Analysis the Effects of Targeting Subsidies on the Agricultural Sector: the case of Central District of Choram County

The aim of this study was to investigate and analyze the effects of targeted subsidies in the agricultural sector of Choram County located in Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad provinces. The statistical population of the study was 2528 farmers in the central part of Choram County. The approach in this study was integrated (qualitative-quantitative). In the qualitative section, data were first collected through in-depth interviews with informed farmers. Data analysis technique in this section, content analysis and the studied sample were selected using purposive sampling until reaching theoretical saturation of 39 people. In the quantitative part of the research, in order to obtain a more comprehensive view of the subsidy targeting plan in the agricultural sector and to understand its effects, secondary data were collected before and after the subsidy targeting. Data analysis in this section was performed with SPSS software. The results of content analysis in the form of three stages of open, axial and selective coding showed that five categories of factors (increase in production costs of agricultural products, increase in economic costs of farmers, decrease in quality of life of farmers, Optimization in the consumption of energy carriers and reduction of environmental pollution) has been of the most important effects of targeted subsidies. The results comparison mean level under cultivation and the yield of agricultural products before and after the targeting of subsidies also showed that level under the cultivation of tomato and green cucumber after targeting subsidies was significantly higher than before and the level under cultivation of rice and wheat crops has decreased, also tomato, rain fed barley and watermelon yielded significantly more than before, while in other products there was no significant statistical difference between the level under the cultivation and yield. Therefore, according to the results of the research, the plan to target agricultural subsidies has not had the desired effect on the agricultural sector. Therefore, it is suggested that the relevant authorities, such as the Ministry of Jihad for Agriculture and the organizations sponsoring pricing, put on the agenda the mechanisms needed to reduce the prices of production inputs and energy carriers.