Does the choice of multiple agricultural labour packages influence farm productivity and food (in)-security? Evidence from lowland rice farmers in southern Ghana

Attaining targets under the sustainable development goal (SDG) – 2 of no hunger by 2030 appears imminent. To deliver on the SDG −2, the government of Ghana recently introduced the feed Ghana programme (FGP). Labour is important in production. However, the discourse on the interplay between multiple agricultural labour packages and its intersection with land in the production of food crops, especially rice, remains peripheral in the policy- practice arena and the extant literature. Our study addresses knowledge gaps by interrogating factors influencing the choice of labour, the impact of individual and multiple labour packages on productivity and food (in)-security. We do so, using data from 1874 rice farmers. By employing the Multinomial Endogenous Switching Regression and the Multivalued Inverse Probability Weighted Regression Adjustment estimations. We find that farmers with more experience, larger farm sizes, and greater access to extension services or credit tend to employ hired and contract labour. In contrast, married farmers and those with larger households or limited financial resources primarily rely on family labour. Relying on hired labour raises productivity by 1.615 (100 kg)/acre, while contract labour alone leads to a gain of 6.22 (100 kg)/acre. Combining hired and contract labour yields the highest returns, boosting productivity by 12 (100 kg)/acre and reducing food insecurity by approximately 5.1 points. We underscore two policy implications – First, farmers are advised to simultaneously use hired and contract labour to maximize productivity and alleviate food insecurity. The FGP is encouraged to bundle financial credit to enable farmers to afford and access labour services timely.