Access to agricultural credit, farmer training, and coffee performance in Uganda: a case of the Greater Masaka Region

Abstract

The study examined the effect of the access to agricultural credit, farmer training on coffee performance in Greater Masaka. The study was premised on five objectives which include; to establish the effect of availability of credit on coffee performance in Greater Masaka, to examine the effect of affordability of credit on coffee performance in Greater Masaka, to establish the effect of Loan size on coffee performance in Greater Masaka, to examine the effect of loan application process on coffee performance in Greater Masaka and to assess the moderating effect of farmer training on the relationship between access to agricultural credit and coffee performance in Greater Masaka. To achieve these objectives, the study employed a cross-sectional and an explanatory research Design with a quantitative approach that entailed the collection of numerical data from 256 farmers from greater masaka, selected from a sample of 331 farmers, through the administration of a survey questionnaire. Data were analysed using the statistical package for social science (SSPS Version 27). The findings indicated that both access to agricultural credit (B = .166, p = .017) and farmer training (B = .464, p < .001) have significant positive main effects on coffee performance holding the other variable constant, meaning that each independently contributes to improved coffee performance. However, though the interaction term (Int_1) is positive, results show that it remains non-significant (B = .063, p = .362), which indicates no evidence in this analysis that farmer training significantly moderates the relationship between access to agricultural credit and coffee performance. Consequently, the study recommends that Government and financial institutions should enhance rural financial inclusion by expanding access to affordable agricultural credit. Training should not operate in isolation but rather be embedded within agricultural credit programs. The findings remain valid, reliable, and practically useful in informing policies and interventions aimed at improving access to agricultural credit, enhancing farmer training, and strengthening coffee sector performance in Uganda.

Subject keywords: Agricultural credit; farmer training; coffee performance; Uganda; Greater Masaka Region