<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>Agricultural extension service in Nigeria is largely public sector driven. Unfortunately, the sector is not operating at its maximum largely due to weak institutional structure and poor extension to farmers’ ratio. As such, smallholder farmers often suffer low productivity and poor product quality. The study therefore examined the perceptions, utilisation and effectiveness of the Competitive African Rice Initiative (CARI) extension practise in Kebbi State, Nigeria. Multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select 120 rice farmers enrolled under the initiative in the study area. The data collected were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The study revealed that the average age of the respondents was 47.8 ± 1.72 years, 76.7% were male and married (73.1%). The study further revealed that the respondents were smallholder farmers (5.6 ± 7.22 acres). Respondent’s perception of CARI was favourable at 72.5% (36 ± 2.8), Rice Advice (<italic>x</italic>̄ = 1.32) ranked highest at the CARI tool utilised most, while the deployment of CARI extension practise was effective 65.8% (48 ± 3.4). There was a significant association between marital status (<italic>χ</italic><sup>2</sup> = 3.242, p = 0.023), utilisation of CARI tools, and effectiveness of CARI in extension practise (r = 0.206, p = 0.001). The study recommends sustained capacity building for enrollees of the initiative to enhance utilisation and ensure optimum effectiveness.</p>
</abstract>

Agricultural extension service in Nigeria is largely public sector driven. Unfortunately, the sector is not operating at its maximum largely due to weak institutional structure and poor extension to farmers’ ratio. As such, smallholder farmers often suffer low productivity and poor product quality. The study therefore examined the perceptions, utilisation and effectiveness of the Competitive African Rice Initiative (CARI) extension practise in Kebbi State, Nigeria. Multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select 120 rice farmers enrolled under the initiative in the study area. The data collected were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The study revealed that the average age of the respondents was 47.8 ± 1.72 years, 76.7% were male and married (73.1%). The study further revealed that the respondents were smallholder farmers (5.6 ± 7.22 acres). Respondent’s perception of CARI was favourable at 72.5% (36 ± 2.8), Rice Advice (x̄ = 1.32) ranked highest at the CARI tool utilised most, while the deployment of CARI extension practise was effective 65.8% (48 ± 3.4). There was a significant association between marital status (χ2 = 3.242, p = 0.023), utilisation of CARI tools, and effectiveness of CARI in extension practise (r = 0.206, p = 0.001). The study recommends sustained capacity building for enrollees of the initiative to enhance utilisation and ensure optimum effectiveness.

Competitive African Rice Initiative: perceptions, utilisation and effectiveness of its practise among rice farmers in Kebbi State, Nigeria

Department of Agricultural Extension and Rural Development

Department of Agricultural Economics and Extension

Olusegun Agagu University of Science and Technology (OAUSTECH)

Agricultura Tropica et Subtropica

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Agricultural extension service in Nigeria is largely public sector driven. Unfortunately, the sector is not operating at its maximum largely due to weak...

Competitive African Rice Initiative: perceptions, utilisation and effectiveness of its practise among rice farmers in Kebbi State, Nigeria

Published Online: Dec 21, 2023

Page range: 209 - 216

Received: Oct 29, 2022

Accepted: Nov 29, 2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/ats-2023-0023

Keywords
Competitive African Rice Initiative, effective extension service, rice farmers

© 2023 Kehinde Adesina Thomas et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Competitive African Rice Initiative: perceptions, utilisation and effectiveness of its practise among rice farmers in Kebbi State, Nigeria

Published Online: Dec 21, 2023

Page range: 209 - 216

Received: Oct 29, 2022

Accepted: Nov 29, 2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/ats-2023-0023

KeywordsCompetitive African Rice Initiative, effective extension service, rice farmers

© 2023 Kehinde Adesina Thomas et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Keywords
Competitive African Rice Initiative, effective extension service, rice farmers