The study examined

The

Various health challenges and fatalities in rural communities of most developing countries of the world have been traceable to the unabated use of biomass energy sources. We therefore assessed the awareness of the health implications of the use of biomass energy sources among women in rural households of Jigawa State. Multistage sampling procedure was used to collect data from 120 respondents using structured questionnaires. Data were collected on respondents’ socioeconomic characteristics, types of biomass used, information sources on the health implications from use of biomass energy sources, awareness of the health implications and constraints to the use of alternatives to biomass. Data were summarised using frequencies, percentages, means, Chi-square and Pearson Product Moment Correlation. Majority of the respondents (78.3 %) were below 40 years of age with a mean age of 30 ± 2.02 years. Majority were married (90.8 %), Muslims (100 %), involved in agro-processing (65.8 %), had no formal education (73.3 %), and earned not more than ₦10, 000 (90.8 %) with mean household size of 9 members. Wood (100 %) and charcoal (100 %) were the dominant biomass energy sources used. Respondents’ main source of information on the health implications of the use of biomass were radio (64.2 %) and extension agents (54.2 %). Awareness level of the health implications from the use of biomass energy sources was fairly high (51.7 %). High cost of the alternatives, scarcity of refilling points and alternatives and lack of capital were the main hindrances to the use of the alternatives to biomass energy sources. The result on the inferential statistics revealed that a significant association existed between education (χ2 = 6.08; P < 0.05) and awareness of health implications from the use of biomass. Efforts should be made to sensitize women on the health implications resulting from the use of biomass. Alternatives should be made available and affordable to encourage a switch from biomass energy sources thereby reducing the fatalities that may result from its continual use.

Use of biomass energy is on the increase in rural areas of Nigeria, and its use poses serious environmental challenges. The study assessed the awareness of the environmental implications associated with the unsustainable use of biomass energy sources among rural households in Jigawa State, Nigeria. Multistage sampling procedure was used to select 120 respondents for the study using structured questionnaire. Collected data were analysed using descriptive (frequency counts, percentage, mean, and rank) and inferential statistics (chi-squared test). The result revealed that the majority of the respondents were male (94.2%), married (90.8%), and between 31 to 40 years, with a mean age of 39.8 years. Results further revealed that the majority of the respondents were farmers (56.7%), had Qur’anic education (71.7%), and earned a monthly income of N10,000–N20,999 (52.5%), with a mean monthly income of ₦13,816.67. Use of fuel wood (100%) and charcoal (100%) were the dominant biomass energy sources used. Results at the level of awareness revealed that the majority of the respondents (80.8%) had low awareness of the environmental implications associated with the unsustainable use of biomass energy sources. The respondents’ main source of information on the environmental implications associated with the unsustainable use of biomass energy sources were radio (64.17%) and extension agents (54.2%). The high cost of other alternatives, scarcity of refilling stations, scarcity of the alternatives, and lack of funds to purchase other alternatives are some of the major constraint bedevilling the use of non-solid energy sources. Level of education (χ2 = 6.584; p < 0.1) and average monthly income (χ2 = 8.277; p < 0.1) were significantly related to awareness of the environmental implication of the unsustainable use of biomass energy. It is therefore recommended that people should be enlightened on the environmental implications associated with the unsustainable use of biomass energy sources. Furthermore, policies favouring a switch of energy source should be considered.

The oil boom of the 1970s in Nigeria has negatively impacted the young generation's psychology about agriculture. This has led to a continued drain of workforces. The general view on agriculture is of a ‘murky' business, as such always relegated within choices. Myriad programs and projects are being rolled out to revamp agriculture and attract youth in Nigeria. However, they remain largely with insignificant positive results and most of them with little or no deliberate appeal strategy towards enchanting youth. This research analyses the level of youth involvement in agribusinesses in Jigawa, describes and analyses ICTs landscape, then presents innovative approaches towards enchanting youth for agri-preneurial enterprises. Purposive sampling was used to select locations of data collection while convenient sampling was employed to elicit data. Results reveal that the youth entrepreneurial involvement is towards marketing, while a robust ICTs platform exist for supporting enterprises. Also, three packages were drawn and presented for the promotion of agri-prenuership in Nigeria.