Adoption of recommended rice production practices among women rice farmers in Nasarawa State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study assessed the factors influencing adoption of recommended rice production practices (RRPPs) by women farmers in Nasarawa State. A total of 203 women rice farmers were selected for the study using multi-stage sampling procedure. Data were collected using structured interview schedule. Descriptive statistics and multiple regression were used for data analysis. Results reveal that majority (70.9%) of the respondents were less than 45 years old, married (82.5%), had below secondary education (80.0%), had farming experience of 10 years and above (80%), and inherited their farmlands (81.4%). Majority (78.4%) of the women rice farmers received not more than ₦ 60,000 credit in the last one year. ADP was the most important sources of information for the women rice farmers (M=2.12). Factors influencing adoption of RRPPs were farm size (2.6353, P<0.01), amount of credit assessed (0.1618, P<0.01), membership of association (-0.3248, P<0.01), relative advantage (0.2337, P<0.01), compatibility (0.3519, P<0.01) and complexity (-0.1251, P<0.05) significantly influenced adoption of RRPPs by women rice farmers in the study area. It was recommended that government should ensure that credit facilities are made available on regular basis to women farmers. Also, buy-back arrangement should be introduced in order to ensure good pricing for rice producers.