Determinants of Pesticides Choice in Market Gardening in Urban and Peri-Urban Areas of the Cities of Bobo-Dioulasso and Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso

Abstract

In Burkina Faso, population growth and accelerated urbanization are accompanied by an increase in agricultural production, in order to meet the growing demand for food, especially vegetables. The objective of this study is to identify the factors that influence the use of pesticides in market gardening in urban and peri-urban areas of Burkina Faso. To this end, a cross-sectional survey was conducted in 2023 among 393 farmers, selected by proportional stratified random sampling in the two communes of Bobo Dioulasso and Ouagadougou. The average age of the surveyed population was 44.43 years. Of the total sample, 65.9% were male, and the average cultivated area was 0.28 hectares. A binary logistic regression model was used to determine the factors that influence the use of pesticide. The results show that the experience of discomfort following pesticide application, the occurrence of accidents during pesticide use, and the perception of the dangerousness of pesticides to human health and the environment are variables that exert a significant and positive influence on pesticide use. Furthermore, a greater willingness to accept effective alternatives has been found to reduce the probability of using pesticides by 97.3%, with a statistically significant coefficient and a very low p-value (0.000). Moreover, each increase in annual income is associated with a reduction in the probability of not using chemical pesticides by 0.1%, with a statistically significant coefficient and a very low p-value (0.000).  In the context of the search for rational use of pesticides, it is necessary to characterize the cropping systems in the urban and peri-urban market gardening sites of Bobo Dioulasso and Ouagadougou.