Analysis of Three Methodologies for Collecting Data from Small Farmers in the Dominican Republic

摘要

In preparing investment plans for small farmers, credit agents for the Dominican Republic's Agricultural Bank often estimate small farmer production costs using secondary sources such as informal surveys of area input suppliers. To determine the objectivity of Bank estimates, an alternative method of data collection, based on interviews with small farmers themselves, was tested in the Cibao Valley and the results compared with estimates prepared by Bank agents. Two samples were interviewed: (1) a representative (purposive) sample of five farmers chosen by Bank agents was interviewed about land market value, labor, input prices, and level of technology; and (2) a random sample of 30 farmers was similarly interviewed. A comparison of the data collected indicates that credit agents' estimations vary significantly from the production cost data provided by farmers in the interviews. Little difference in data was noted between the two samples. Consequently, by estimating production costs instead of systematically measuring them (through questionaires), the Bank is not accurately representing actual production costs faced by its farmer clients. The consequences of under-and over-estimating production costs (no consistent pattern was noted) in the farm investment plan can affect, respectively, a farmer's ability to repay loans and the Bank's marginal productivity. This translates into nonviable and ineffective agricultural credit policies.