Influence of socioeconomic, product and service quality attributes on certified sweetpotato seed use in Uganda

Abstract

The sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas (L) Lam) seed system in Uganda is transiting from an informal to a formal setting, by integrating the use of certified sweetpotato seed (CSS) in the production system. Use of CSS enhances productivity by controlling the spread of the sweetpotato virus disease (SPVD) and seed degeneration. However, owing to the limited understanding of product and service quality attributes by farmers, the sustained use of CSS has remained dismal. The objective of this study was to investigate the contribution of farmer socioeconomic characteristics; product and service quality attributes to sustained use of CSS in Uganda. A total of 289 sweetpotato farmers from Central (Mpigi district) and Northern (Omoro district) Uganda, representing low and high SPVD prevalence zones, respectively, were interviewed to obtain information on product attributes (acceptability, accessibility, affordability and awareness) and service attributes (reliability, tangibility, assurance, responsiveness and empathy). Data were subjected to a Double Hurdle analysis. Results revealed that users of CSS scored more for product and service quality attributes, than their non-user counterparts. There was a highly positive correlation between use of CSS and education level in central; but a modestly positive in northern Uganda. Reliability (b = 0.289, 12.612) positively drove the use and extent of use of CSS; while for tangibility (b = -0.302, -11.742), the converse was true. Also, acceptability (b = 0.469, 22.048) increased the use and extent of use of CSS; yet accessibility increased only the use in both locations (b = 0.268). Thus, efforts to scale-out CSS use in the study areas should focus more on affordability, awareness, assurance and empathy based on location; putting into consideration education level and group membership differences.