Abstract
Utilization of primary health care services among settled Fulani agro-pastoralists in Ogun State was assessed in this study. Sixty (60) respondents were purposefully selected and interviewed using an interview guide. The data obtained were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The study revealed that the mean age of the respondents was 35.82, 68.3% of the respondents were females and majority (80.0%) of the respondents have no formal education. The results showed that friends and relatives were the main sources of information on primary health care services. About 90.0% of the respondents had positive attitude towards the use of primary healthcare services. The study also revealed that respondents visits primary health facility for pharmacy/dispensary (95.0%), maternity (98.3%) and vaccination/immunization (86.7%). The result of the study revealed that the most pressing constraint faced by the agro-pastoralists was the distance of health facility from their settlement. Regression analysis showed that income, distance from home to health care center, information, attitude and constraints face influenced the utilization of primary healthcare services among the respondents. The study recommends that government should build health centres close to the agro-pastoralists to reduce the cost of medical services accessed by the pastoralists. Keywords: Fulani, healthcare, Ogun State, pastoralist, utilization
Highlights
There are about 50-100 million nomad/semi-nomad pastoralists in the developing world (Omar, 1992)
About 76.7% of the respondents are into trading and livestock rearing which agrees with the findings of Nori et al (2005) that livestock represents the most important form of financial capital for pastoralists, both in terms of stock and flows
This study revealed that settled Fulani agropastoralists had positive attitude to primary health care services but the services are not accessible to them at their settlements
Summary
There are about 50-100 million nomad/semi-nomad pastoralists in the developing world (Omar, 1992). The largest group of pastoralists is the Fulbe or Fulani that constitute about 95% of the nomadic herders in Nigeria (Fabosoro, 2006). The Fulanis are among the most widely dispersed and culturally diverse peoples in Africa Their immigration spanned several centuries; they traversed the West African savanna in small groups. They usually migrate from the mostly dry northern Nigeria and neighbouring countries to the wetter southern part, where they live in camps (Nweze, 2010). In Nigeria, the contribution of the Fulanis to the local food chain and national food security cannot be over emphasized (Abdikarim and Jolian, 1999) They hold over 90 per cent of the nation’s livestock population. Meat is the major source of animal protein consumed by many Nigerians because of its availability and comparative price to other animal protein products
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