Effectiveness of Extension Services in Enhancing Outgrowers’ Credit System: A Case of Smallholder Sugarcane Farmers in Kisumu County, Kenya

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of extensionservices in enhancing effectiveness of outgrowers’credit system in Kisumu County, Kenya. The study specificallysought to determine whether public and private extensionservices play a significant role in enhancing effectiveness ofout-growers’ credit system among smallholder sugarcanefarmers. A total of 110 small scale farmers were randomlyselected for the study. A closed ended questionnaire was usedto collect data from farmers. Both descriptive and inferentialstatistics were used for data analysis. The findings indicatedthat both public and private extension services were insignificantin enhancing effectiveness of outgrowers’ credit system.Further, the findings indicated that there was no significantdifference between public and private sector in provision ofextension services. The findings suggest that for outgrowers’credit system to be effective in terms of creation of awarenessabout credit, accessibility, timely supply of credit, supervisionof credit and provision of extension advice on credit utilization,both public and private extension services should be intensifiedand coordinated to avoid duplication. The results also suggestthat sugarcane factory extension division should be strengthenedjust like in the coffee and tea sub-sectors.

Keywords

• Public extension service
• Private extension service
• Outgrowers’ Credit system
• Effectiveness
• Western Kenya.