ANALYSIS OF WOMEN EMPOWERMENT IN CASSAVA PRODUCTION AND PROCESSING AS A MEANS OF HOUSEHOLD POVERTY STATUS IN KWARA STATE, NIGERIA

ANALYSIS OF WOMEN EMPOWERMENT IN CASSAVA PRODUCTION AND PROCESSING AS A MEANS OF HOUSEHOLD POVERTY STATUS IN KWARA STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract:

This study is focused on the analysis of women empowerment in cassava production and processing as a means of household poverty status in Kwara State, Nigeria. Women in Kwara State were empowered by RTEP inorder to improve their living standard and there was therefore the need to evaluate the impact of the programme on the women‟s income, productivity and poverty status.Primary data were collected from the farmers and processors who were participants or non-participants in Root and Tuber Expansion Programme (RTEP) through the use of structured questionnaires. Purposive sampling was used to select the LGAs and villages, while random sampling was used to select the respondents and 12%(199) of the sample frame was used for this study. Tools for analyses were descriptive statistics such as frequency, tables, percentages, FGT, double difference estimators and multiple regressions. The results of the analysis showed that mean age for participants and non-participants farmers were 40 and 37 years and the mean age for participant and non-participant processors were 40 and 39 years respectively. Results of intensity of cassava production revealed that factors such as age(p<0.001), occupation(p<0.01) and agro-chemicals(p<0.01) significantly influenced the intensity of cassava production and the results of intensity of cassava processing showed that years of participation (p<0.0001) and extension visits (p<0.01)were statistically significant and influenced the intensity of cassava processing. The results from FGT revealed that poverty depth for participants (farmers) were 0.19 and 0.17 while for non-participants, 0.17 and 0.14 also the poverty severity for participants (farmers) were 0.07 and 0.02 and about 0.07 and 0.05 for non-participants (farmers) before and after the empowerment programme. Results for double difference estimators revealed that the values were positive with mean increase percentage values of 57.64% and 27.87% for participants and non-participants (farmers) and about 32.65% and 23.88% participants and non-participant (processors). Thisindicates that the empowerment programme impacted positively on the participants‟ income, productivity and poverty status for farmers and processors. Themultiple regression estimates revealed that when time and participation acted together, the variables of income, productivity and poverty status were significant at both 1% and 5% levels of probability indicating that time and participation in an empowerment programme significantly influences the income, productivity and poverty status of the participant farmers and processors. The major problems encountered by the farmers and processors were inadequate capital which was the major constraint to women empowerment followed by inadequate training by extension agents and poor market price for produce. In conclusion, it can be noted that women who participated in the RTEP had increases in their income, productivity and poverty status. Thus, it was therefore recommended that due to the improvement in the poverty status of participants in the RTEP, more empowerment programmes should be established by government in areas where there are high levels of poverty incidenceso that poverty in those areas can be alleviated

ANALYSIS OF WOMEN EMPOWERMENT IN CASSAVA PRODUCTION AND PROCESSING AS A MEANS OF HOUSEHOLD POVERTY STATUS IN KWARA STATE, NIGERIA

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