Impact of Farmers, Training on Technology Adoption, Profitability andFarm Income in TilaPia Farming

Abstract

Farmers' training plays a pivotal role in the sustainable development of aquaculture by promoting the adoption of improved technologies and the efficient use of production inputs. In Bangladesh, many institutions provide training to fish farmers to enhance their technical knowledge and management skills; this study investigates whether such training facilitates technology adoption and improves profitability and farm income by specifically examining the effects of farmers' training on the adoption of semi-intensive (improved) tilapia farming technology and on the economic performance of fish farms in the Sylhet district of Bangladesh. Primary data were collected from 99 tilapia farmers across three upazilas—Sylhet Sadar, South Surma, and Golapganj—covering the period from July 2015 to June 2016. A Logit model was used to assess the influence of formal education, training, and access to institutional credit on technology adoption, while farm profitability was estimated using net returns and farm income was measured as returns to land, family labor, and management. The results indicate that both training and access to formal credit have a statistically significant and positive influence on the adoption of improved technology, with trained farmers achieving 78% higher yields and 137% higher profitability than their non-trained counterparts. The per-hectare profit of trained farmers (Tk. 296,674) was more than twice that of non-trained farmers (Tk. 125,191), and similarly, the average annual income of trained farmers (Tk. 188,068) exceeded that of non-trained farmers (Tk. 91,682) by 105%. Overall, these results underscore the importance of continued investment in well-designed, need-based farmer training programs to accelerate technology adoption, increase production, and enhance farmers' income in Bangladesh.