implications of the findings for (i) future research on agricultural intensification, and (ii) the design of future surveys in which objective data collection could be limited to a subsample to save costs, with the intention to apply the suggested machine learning approach. 2021-11-12T19:59:09Z 2021-11-12T19:59:09Z 2021-11 Working Paper http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/undefined/711441636127459189/Survey-Measurement-Errors-and-the-Assessment-of-the-Relationship-between-Yields-and-Inputs-in-Smallholder-Farming-Systems-Evidence-from-Mali http://hdl.handle.net/10986/36553 English Policy Research Working Paper;No. 9841 CC BY 3.0 IGO http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo World Bank World Bank, Washington, DC Publications & Research Publications & Research :: Policy Research Working Paper Africa Africa Western and Central (AFW) Mali |
| repository_type |
Digital Repository |
| institution_category |
Foreign Institution |
| institution |
Digital Repositories |
| building |
World Bank Open Knowledge Repository |
| collection |
World Bank |
| language |
English |
| topic |
SMALLHOLDER FARMING AGRICULTURAL INPUT CROP YIELD MEASUREMENT ERROR HOUSEHOLD SURVEY AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY CROP CUTTING MACHINE LEARNING |
| spellingShingle |
SMALLHOLDER FARMING AGRICULTURAL INPUT CROP YIELD MEASUREMENT ERROR HOUSEHOLD SURVEY AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY CROP CUTTING MACHINE LEARNING Yacoubou Djima, Ismael Kilic, Talip Survey Measurement Errors and the Assessment of the Relationship between Yields and Inputs in Smallholder Farming Systems : Evidence from Mali |
| geographic_facet |
Africa Africa Western and Central (AFW) Mali |
| relation |
Policy Research Working Paper;No. 9841 |
| description |
An accurate understanding of how
input use affects agricultural productivity in smallholder
farming systems is key to designing policies that can
improve productivity, food security, and living standards in
rural areas. Studies examining the relationships between
agricultural productivity and inputs typically rely on land
productivity measures, such as crop yields, that are
informed by self-reported survey data on crop production.
This paper leverages unique survey data from Mali to
demonstrate that self-reported crop yields, vis-à-vis
(objective) crop cut yields, are subject to non-classical
measurement error that in turn biases the estimates of
returns to inputs, including land, labor, fertilizer, and
seeds. The analysis validates an alternative approach to
estimate the relationship between crop yields and
agricultural inputs using large-scale surveys, namely a
within-survey imputation exercise that derives predicted,
otherwise unobserved, objective crop yields that stem from a
machine learning model that is estimated with a random
subsample of plots for which crop cutting and self-reported
yields are both available. Using data from a methodological
survey experiment and a nationally representative survey
conducted in Mali, the analysis demonstrates that it is
possible to obtain predicted objective sorghum yields with
attenuated non-classical measurement error, resulting in a
less biased assessment of the relationship between yields
and agricultural inputs. The discussion expands on the
implications of the findings for (i) future research on
agricultural intensification, and (ii) the design of future
surveys in which objective data collection could be limited
to a subsample to save costs, with the intention to apply
the suggested machine learning approach. |
| format |
Working Paper |
| author |
Yacoubou Djima, Ismael Kilic, Talip |
| author_facet |
Yacoubou Djima, Ismael Kilic, Talip |
| author_sort |
Yacoubou Djima, Ismael |
| title |
Survey Measurement Errors and the Assessment of the Relationship between Yields and Inputs in Smallholder Farming Systems : Evidence from Mali |
| title_short |
Survey Measurement Errors and the Assessment of the Relationship between Yields and Inputs in Smallholder Farming Systems : Evidence from Mali |
| title_full |
Survey Measurement Errors and the Assessment of the Relationship between Yields and Inputs in Smallholder Farming Systems : Evidence from Mali |
| title_fullStr |
Survey Measurement Errors and the Assessment of the Relationship between Yields and Inputs in Smallholder Farming Systems : Evidence from Mali |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Survey Measurement Errors and the Assessment of the Relationship between Yields and Inputs in Smallholder Farming Systems : Evidence from Mali |
| title_sort |
survey measurement errors and the assessment of the relationship between yields and inputs in smallholder farming systems : evidence from mali |
| publisher |
World Bank, Washington, DC |
| publishDate |
2021 |
| url |
http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/undefined/711441636127459189/Survey-Measurement-Errors-and-the-Assessment-of-the-Relationship-between-Yields-and-Inputs-in-Smallholder-Farming-Systems-Evidence-from-Mali http://hdl.handle.net/10986/36553 |
| _version_ |
1764485481918103552 |