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The paper presents the first meta-analysis of yam (Dioscorea rotundata Poir) production studies in Nigeria, with a special emphasis on technical efficiency. The focus was on published studies in journal papers and conferences. For the meta-analysis of production function, a total of 40 studies were included for ware yam and 3 for seed yam, for technical efficiency a total of 23 ware yam and 3 seed yam studies were included and for the farm budget meta-analysis, a total of 22 ware yam and 6 seed yam studies were included. The "peak" years of publication of the ware yam studies were from 2012 to 2014. The bulk of the studies took place in the major yam-growing states, such as Ekiti, Benue, and Kogi. Technical efficiency of yam production varied between and within each of the studies, with an average technical efficiency across studies of between 0.6 and 0.8. The studies highlight the importance of knowledge; it is not just about the quantity of inputs applied but how they are used that matters. The paper notes that meta-analyses of studies designed to explore the factors influencing production of agricultural crops in Nigeria are relatively sparse in number, yet given the importance of agriculture in the country, both for the livelihoods of millions of people, and export, then more such analyses are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to ascertain if practising healthy lifestyles improves the technical efficiency of farms in Kwara state, Nigeria. In theory, all deviations from the optimum level of output are due to random effects and inefficiency of producers in which their health plays a key part and is dependent on the kind of lifestyle practiced whether healthy or unhealthy. Design/methodology/approach: Cross-sectional data were employed through a three-staged sampling technique to pick 320 arable crop farmers across the state using a well-defined questionnaire. Data analysis was carried out using descriptive statistics, healthy lifestyles index (HLI), stochastic production frontier (SPF) and propensity score matching (PSM). Findings: First, the analysis showed that about one-third of the sampled arable crop farmers practised healthy lifestyles. Second, the average technical efficiency of arable crop production for farmers who practised a healthy lifestyle was 0.893, and the level of technical inefficiency of the farms was determined by health-related lifestyle status, number of day's illness and educational level. Third, technical efficiency was improved by 0.00431067 for farms whose farmers practised a healthy lifestyle. Originality/value: Rather than seeing that technical efficiencies of farms are attributed to farm characteristics, inputs used and socioeconomic characteristics alone, the findings suggest that technical inefficiencies of arable crop farmers were also due to the kind of lifestyle practised, which was evidenced in the increased efficiency for farmers who practised healthy lifestyle. Peer review: The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-05-2023-0353 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the effect of government expenditure on agricultural sector in Nigeria using the Johansen cointegration and Vector error correction model approaches. Specifically, the paper examines the relationships between government expenditure on agriculture subsector outputs for crop, livestock, fishing and forestry over the period 1980 to 2019. The results of the short run and long run analyses indicate the significant influence of government expenditure in agriculture on agricultural outputs except in forestry subsector. The granger causality test result indicates the absence of causality relationship between agricultural expenditure and agriculture outputs except in crop and livestock subsectors. However, there is a strong unidirectional causality from agricultural credit to both aggregated and disaggregated agricultural outputs. The paper recommends the need to increase government expenditure on agriculture in order to boost productivity. Government should also assist farmers to access credit facilities which can help increase production in the agricultural sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the influence of the risk perception of farmer−herder (FH) conflicts on rural households' production decisions. Extending the farm household model to include the risk perception of farmer−herder conflicts, we test hypotheses derived using primary data from 401 rural households in Nigeria. Results indicate that higher risk perception of FH conflict reduces fertiliser use and increases the time allocated for farm work. Dividing households based on their risk aversion, we find that risk-averse households rent-in significantly less cropland compared to risk-taking households. Findings highlight the need for policies that sustainably tackle FH conflicts for improved agricultural production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Greenhouse (GH) technology has been employed in the production of selected crops under a controlled environment for maximum yield. Most often, flowers, medicinal plants and short-duration arable crops are most favoured for cultivation in greenhouses for research and commercial production purposes. Greenhouse is beginning to gain acceptance and usage in crop production in Nigeria in particular. This paper focused on the: origin of greenhouse, type of GH, general research trend in GH development/technology, adaptable irrigation type for GH farming, design criteria for GH, trends in smart GH/farming and GH development and utilization across the globe to produce food crops sufficiently and for future food scarcity. Site selection is a key factor for profitable and sustainable greenhouse production where factors like