Despite the potential benefits to crop yields, inorganic fertilizer application in Sub-Saharan Africa lags behind other developing regions. Average application in Sub-Saharan Africa is less than 10 kg per hectare, while the average application in Latin America and South Asia is nearly 140 kg per hectare.[2] Sub-optimal or inefficient fertilizer use may result from farmers’ incomplete knowledge of its benefits or proper application techniques, inadequate (liquid) funds, or aversion to the risk associated with investing in a new input. Proponents of subsidies argue that they can help to mitigate these circumstances and bring fertilizer use up to optimal levels.