“This study analyses the factors influencing the technical efficiency of arabica coffee
farmers in Cameroon. To carry out this analysis, a translog stochastic production frontier function, in which technical inefficiency effects are specified to be functions of socioeconomic variables, is estimated using the maximum-likelihood method. The results obtained show some increasing returns to scale in coffee production. The mean technical efficiency index is estimated at 0.896, and 32% of the farmers surveyed have technical efficiency indexes of less than 0.91. The analysis also reveals that the educational level of the farmer and access to credit are the major socioeconomic variables influencing
the farmers’ technical efficiency. Finally, the findings prove that further productivity
gains linked to the improvement of technical efficiency may still be realized in coffee
production in Cameroon.”
