Role of information sources among poultry farmers in Edo State, Nigeria: Implication for entrepreneurship and agricultural transformation

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1 136 International Journal of Basic and Applied Agricultural Research [Vol. 13 (2), May - August 2015] Role of information sources among poultry farmers in Edo State, Nigeria: Implication for entrepreneurship and agricultural transformation OKON, G.E. and D.U. OKOEDO-OKOJIE Department of Agricultural Economics and Extension Services, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Benin, P.M.B. 1154, Benin City, Nigeria. ABSTRACT: This study focused on the role of information sources among poultry farmers in Edo state, Nigeria, and proffer implication for entrepreneurship and agricultural transformation. Using a multi-stage sampling technique, data collected from 140 poultry farmers were analysed using frequency count, means and hypothesis tested with PPMC and Chi-square. Results showed that a higher proportion (38.6%) of the respondents sourced information from agricultural companies. Extension agents (M=3.38) and agricultural companies (M=2.84) were perceived to play the role of raising awareness. Control of disease (M=3.71) was the most readily available technology. The most serious constraint faced by respondents was insufficient fund (M=3.71) to expand and manage poultry enterprise. Respondents education (r=-0.175, p<0.05) and stock size (r=0.245, p<0.01) were significantly related to communication role of fellow farmers and cooperative societies at 0.05 and 0.01 levels respectively. It was thus recommended that farmers should be given regular training on cooperation education and management availability of day old chicks is a vital resource for poultry enterprise and should be improved by government in order to meet the rising demand for the product and sustain the poultry industry. Key words : Agricultural companies, cooperative societies, information sources, insufficient fund, poultry farmers, raising awareness, stock size, technology. Entrepreneurship is essentially creative in nature. It is a matter of exploration and initiation of new things, new way of doing things, new methods of production, new use and new market for products of services. Entrepreneurship development is a precondition for the sustained economic development of a country (Awodya, 2011). Economic development is fundamentally a process of structural transformation. This involves the reallocation of productive factors from traditional agriculture to modern agriculture, industry and services, and the reallocation of those factors among industrial and service sector activities. If successful in accelerating economic growth, this process involves shifting resources from low- to high-productivity sectors. More broadly, sustained economic growth is associated with the capacity to diversify domestic production structure: that is, to generate new activities, to strengthen economic linkages within the country and to create domestic technological capabilities (United Nations, 2007). An agricultural extension service is inevitable in the achievement of a transformed agricultural economy into an industrial economy. The organization building ability is the most critical skill needed for the industrial development. According to Inegbenebor and Igbinowmanhia (2011), entrepreneurship is depicted as important for economic development; create job, ease fiscal burden, increase productivity through innovation, facilitates the transfer/adoption of technology, ensures increased resource utilization, stimulate growth with those sectors which supplies it with inputs, reinvigorates large scale and public enterprises. The importance of poultry industry in Nigeria cannot be overemphasized, given the vital role it plays in human nutrition and economy. Yet the poultry sub-sector of the economy in Nigeria remains chiefly primitive and responsible for less than 10% of employment (Morris et al., 2003). The Nigerian government, in recognition of these facets of problems in the industry and other sectors of agriculture, came up with the Transformation Agenda to secure food and feed needs by enhanced generation of national and social wealth through greater export and import substitution so as to effect transformation from an agrarian to an industrial economy. In agricultural extension, both information source(s) and their communicative roles(s) are necessary in passing useful message to audience. Agricultural technologies are available, but rarely reach the expected end users

