Contribution Of Agricultural Marketing Co-Operatives Towards Improving Household Welfare Experience From Moshi District, Tanzania

Abstract

Agricultural marketing cooperatives are seen as fundamental organisations towards improving members and their household welfare. However, for the past few decades these organisotions have got challenges in achieving its goals und objectives which brought the need for this dissertation to analyse the extent to which agricultural marketing co operatives have contributed towards improving members' household welfare among the rural ssmall-scale farmers from four villages in Moshi Rural District. A cross-sectional design was aadopted whereby purposive and simple random sampling techniques were used. In total, the study involved respondents AMCOs members and non-member. Data were collected through survey method whereby semi-structured questionnaire as well as key informant interview where interview checklist was used as a tool. Both quantitative (descriptive) and qualitative (content) methods of data analysis were used with an aid of SPSS. In descriptive analysis. statistics such as frequencies, mean and percentages were computed. T-test was also applied. Findings of the study showed that crop und animal husbandry were mots preferred farming activities byAMCOs members and non -members. Also, the 'T-test analysis revealed that income contribution to household was statistically significant compared to income of non-members at P<0.05. The findings aalso indicated that agricultural marketing cooperatives provided access to agricultural markets to their members above all services. In general, the study observed that AMCOs have more positive contribution in improving the welfare of the members in terms of improving income, assets ownership, and capacity to access social services, improving their household conditions, and enhance food security compared to non-members.