Farmers’ Preferences for Integrated Soil Fertility Management Technologies in Benin: A Best–Worst Scaling Analysis

Abstract

In a context of increasing soil degradation, understanding farmers’ perceptions appears essential to promote the acceptance and sustainable adoption of integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) technologies. This study analyses maize farmers’ perceptions of ISFM technologies in Benin. To achieve this objective, a survey was conducted among 394 maize farmers distributed across twelve municipalities, using stratified sampling. Perception analysis was carried out using the Best-Worst Scaling (BWS) method, which makes it possible to rank the perceived attributes of ISFM technologies. The results reveal that organic manure is the most highly valued ISFM technology (BW = 352), followed by composting (332) and agroforestry (326), while vegetative cover has the lowest relative importance (BW = 224). At the dimensional level, agronomic performance dominates farmers’ perceptions (α = 0.803), followed by environmental perception (α = 0.656) and economic performance (α = 0.597), whereas perceived risks and uncertainties are negatively associated with the evaluation of ISFM technologies (α = −0.341). These results highlight a perception of ISFM technologies mainly based on their agronomic, environmental, and economic benefits, with a marked preference for organic practices such as organic manure and composting.