Optimization of fuelwood production for rural development with special reference to tobacco growing farmers (South Nyanza- Kenya)

Abstract

A resource allocation problem was studied, both tlleoretically, and on the hasis of an empirici'lldi'lti'l.South Nyanza district of the Republ ic of K(~IlYi1 wa!"lchos(!n as the study area, for personal and technical reasons. The area gives an example of a place where a problem of resource allocation is inuninent, here tobacco growing has been increasing steadily as a cash crop, while at the same time, sugar cane and cotton, both of which are not covered in this study, are also important cash crops. A bias towards cash crop production has been noted, at the expense of both the food crop production, and the environment, which is degraded due to overexploitation of the wood resource, both for domestic use, and for the increasing demand for tobacco curing. Data was collected for the inputs and outputs involved in the production of tobacco, maize and fuelwood. Preliminary data analysis was performed using an electronic calculator. The main data analysis was done using the Linear programming (LP) method. Large systems TE11PO program package, developed for mathematical progrnrmning problems was used on the Burroughs B 7800 computer. The results of the data were tested for sensitivity, using the same computer package. The study shows that of all the productive resources available in the study area, capital is the most limiting resource, while labour is the most abundant resource. Tobacco production gives the best returns on capital while fuelwood gives the best results on labour. The maximal net revenue and the optimal land allocation is obtained when the above two resources are allocated ill such a way that tobacco production uses both labour and capital intensively while fuelwo(~ uses labour extensively. With the prevailing conditions of the resources availability in the study area, it is possible to produce fuelwood in all the area left over from the maize and tobacco productions, especially when a maximum ceiling is put on the tobacco crop. No significant competition for land use was observed amongst the three crops.