This study was designed to measure technical efficiency and identify its determinants in crop production in Lafia Local government Area of Nasarawa State of Nigeria using a stochastic frontier production model. Double stage random sampling technique was used to select 100 crop farmers from which input-output data were collected based on 2005 cropping season. The results revealed that sixty five percent (65%) of the farmers were within the age range of 31-50 years and 67% had farm size ranging from 2-4 hectares. The technical efficiency of crop production range from 32.7% to 89.4% with mean of 69.6%. Farm size and fertilizer were the major inputs that are associated with the variation in crop output. The significant socio economic variables that accounted for the observed variations in technical efficiency among crop farmers were age, gender, marital status, household size, other occupation and land ownership. It is therefore recommended that a land redistribution policy that will increase the farm size of the farmers should be initiated. Fertilizer supply at subsidized rate to farmers in the area should be encouraged.

The study was about technical efficiency of women cassava farmers in Ankpa Local Government Area of Kogi State, Nigeria. A simple random sample of 120 women cassava farmers were interviewed with a structured questionnaire and information concerning their socioeconomic attributes, revenue realized and cost incurred in cassava production were obtained. The data were analysed with the use of stochastic frontier Cobb-Douglas production function and the inefficiency model. Results indicated that farm size, family labour, hired labour, equipment depreciation, cassava stems, fertilizers and transportation had positive coefficients and thus influenced cassava output positively.  Education, household size, farming experience and extension visits increased farmers’ technical efficiency. Many farmers had high technical efficiency. The mean technical efficiency was 76 percent with a maximum of 98 percent technical efficiency. Recommendation made to improve cassava production were making farm inputs available at affordable prices, review of land tenure system, opening up of more credit agencies and increase extension visits among others.

The study was designed to analyze societal welfare implication of paddy price support withdrawal, as an alternative policy, from rice sector in Malaysia. Time series data (1980-2012) were collected and analyzed through different stages of analyses. The first stage of analysis involved time series econometric model namely, Auto Regressive Distributed Lag (ARDL), which was used in coefficients estimation. Estimated coefficients were subjected to, and passed the relevant diagnostic tests. The estimated elasticities were then used for the second stage of analysis- scenario simulation. Finally, the generated simulation results were further used in estimating the societal welfare changed through appropriate estimation technique. Results show producer welfare loss of about RM189 million, and RM198 million was saved as revenue. The net gain or societal welfare improvement was about RM9 million. Simulated results show up to 10% reduction in paddy producer price or farm income; this could serve as disincentive to rice producers. Since the country is concerned about achieving rice self-sufficiency and rice food security, necessary precautionary measures have to be instituted to prevent farmers exit from paddy farming, by putting a concerted effort towards channeling the trickle-down benefit of societal welfare improvement, resulting from policy option, to rice producers particularly the dominant smallholder group.

The study examined level of savings among maize farmers in Doma Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, Nigeria. Multistage sampling procedure was used to select 80 respondents in the study area. Primary data were collected using well-structured  questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Multiple Linear Regression. The results show that half of the  respondents (50.0%) were within the age bracket of 21 - 40 years with a mean age of 42 years. Majority (83.8%) of the respondents were married. About 26.2% of the respondents had between 11 and 15 years of farming experience. More than half (56.2%) of the respondents belong to one cooperative association or another. Most of the respondents (81.2%) had access to extension contact with 46.3% of the respondents operating savings accounts with commercial banks. Household size (0.819**), farming experience (-0.589**), membership of association (-5.635**) and revenue from maize farming (0.00028**) were significant at 5% and constitute major determinants of savings in the study area. It is recommended that efforts should be made to increase earnings from maize farming through improved productivity by appropriate extension service. Also, savings with the financial institutions by the maize farmers should be encouraged through whittling down of administrative bottlenecks and, through extension of collateral-free credit facilities to them. Keywords: Savings, maize farmers, commercial banks