Presenting a New Technique to Assess the Efficiency of Farms with Window-DEA and Malmquist Productivity Index: The Case of Barley Farms In Khash County, Iran

As a major source of income in most countries, the agricultural sector is of a key importance among all economic activities. The improvement in productivity and efficiency is one of the main goals to accomplish economic growth and prosperity. Productivity enhancement has always been a major concern for all economic enterprises that produce commodities and services, and it is imperative to consider all of its aspects when planning for development. The present study aims at analyzing the variations of the productivity of production factors and measuring technical efficiency and productivity of farmers in Khash County, Iran using window data envelopment analysis (WDEA) method. So, the technical efficiency and productivity of the farmers were examined over the 2013-2016 period. The results show that the studied farmers have an average technical efficiency of 0.99, which is relatively high and indicates that the barley farmers are efficient. Indeed, the Malmquist productivity index reveals that the average variation of total productivity in the studied county was 1.95 over the studied period. One of the most effective factors influencing total productivity variations in agriculture is technological change. It is suggested that the new technology of agricultural technology (field integration and use of new irrigation) be used to increase the productivity and productivity of barley crops in the region.