Impact of Improved Maize Adoption on Welfare of Farm Households in Malawi: A Panel Data Analysis

This paper assesses improved maize adoption in Malawi and examines the link between adoption and household welfare using a three-year household panel data. The distributional effect of maize technology adoption is also investigated by looking at impacts across wealth and gender groups. We applied control function approach and IV regression to control for endogeneity of input subsidy and improved maize adoption. We found that modern maize variety adoption is positively correlated with the household’s own maize consumption, income and asset holdings. We found evidence that improved maize adoption has stronger impact on welfare of female-headed households and poorer households.