2 [Vol. 13 (2), May - August 2015] International Journal of Basic and Applied Agricultural Research 137 (farmers) because of the ignorance of effective/appropriate communication roles of communication sources to support and assist farmers and rural dwellers. It is the responsibility of extension workers to inform, advise and educate the farmers in a practical manner. Extension involves the conscious use of communicative information to help people form sound opinions and make good decisions, for structural transformation of traditional agriculture to modern agriculture. It is a two-way or multiple way process in which several processes, in which several parties can be expected to contribute relevant insights and which may have action implication for all parties (not only farmers but also researchers, extensionist, policy makers, agriculture industries, etc.) involved in the process. (Leeuwis and Van de Ban (2004). Considering the scope of entrepreneurship activity in Nigerian agriculture, Kehinde and Adedoyin (2011) observed that livestock sub-sector, poultry inclusive with 2.11% contribution to GDP is relatively low compared to the crop sub-sector with a contribution of 29.8%. National Bureau of Statistics (2008) noted that National unemployment estimates in 2007 stands at 10.0% for urban and 12.6% for the rural areas. The fact that rural unemployment rates were higher than urban is an indication of increasing difficulty in exploring potential abundant agricultural entrepreneur opportunities. A situation that can be addressed by effective communication roles in agricultural extension delivery. In Nigeria, apart from its contribution in feeding the growing population, poultry provides income for small-scale farmers. Despite the enormous potential the poultry industry holds, it regularly suffers from major limitations including diseases, poor husbandry, low egg production, poor chick quality, poor and low performing breeds, poor weight gain/feed conversion, feeding and management problems and lack of capital (Eckeren et al, 1995). According to Kitilyi (1998), the transformation of family poultry into economically viable enterprises would require better understanding of the social-economic aspects of the production system and adequate information. For poultry production in Nigeria to attain an entrepreneurship capacity to transform agriculture from predominantly subsistence farming to export oriented demanded by agricultural transformation, agricultural extension needs to move beyond mere transferring of innovation and practices to farmers to playing communicative roles include raising awareness, sustaining consciousness in existing issues, impact skills and ability, help define problems, encourage questioning and help identify relevant issues that can build entrepreneurship capacity. Therefore, in order to address the current food crisis in Nigeria, there is need to ensure ready access to available and readily useable information by those requiring such information. Many studies have ascertained various level of information flow in agricultural production; this study focuses on communicative roles of information sources. This calls for the need to ascertain the role of information sources among poultry farmers as an opportunity to create sustainable jobs and stimulate increased growth for agricultural transformation. Hence, availability of poultry technologies, information sources, perceived roles of information sources and constraints of technology adoption and entrepreneurship capacity are the issues addressed in this paper. MATERIALS AND METHODS This study was conducted in Edo State, Nigeria. Data were gathered by means of questionnaire validated by expert judgment. To test the reliability of the questionnaire, a pilot test was conducted with 30 copies of questionnaire. The reliability of the instrument measures the constituency of the instrument when administered at different times. This was done using testretest method. The questionnaire was administered to a group of farmers at different time (30 copies was first administered, and later another 30 copies) and Pearson correlation between the two sets of responses was computed. High correlation coefficient (r) shows high reliability of the instrument (Vaz et al., 2013). Reliability (r) = A multi stage sampling procedure was used to select respondents for the study. The first stage was purposive selection of two Local government Areas (LGAs) i.e. Oredo and Ikpoba-Okha because of the predominance of poultry farming in these LGAs. The second stage was random sampling of seven (7) communities from each of the LGAs making a total of 14 communities. The third stage was random selection of ten (10) poultry farmers from each community, hence a total of one hundred and forty (140) respondents were selected for the study.responses were solicited on farmer s socioeconomic characteristics; source of information, their perception of communicative roles of information sources, available technologies and constraints to technology adoption and entrepreneurship capacity. Availability of poultry technologies was measured using a 4 point rating scale, of readily available ( available on time) coded 4, available ( available between 1 week and 2 months) coded 3, rarely available ( available between 2 and 6 months) coded 2 and not available, coded 1. A mean score of 2.50 ( = 10/4 = 2.50) and above was taken that a particular poultry technology was available to respondents.

