TECHNICAL AND SCALE EFFICIENCY OF RICE-FARMING HOUSEHOLDS IN CAN THO CITY: A STOCHASTIC FRONTIER PRODUCTION FUNCTION APPROACH

Abstract

 This study estimates technical efficiency, scale efficiency, characteristics of returns to scale, and factors associated with technical inefficiency among rice-farming households in Can Tho City, Vietnam. Survey data collected from September to December 2025 from a convenience non-probability sample of 402 ricefarming households were analysed using a onestep stochastic frontier analysis. A likelihoodratio test supports the Translog specification over the Cobb-Douglas form. Mean technical efficiency was 86.45%, corresponding to an average technical efficiency gap of 13.55% relative to the estimated production frontier. Mean scale efficiency was 90.63%. Regarding returns to scale, 60.95% of households operated under decreasing returns to scale, 36.32% under increasing returns
to scale, and 2.74% near constant returns to scale. In the technical inefficiency model, organic fertilizer use and participation in technical training were negatively associated with technical inefficiency, whereas economic training was positively associated with inefficiency. The coefficients of cooperative participation and production linkage were not statistically significant. Given the cross-sectional and convenience-based sampling design, these relationships should be interpreted as associations rather than causal
effects. The findings support differentiated technical support, nutrient and input management, and household-specific production guidance in the newly consolidated Can Tho City.