Some recent research began to shift the focus of development efforts away from income and yield to more diverse concepts that consider people's intrinsic drivers and values, such as aspirations and personality traits. We aim to contribute to the literature by exploring the connections between...

Purpose: Moringa (Moringa oleifera) is a highly nutritious, fast-growing crop that has emerged in Western markets as a “superfood” and as a “smart crop” for income generation potential among small-scale farmers. As such, moringa has been widely promoted by agricultural development...

In this editorial introduction to the Special Issue "Rural aspirations—Livelihood decisions and rural development trajectories", we outline current views on aspirations and their relevance for development research, projects and approaches. Using several examples from Africa, we outline how the...

The overall objective of this paper is to assess the demand for improved groundnut, bean, and soybean seed in central Malawi. Specifically, it examines how smallholder farmers respond to changes in market prices of improved legume seed. It also assesses factors that affect the decision to...

The overall objective of this paper is to assess the demand for improved groundnut, bean, and soybean seed in central Malawi. Specifically, it examines how smallholder farmers respond to changes in market prices of improved legume seed. It also assesses factors that affect the decision to...

This paper defines three types of typical certified farms in Kenyan export production: smallholder farms, large-scale contracted farms, and exporter-owned farms. It assesses their economic performance, compares the financial cost of compliance with the EurepGAP standard, and analyses transaction...

Despite the growing attention to technology adoption in the economics literature, knowledge gaps remain regarding why some valuable technologies are rapidly adopted, while others are not. This paper contributes to our understanding of agricultural technology adoption by showing that a focus on...

The Rwandan government emphasizes the role of cooperatives in transforming rural economies from subsistence farming to diversified commercial agriculture, including high-value export horticultural crops. The success of these cooperatives depends significantly on farmers' willingness to join and...