3 138 International Journal of Basic and Applied Agricultural Research [Vol. 13 (2), May - August 2015] Communicative role of information sources was measured using a 4 point rating scale of very active role, coded 4; active role, coded 3; less active role, coded 2; and not active role, coded 1. A mean score of 2.50 and above was taken that respondents agree that a particular information source played active communication role(s). Constraints to technology adoption and entrepreneurship capacity was measured using a 5-point rating scale of very serious coded, 5; serious, coded 4; undecided, coded 3; little serious coded 2; and not a problem, coded 1. A mean score of 3.0 ( = 15/5 = 3.0) and above was taken that a particular constraint was serious. Descriptive statistics such as frequency count, per centage and means were used for data analysis. Pearson Product Moment Correlation (PPMC) was used for hypothesis testing. A null hypothesis formulated for the study is that there is no significant between respondent s socio-economic characteristics and perceived role of information sources. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Respondents Information Sources on Poultry Technologies and Enterprise: Table 1 showed that a higher proportion (38.6%) of the respondents source information from agriculture companies while 20.0% get information from researchers. Only 11.4% of the respondents access agricultural information through extension agents, an indication that most (88.6%) had no contact with extension agents. This result shows that respondents don t have regular contact with extension agents, a situation that may lead to the respondent deficiency in proven poultry technologies, and detrimental to the functioning of the enterprise. This result agrees with Williams and Williams (1991), and Aphunu and Okoedo-Okojie (2011) that the livestock extension service of the Agricultural Development Programmes (ADPs) is Table 1: Distribution of Respondents by Access to Information Source Information Source Frequency* Per centage ADP Extension Agents Researchers Ministry of Agriculture Fellow Farmers Cooperative Societies Agric. Companies Friends/Neighbours Source: Field survey data 2013 *Multiple responses generally weak, poorly organized and in some cases, nonexistent. This situation could likely cause respondents to rely on agric companies, neighbour and friends, cooperative societies, researchers and fellow farmers as their information sources irrespective of whether or not the information source plays communicative roles. Respondents Perceived Role of Information Sources:Table 2 showed that ADP extension agents only played an active role in raising awareness, as information source, and researchers did not play any active communicative role. This could be expected as researchers normally do not have direct contact with farmers. This result showed that though farmers frequently meet with researchers, researchers do not play active communication roles. This could be expected as the researchers may not be trained cognitive communicative agents in agricultural technology transfer unlike the extension agents who are trained to communicate with different farmers at their different levels of socio-economic characteristics with the application of human psychology and rural sociology and thus are expected to perform communication services that translates into innovation adoption. The result showed that ADP extension agents did not play any other role actively, a situation capable of not sustaining the awareness they have raised, and would negatively affect entrepreneurship capacity of poultry farmers and overall agricultural transformation agenda in Nigeria. Ministry of agriculture and fellow farmers played no active communicative role. However, the agriculture companies play active roles in raising awareness, sustaining consciousness in existing issues, help define problem, encourage me ask question and help identify relevant issues. This result show that agriculture companies have direct access to the poultry farmers and are an important partner in entrepreneurship capacity building, as the companies would want to sustain their products and service (day old chicks, drugs, routine management practices etc) for the growth of their companies and improvement of poultry farmers stock for a continuous business relationship. This result agrees with the finding of Cidro and Radhakrishna (2008) that farmers and traders rated agrochemical companies as somewhat useful in assessing usefulness of information sources in the promotion of hybrid rice programme in the Philippines. Table 2 also revealed that cooperative societies played active role in information provision, impact knowledge and impact skill and ability. This result showed that cooperative societies impact positively on poultry farmer s entrepreneurship capacity. This, result

4 [Vol. 13 (2), May - August 2015] International Journal of Basic and Applied Agricultural Research 139 Table 2 : Respondents Perceived Role of Information Sources ADP Researchers Ministry Fellow Agric Cooperative Friends extension of farmers companies societies and agent agric neighbour Roles Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD Raising awareness 3.38* * Information * provision Sustaining consci * ousness in existing issues Impact knowledge * Impact skill and * ability Help define * problem Encourage me * ask question Help identify * relevant issues Source field survey 2013 *Active Role (mean > 2.50) agree with the principles of cooperative societies as stated by Ijere (1990) that cooperative societies worldwide are known for dispensing information for the growth and security of members business. Poultry Technologies Available to Respondents: Table 3 showed that control of