Rural Farmers' Farm Management Practices in the Rice Value Chain in Ogun and Niger States, Nigeria

Abstract

This study was borne out of the fact that in Nigeria, rice production has been declining due to poor farm
practices. Yet, the consumption of rice is increasing while the country continues to import rice to cater for the
citizenry. This study therefore assessed farm management practices of rural farmers in Rice Value Chain
(RVC) in Ogun and Niger States, Nigeria. Three hundred and twenty respondents were selected through
multistage sampling techniques. Data collected were analyzed with descriptive statistics, chi-square and t-
test. Results of this study showed that 50.6 percent of the respondents in Ogun State were between 30 – 40
years of age compared to 43.7% in the similar age bracket in Niger State. In Ogun State, 82.5% male are into
rice farming as against 78.1 percent male in Niger State. Also, 45% of the respondents had Secondary
Education in Ogun State whereas 28.1% had Secondary Education in Niger State. All the respondents in the
sampled states used herbicides (100%) for weed control. Fertilizer application was relatively low for both
Urea (55%) and NPK (36.9%) in the sampled states. But, 70% and 91.3% used drill irrigation in Ogun and
Niger States respectively. Major constraints to farm management practices in the rice production were birds'
disturbance (96.6%), high cost of processing equipment (92.5%) and inadequate finance (83.1%) in the study
areas. Results of t-test revealed that there is no significant difference in the farming management practices of
the rice farmers in Niger and Ogun States (t = 10.1, p = 0.06). The study therefore recommends that
agricultural extension services should expedite action by organizing training that can promote appropriate use
of agrochemicals and fertilizers in order to increase rice production and income generation for the rice farmers
in the study areas.