Risk Implications of Farm Technology Adoption in the Ethiopian Highlands

In developing countries, production and consumption risks play a critical role in the choice and use of production inputs and adoption of new farm technologies. The authors investigated impacts of chemical fertilizer and soil and water conservation technologies adoption on production risks, using a moment-based approach and two years of cross-sectional data.

Their results revealed that the impacts of technology adoption on yield variabilty and downside risk vary by technology type. The results underscore the need for complementary policies to hedge downside risks for effective adoptation strategies.