Diseases was the most available technology to respondents, other were management practice feeds storage facilities Processing Drugs and Vaccine. It was observed that Day old chicks were not a readily available technology to the poultry farmers. Respondents perception of the availability level of Day Table 3 Distribution of Respondents by Technology Availability Technology Mean Standard Deviation Chemicals control of Disease 3.71* Management practices 3.65* Feeds 3.65* Storage facilities 3.60* Processing 3.55* Drugs 3.47* Vaccine 3.47* Marketing 3.45* Equipment (cage) 3.30* Day old chicks Source field survey 2013 *Readily Available (mean > 2.50) old chicks could be as a result of the fact that not every farmers has direct access to day old chicks from the source as the bigger poultry enterprise and Veterinary service producers acts as intermediary between day old chicks producers and other farmers. This can be attributed to the fact of scarce technical competences and skills involved in day old chicks production and also the cost of purchase. Respondents Constraints of Technologies Adoption and Entrepreneurship Capacity: The result shows that the major constraints affecting poultry farmers in adopting Table 4: Respondents Constraints to Technology Adoption and Entrepreneurship Capacity Constraints Mean Std. deviation Insufficient fund 3.71* Training programmes are not 3.59* conducted Poor exposure to appropriate 3.55* technologies The extension do not teach us 3.45* at our level Inadequate infrastructural 3.41* facilities Insufficient motivation from 3.31* government Sources: field survey data 2013 Serious (mean > 3.00)

5 140 International Journal of Basic and Applied Agricultural Research [Vol. 13 (2), May - August 2015] technologies are: Insufficient fund training programmes are not conducted, poor exposure to appropriate poultry technologies. The extension does not teach us at our level with Inadequate infrastructural facilities, and Insufficient motivation from government. This result agrees with the finding of Adegeye and Ditton (1995) that inadequate farm credit affects farmers ability to purchase improved technologies and expand their production unit. The result also agrees with Adisa and Sodique (2008) that the dire shortage and inadequacy of infrastructure facilities in Nigeria is a major problem in entrepreneurial development. The result also agree with Agwu (2006) that shortage of trained manpower, non availability of information on improved practices are some major constraints to fishery livestock farm in Delta State, Nigeria. Hypothesis Relationship between Respondents Characteristics and Perceived Role of Information Sources:Table 5 showed that none of the socio-economic variables was significantly related with the perceived communication of extension agents, researchers, ministry of agriculture, agric companies and friends/neighbors, however, education (r = , P < 0.05) and stock size (r = 0.245, P < 0.01) were significantly related to communication role of fellow farmers and cooperative societies and 0.05 and 0.01 level respectively. The negative correlation for education (-0.175) means that, respondent with lower education believed that the fellow farmers play more active role in communication than those with higher education. The positive correlation for stock size (0.245) means that the respondents with larger stock size believe that the cooperative societies play more active role in information disseminations than those with the lower stock size. Implication for Entrepreneurship and Agricultural Transformation: Analysis of respondents access and perceived communication role of information sources showed that most (88.6%) had no contact with extension agents, and that only one (01) communicative role (raising awareness) out of eight (08) was actively performed by extension agents and by implication technical guidance from extension service was inadequate or lacking and the most serious constraint facing poultry farmers was insufficient fund. These situations which are inimical to entrepreneurship and agricultural transformation in the poultry subsector. The approach to addressing the issue calls for strengthening of the Nigerian Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS), Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs); and involvement of private sector; Research Extension-Farmers-Input- Linkage System (REFILS), If farmers are to attain the attributes and functional capacities of entrepreneurship in poultry production, the required awareness, understanding training and knowledge in current poultry management practices, and overcome their constraints especially insufficient fund. According to Inegbenebor and Evbayiro- Osagie (2011) releasing that SMEs hold the greatest prospect of growth for the Nigerian Economy government has set up a Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency (SMEDAN) to coordinate the development of SMEs sub-sector, and mandated banks to set aside 10 per cent of their profit before tax for equity financing in SMEs, providing a smooth and robust fiscal and monetary policy require for the smooth functioning of the economy and adopting financial strategies that do not crowd out the private sector. This agrees with result Table 5: Relationship between Respondents Socio-Economic Characteristics and Perceived Role of Information Sources Characteristic Sex Education Household Farming Stock Income Information Sources size experience size (annual) r Prob r Prob r Prob r Prob r Prob r Prob level level level level level level Extension Agents Researcher Ministry of Agric Fellow farmers * Agric. Companies Cooperative societies ** Friends/Neighbour Sources completed from field survey 2013 *significant at the 0.05 level ** significant at the 0.01 level.

