摘要：This study analyzes the technical efficiency of a group of potato producers from San Javier commune, in the VII Region of Chile. The data was obtained from a survey conducted by the Latin-American Center for Rural Development (RIMISP) in 2003, to a group of 118 producers. From the total sample, 59 are beneficiaries of INDAP’s Technology Transference Program (PTT), whereas the remaining 59 producers do not participate in the program. By means of the estimation of a frontier parametric model of gross income, indicators of technical efficiency were obtained using the Cobb-Douglas and Translog functional specifications. At the same time, a model of linear regression was estimated with the purpose of identifying the determinants of the technical inefficiencies. The results show important differences in the technical efficiency indicators, with a range that varies from 0,1 up to 0,9. It was also observed that the principal determinants of these differences are variables such as the property size, age of the household chief, distance from the property to the principal road, etc. Moreover, it was possible to prove in the model, with heteroscedasticity correction, that the PTT has a direct and significant effect on the technical efficiency of the producers. Nevertheless, it presents distinguishing effects on some groups of producers. Based on the results obtained, the paper proposes policy strategies such as: improvement of the rural infrastructure, strengthening of rural extension programs and actions toward enhancing the commercialization channels. This type of policies can help to increase the producers’ technical efficiency and also improve the chance of the PTT to have a positive impact.
关键词：stochastic frontiers;technical efficiency;program of technological transfer.
