As part of a larger study encompassing sub-Saharan Africa, this
Biodiversity conservation outside designated protected areas remains challenging in South Africa, where 80% of the biodiversity resources occur on private and communal lands. This applies to the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province, which is the focus of this study. Landholders logically choose agricultural production ahead of conservation, which they often perform using non-ecological methods. Extension is well positioned to promote ecological agriculture, but its current contribution is unknown. This study examined the role of extension in ecological agriculture in KZN by investigating extension's promotion of ecological agriculture among smallholder farmers and the factors impacting their employment of ecologically compatible practices. Data was collected through semistructured interviews with 44 respondents, comprising 5 provincial biodiversity conservation practitioners, 1 national biodiversity conservation manager, and 1 national and 4 provincial agricultural extension managers, selected by purposive sampling; as well as 25 extension officers and 8 farmers, selected by convenience sampling. The study found that extension mainly engages in technology transfer and distribution of production inputs, which poses challenges to biodiversity conservation. Extension shows little concern for biodiversity, and effectively promotes its degradation. Four sets of factors impacting extension's capacity to promote ecological agriculture emerged: household/community-level, governmental, extension management, and ecological factors. Key among these were inadequate involvement of youth and men in K. A. Abdu-Raheem agriculture; inadequate household production resources; poor collaboration and coordination between extension and biodiversity conservation institutions; top-down extension intervention; poor extension management and delivery capacities; and irregular and inadequate rainfall, as well as droughts and flooding. The study concluded that there is a need for a clearly articulated extension and biodiversity conservation policy supporting appropriate linkages and better coordination and integration of services among extension and biodiversity agencies within the National and Provincial Departments of Agriculture and with farmers; more effective agricultural education in schools; strengthening extension support systems; and creating conducive atmospheres for effective extension.
The study assessed the determinants of the use of Ethno-Veterinary Management (EVM) practices among sheep and goats farmers in southwest, Nigeria. A validated interview schedule was used to source information from one hundred and twenty farmers for the study. Data were collected on selected farmers’ socio-economic characteristics, various EVM practices and constraints encountered on the use of various EVM practices. Descriptive statistics such as frequency count, percentage, means, standard deviation and ranking were employed to summarize the data. Binomial logit regression analysis was employed to assess the determinants of the use of EVM practices among sheep and goats farmers. The study revealed that the mean age of the respondents was 32.7 years with 58.3% males. Also, 91.7% were able to read and write and the mean household size was 4 while 40% received information on EVM practices. The common diseases and pests of sheep and goats in the study area were foot rot, mastitis, pneumonia, conjunctivitis, trypanosomiasis, ticks, fleas and mites. Common EVM practices employed by the farmers were: the use of spent engine oil, kerosene, oil extracts of palm oil vernonia conferta leaves etc. Age and sex had negative relationships with the use of EVM practices at 5% level of significance while educational level, household size, farming experience, sources of information on EVM practices had positive significant relationships with the use of EVM practices. Insufficient fund was the major constraint hindering the rearing of sheep and goats in the study area. It was concluded that small ruminants’ farmers did manage their stocks employing some EVM practices and sensitize farmers on the efficacy of some EVM practices. Government should encourage veterinary practices which will integrate western medicines and EVM practices together for the use of small ruminants’ farmers.
The study was carried out in Ikole Local Government Area of Ekiti State. Structured questionnaire was used to collect data on socio-economic variables, costs and revenues of the farmers. One hundred food crop famers cultivating cassava were randomly selected for the study. The result revealed that most of the farmers were young and educated. The mean household size was eight people. Land tenure through inheritance was the major method of acquiring farmland. Most farmers are small scale farmers operate mostly on owner’s equity. The gross margin of cassava production was #172, 920.00 per hectare. Cassava production was profitable by returning 2.07 for everyone naira invented in the study area. Among the recommendation made to boost production in the area was granting of small loans to farmers by commercial banks and land should be made available and allocated to the farmers to increase output and productivity of cassava production in the study area.
PurposeGraduate unemployment in agriculture is a serious challenge in Nigeria. Literatures suggest two arguments explaining this. First, the skills possessed by graduates are mostly incompatible with the needs of industries; second, universities produce more graduates than required. Focussing on universities as the source of change to address these two arguments, the purpose of the study was to examine the case of Ekiti State University agricultural faculty. The study investigated students' perspectives regarding their motivations for choosing agriculture over other disciplines, training received in critical thinking, innovation and soft-skills and their courage and willingness to undertake self-employment upon graduation.Design/methodology/approachThe study adopted a qualitative research design to collect and analyse data from a case study. Data were collected through semi-structured individual interviews with 42 respondents from amongst the Ekiti State University final year B. Agric agricultural students that totalled 108. Seven of the respondents were purposively selected following recommendations from their lecturers due to their bright academic performances. Others were chosen using convenience sampling.FindingsThe study found that students preferred other science disciplines to agriculture and only ended up studying agriculture out of frustration of not gaining admission into their preferred fields. Students generally denied ever undertaking any training in critical and soft skills either as courses on their own or through the teaching methods adopted in other courses. Respondents generally expressed willingness to undertake self-employment but expressed lack of confidence to do so solely based on their little practical exposure and lack of access to basic resources like finance and land.Research limitations/implicationsOnly agricultural students of Ekiti State University were sampled; hence, the results is not generalisable to other disciplines in the university or to all Universities in Nigeria. Convenience sampling was used because access to all members of the sampled population at the same time was not possible due to different timetables for lectures for the various disciplines and non-readiness of some students to be interviewed for lack of interest or for commitment to other engagements.Practical implicationsThe study practically implied that the theoretical training offered to agricultural students of Ekiti State University needs to be balanced with practical exposure, such that students gain enough confidence to practice what they have learnt upon graduation to earn a living.Social implicationsThe study revealed that there is need for curriculum review for agricultural studies at Ekiti State University in a way that will accommodate relevant practical trainings for students to make them suitable for either hired employment or self-employment upon graduation.Originality/valueThe author hereby declares that this manuscript is the author's own work and it contains, to the best of the author's knowledge, no materials previously published or written by another person. The author has no idea of an in-depth study of this nature that has been done to analyse the gap between the training received by agricultural students in Universities and the skills required to make them capable for hired employment or self-employment upon graduation from universities.
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