Agricultural Risk Management and Production Efficiency among Peasant Farmers in Taraba State, North Eastern Nigeria

Abstract

This study was on agricultural risk management and production efficiency among peasant farmers in Wukari Local Government of Taraba State with specific objectives to; determine the socio-economic characteristics of the peasant farmers in the area; identify the risk faced by farmers in the area; analyse the risk management strategies and determine their management efficiency in combating the production risk. The Data for the study were collected using structured questionnaire. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse the data collected. The study showed that 88.8% faced risk from time to time while 5.6% of the respondents often face risk and another 5.6% never experienced risk at all. Diversification (56%) has been the major approach of risk management by respondents in the study area while integration (32%) and forward contracting (11.2%) methods were less employed. The coefficients of age (0.1044) was significant 1%, sex (0.7008) was significant at 5%, Educational level (0.3478) was significant at 1%, access to extension (2.6627) was significant at 1% and agribusiness risk (3.215) was significant at 1%. They were all positive indicating that they have positive relationship with the productivity of farmers. The allocative cost efficiency of risk management among the farmers stands at maximum: 20.57, minimum: 16.28 and mean: 18.55 indicating that the efficient level of production is very low thus demanding adequate management to increase production efficiency. It was recommended that the Government and stakeholders should help the farmers in time of risk to boost their morale for adequate production.