Constraints in sustainable smallholder rubber farming in the Moneragala district

Abstract

This study was focused on the Moneragala district which is one of the districts in the Uva Province. Rubber cultivation, being a new initiative there is a high risk of resource wastage in these areas which necessitated a detail study for proper planning of this exercise. Hence, the objective of this study was to assess the existing status of rubber cultivation in this area together with socio-economic conditions of rubber farmers. A questionnaire survey was done to collect relevant information from 255, 248 and 143 respondents in the respective categories of farmers who are prepared to cultivate rubber (potential farmers) and those who own immature and mature rubber plantations. Participatory studies were also done to assess the awareness on technical recommendations of rubber. The technical efficiency of rubber farmers was studied employing a stochastic frontier approach. More than 50% of the farmers had only primary level education. Hence, education needs to be considered as a constraint in improving the awareness of rubber farmers. Higher percentage of farmers with a monthly income of less than Rs. 10,000 should also be regarded as a bottleneck for the adoption of recommended technologies. Awareness on recommendations in immature phase ranged from 19% to 55% which was not at a satisfactory level. The awareness on tapping related activities was also not adequate since the awareness scores for both general and technical knowledge on tapping were below 40%. The production efficiency levels of mature rubber lands ranged from 17% to 96%, with an average value of 59%. The lands with smaller extent have lower efficiency levels. Those who practice the recommended tapping intensity had high efficiency levels. The average efficiency observed in the virgin panel was 62% while it was 52% with the renewed panels. The average efficiency in the lands tapped by owners themselves was 61% while when tappers were hired it was only 55%.