This study analyzed the effects of internet use on farm income and household income using survey data from 478 rural farmers from two regions in Ghana. An endogenous switching regression (ESR) model and probit models were employed to achieve the aims of the study. The results revealed that internet use was influenced by off-farm employment, education, access to credit, non-fixed asset (NFA), age, and perception variables. We found that internet use increased farm income and household income by 20.1% and 15.47%, respectively. Regarding heterogeneous impacts, the estimates showed that internet use reduced farm income by 18.12% for farm households that participated in off-farm activities but increased farm income by 14.66% for households that had access to NFA. The estimates also indicated that internet use increased household income by 31.77% for farm households that engaged in off-farm employment and by 15.33% for those that had access to NFA. Furthermore, internet use increased the household income for households that did not engage in off-farm activities by 24.85%. The findings of this study will contribute significantly to the existing literature on information communication technology (ICT) in developing countries by providing a new reference for improving rural development and solving the problem of poverty.

The aim of alleviating poverty has a necessary implication on rural households’ economic development. The study investigates the mediating role of access to financial services (AFS) in the effect of financial literacy (FL) on household income using survey data collected from four regions in Ghana. Using the multi-stage sampling technique, 572 respondents were randomly selected for the study. The findings of this study reveal that financial literacy has a robust, increasing effect on household income. Again, the results depict that AFS mediates the positive effect of FL on household income. An interesting moderating effect of social networks is also revealed in the study. This study adds to the existing literature on rural development by exploring how financial education and inclusions contribute to poverty alleviation and provides policy implications to improve rural households’ well-being.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to determine the factors influencing rural youth farmers’ credit constraints status and the effect of credit constraint on the intensity of participation of these farmers in Ghana. Design/methodology/approach: The econometric estimation is based on cross-sectional data collected in 2018 from the Brong Ahafo region in Ghana. The sample data set consists of 450 rural youth farmers. The collected data were analyzed through different econometric techniques, using the endogenous switching regression model (ERSM). Findings: The direct elicitation approach employed in this study revealed that out of the 450 farmers, 211 (47 percent) of the respondents were credit constrained compared to 239 (53 percent) of their counterparts who were unconstrained. The ERSM indicated that youth farmers education, age, savings, parents occupation reduced the probability of the rural youth farmer to be credit constrained but cumbersome loan application procedure and loan disbursement time positively affect credit constraint. Moreover, farmers that are credit constrained have lower intensity of participation in agriculture activities than a random farmer from the sample. This suggests that access to credit has a positive impact on the intensity of participation in agriculture activities. Research limitations/implications: In this study, only rural youth farmers in a particular region were considered. However, there are youths all over the nation. Therefore, future researchers could consider other youth’s farmers elsewhere in the country. Originality/value: Although existing studies have examined rural youth farmers’ participation in agriculture and credit constraint separately, the unique contribution of this paper is the analysis of credit constraint of rural youth farmers as well as the impact of credit constraint on the intensity of participation in agriculture activities.