Influence of Selected Extension Support services on Sesame Production Among Smallholder Farmers in Bal’ad District, Somalia

Abstract

Sesame is valuable cash crop in Somalia, as a significant income source for smallholder farmers. Its cultivation and trade make substantial contributions to the national economy, generating revenue and creating employment opportunities. Farmers face challenges related to poor-quality seeds, limited fertilizers, and a lack of proper pest control practices. The paper was to investigate the influence of selected factors (access to farm inputs, access to credit, and access to market information) on sesame production among smallholder farmers in Bal’ad district/Middle Shabelle/Somalia. The target population was 3098 sesame farmers. Purposive sampling and simple random sampling were used to select a sample of the respondents. The sample size was 148 farmers. The study used both quantitative and qualitative methods. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data. The paper recommends that extension support services should guarantee that access to inputs of sesame production is available and offered to new farmers.