Nexus of risk preference, culture and religion in the adoption of improved rice varieties: Evidence from Northern Ghana

Improved rice varieties adoption has been identified as a critical policy instrument that could transform Ghana`s agriculture sector. This paper aims to present the theoretical framework of rice farmers` adoption decisions under heterogeneous risk preference in the context of Northern Ghana`s culture and religion. The research incorporates cultural and religious norms into socio-economic factors and analyses production uncertainty. The analysis first estimates the first-order profit moment, estimates farmers' relative risk premium and integrates the findings to a binary probit model. This paper uses survey data from 464 farmers from three cultural and three religious groups in Northern Ghana. The results show that risk preference, cultural norms and religious values affect farmers` probability of adopting improved rice varieties. The paper provides evidence that a reduction in production uncertainty through crop insurance and the inclusion of cultural and religious leaders are critical policy interventions. • The relationship between risk, culture, religion and adoption is unclear. • Cultural, religious and risk affect the adoption of improved rice varieties. • Chiefs and religious leaders are important in the diffusion of innovation. • Accessibility and affordability are necessary but not sufficient for the adoption.