The study focused on the investigation of factors affecting loan repayment performance among members of Cooperative Thrift and Credit Societies in Yewa North Local Government Area of Ogun State. The study drew a sample of hundred and four smallholder agricultural credit users who are members of Cooperative Thrift and credit society identified through a multi stage random sampling techniques. Relevant information on socioeconomic characteristics, sources of loan preferred, payback period, factors affecting loan repayment of cooperators and constraints in obtaining loan were collected using structured questionnaires with personal interview and data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics and multiple regressions. The results of the study revealed that a total of 78.8 percent of the respondents was within the age range of 31-60 years showing that majority of the respondents are within their active and productive ages. The study also revealed that 89.5 percent of the respondents have formal education which facilitates their access to loans through informal sources and with Cooperative Thrift and Credit Societies being the most popular source, and credit was made available and utilized, and cooperators' annual income rose significantly. The results of the regression showed that amount of loan collected by farmers, level of education and year of experience and labor used were the major factors that positively and significantly influence loan repayment. It is therefore recommended that the credit agencies should always endeavour to draw a more convenient disbursement and amortization schedule to conform with economic needs, that is, loan must be adapted to the peculiar needs of the cooperators and repayment condition should be flexible enough to allow for variation and uncertainties in cooperative income.
The primary aim of the study was to ascertain the profitaility and assess resource use efficiency as well as compare same between the two sysytems of aquaculture (Concrete pond and Dug-out pond Systems) in Ijebu-North and Ijebu Norh-East Local Government Areas of Ogun State. To accomplish this objective, the 65 fish farmers (30 Dug-out pond and 35 concrete pond) whose fish had reached market size were interviewed in the study areas during 2001/2002 production season. Sets of structured questionnaire, personally administered were used to collect the required data. The mean sizes of the concrete ponds and Dug-out ponds were employed in the analysis of the data. The mean sizes of the concrete ponds and Dug-out ponds were 64.57 M2 and 2392.43 M2 respectively.
The budgetary analysis of the two systems showed that fish production was profitable in the area. The concrete pond (CPS) system was however found to be more profitable than the dug-out pond system (DPS). The result of the regression analysis showed that the number of fingerlings stocked per square metre, man days of human labour used , months of production season and quatity of fertilizer and lime used had much more significant influence on yield (harvest) from the CPS than from the DPS. The comparison of the technical efficiency of inputs in both systems showed that the inputs were more efficiently utilized in the CPS rather than in the DPS. The result of the Chow test showed that the resource used in the CPS differed significantly at 5 percent level, from that of DPS.
Following their findings, it was recommended that fish farmers in the study area should increase their stocking rate and reduce the amount of hired labour as well as use appropriate good quality feed in order to improve their productivity levels.
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