Working Paper: NBER ID: w31368
Authors: Esther Duflo; Daniel Keniston; Tavneet Suri; Cline Zipfel
Abstract: Agricultural extension programs often train a few farmers and count on diffusion through social networks for the innovation to spread. However, if markets are imperfectly integrated, this may also inflict negative externalities. In a two-step experiment of an agronomy training program among Rwandan coffee farmers, we first randomize the concentration of trainees at the village level and then randomly select within each village. Knowledge increased, and yields were 6.7% higher for trained farmers. We find no evidence of social diffusion; instead, control households experienced negative spillovers in high treatment concentration areas, likely because of competition for a scarce input, fertilizer.
Keywords: Agricultural training; Knowledge diffusion; Market spillovers; Rwanda; Coffee farmers
JEL Codes: O12; Q13; Q16
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Trained farmers (J43) | Increased knowledge (D83) |
| Trained farmers (J43) | Yields 67% higher (C29) |
| High treatment concentration (C22) | Decreased yields for control farmers (Q15) |
| Increased competition for inputs (L11) | Reduced yields for untrained farmers (Q12) |
| Presence of treatment farmers in social networks (Z13) | Negative outcomes for control farmers (Q18) |
| Treated farmers (Q12) | Overestimated benefits for training program (J24) |