6 [Vol. 13 (2), May - August 2015] International Journal of Basic and Applied Agricultural Research 141 of communicate roles by private agric companies that actively performed five (05) out of the eight (08) roles i.e. (62.5%) performance. According to Faborode and Laogun (2008) REFILS not only provide ample opportunities for participatory technologies development, it also allows the identification and appreciation of all stake holders, their variety of methodologies for extension delivery depending on the prevailing situation. From the point of view of development strategy necessary to achieve entrepreneurship and agricultural transformation in the poultry sub sector there is need to link poultry farmers with source of livestock health and diseases control fund, equipments, good hatcheries and other necessary inputs as well as training institution, National Animal Production Research Institute (NAPRI), National Veterinary Research Institute (NVRI), SMEs, NEEDS, SMEDAM. In line with this, there is need to form and sustain a forum (for poultry farmers and other stakeholders) in which to discuss the problems and solutions of the poultry industry. It is important for extension services delivery to help the poultry farmers form and sustain such association as avenue for group extension intervention (Enwere and Madukwe 2002; Agwu 2006). This synergy is required to check any gap between basic and adaptive research as it will alleviate constraint faced by farmers in technologies adoption and entrepreneurial capacity. This will help improve efficiency, productivity and profitability in poultry farms as a long term effect of enhancing entrepreneurship and food security leading to agricultural transformation. CONCLUSION Going by the results of descriptive statistics, correlation and chi-square, it is very clear that a higher (38.6%) poultry farmers source proven agricultural information from agric companies, the most readily available technology was veterinary service/chemical control of disease, while day old chicks were not readily available, agricultural companies play more communicative roles of raising awareness, sustaining consciousness in existing issues, help define problem, encourage one ask questions and help identify relevant issues the most serious constraints encountered in technologies adoption and entrepreneurship capacity were insufficient fund and training programmes are not conducted. significant relationship exist between respondent education qualification and perceived communicative role of fellow farmers at 0.05 level, and stock size and perceived communicative role of cooperative societies at 0.01 level. stock size was a significant determinant of respondents choice of information source. In conclusion, agricultural companies play more active communication roles as information sources to poultry farmers in the area, and based on implication for entrepreneurship and agricultural transformation, the following recommendations are made. Effort should be geared towards educating the farmers of the transformation study on their entrepreneurship responsibilities, by this emphasis will shift from friends/neighbors as information sources with communicative role to extension agents who are the custodian of proven agricultural technologies and practices There should be more enlightenment/awareness creation on sources of day old chicks which is presently a technology that is not readily available There is need to train poultry farmers on day old chick technology as a mean of actualizing agricultural transformation agenda of Federal Republic of Nigeria. Extension should sensitize government to develop partnership with private organization and non-governmental organizations to support poultry farmers by improving infrastructure access to institutionalize credit technical assistance and linkage mechanism between researchers and farmers. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We would like to acknowledge Abimbola Adewale for her contribution in collecting some of the data for this study. REFERENCES Adisa, B.O. and Sodique, F.R. (2008). Entrepreneurship and Rural Economy. Pp Agwu, A.E. (2006) Status of Fish Farming in Isoko Area of Niger Delta, Nigeria: Implication for Extension Global Approaches to Extension Practices (GAEP). Journal of Agricultural Extension 2(2): Aphunu, A. and Okoedo-Okojie D. U. (2011). Small Ruminant Production Constraints Among Farmers in Ika North East Local Government Area of Delta State, Nigeria. Archives of Applied Science Research. 3(2): Awodiya, M.P. (2011). The Art, Entrepreneurship and Creativity. Entrepreneurship a Practical Approach.

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