climate, topography, irrigation water, soil characteristics, flooded areas, air pollution, expansion, labour availability, communications network and orientation affect the utilization of greenhouses for research and production purposes. The types, styles, materials selection and uses, sizes of greenhouses, should be considered in conjunction with factors that determine the siting of greenhouses. Existing localized irrigation methods commonly utilized for crop cultivation include surface (Sprinkler), subsurface (Drip, emitter). The selection of types of GH and irrigation method depends on influencing factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The contribution of different agricultural subsectors to economic growth in Nigeria is investigated and further suggests policy implications for investing in each of these subsectors. To this end, Johansen cointegration test and Gregory–Hansen test for cointegration with regime shift, vector error correction model (VECM), dynamic ordinary least squares (DOLS), fully modified ordinary least squares (FMOLS), Granger causality, and frequency domain causality test are employed for data from 1981 to 2016. This paper further highlights the long and causal dynamics between the selected agricultural subsector, namely forestry, crop production, fishery and livestock, and economic growth. Findings from time and frequency domain causality tests indicate a one‐way causality running from various subsectors of agriculture to economic growth in Nigeria, meaning how various subsectors of agriculture are important for predicting economic growth. In addition, there is 54% speed of adjustment from the error correction model, suggesting a need for diversification of the economy into the agricultural sector as a means for sustainable economic growth in the face of the continuous plunge in the global oil price. In the long‐run, the effect of forestry, crop production, and fishery on economic growth is statistically significant and positive. These outcomes have inherent policy implication(s), which are elucidated in the concluding section. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nigeria has always been affected by terrorism but since the late 2000s, there has been a sharp increase in terrorist acts, perpetrated by Boko Haram and Fulani herdsmen terror groups. The rise in terrorism and insurgency has decimated communities and farmers have fled to protected camps. In view of that background, this paper estimates the effect of terrorism on agricultural output in Nigeria over the period 1971–2019. Our empirical results provide evidence which indicates that terrorism (as measured by the number of fatalities) has a negative and significant effect on agricultural output. Furthermore, this negative impact was larger over the period 2011–2019. This period corresponds with the onset of escalated violence from Boko Haram and Fulani herdsmen terror groups. The following policy implications were deduced. First, government should pursue credible policies in reducing the number ofviolent attacks on farmers. Second, nomadic cattle herders should be trained and encouraged to adopt modern techniques in animal husbandry. Third, government should equip forest rangers and guards to help safeguard rural and farming communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper attempts to analyze the variation in cocoa output response to international price fluctuations in two major cocoa producing countries: Cote d'Ivoire and Nigeria. The study employs a Nerlovian price expectation technique as in Ogundari (2015), and a Panel VAR model to empirically estimate changes in cocoa output using time series and an unbalanced panel dataset covering a period from 1967 to 2009. The findings indicate and in accordance with economic theory of demand and supply, that cocoa output is an inverse function of the expected prices of competing agricultural commodities like green coffee. When there is an expected price increase of cocoa, cocoa output rises. Simultaneously, if the anticipated price of coffee rises, through a cocoa–coffee substitution mechanism, smallholder farmers shift their focus to coffee production leading to a fall in cocoa output. A Granger causality test was utilized to investigate causality between cocoa output, and cocoa and coffee prices. In the case of Cote d'Ivoire, while there is only a correlation between cocoa output and price, in the case of Nigeria there was none. In addition, the study shows no unidirectional or bidirectional causality between the intervening variables and cocoa output. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The productivity of agriculture in Nigeria over the years has relied extensively on the scientific innovations transferred to farmers from research institutes via extension services. Thus, technology development most often has been based on scientific research approach, with little or no collaboration with the indigenous people. This is based on the argument that indigenous people are ignorant, fatalistic and have nothing to offer as solutions to their problems. Incidentally, the imposition of scientific technology development framework, without the incorporation of the indigenous knowledge systems of local communities to a large extent, is believed to have contributed to failures in sustainable resource use and erosion of biodiversity. It is evident that indigenous societies have profound and detailed knowledge of the system, environment and species (plants and animals) which they are in contact with for generations and have developed strategies based on their own indigenous technical knowledge to solve their own problems. Therefore, full recognition of indigenous knowledge system of the "supposed users" of technology, their local traditions and technology endowment capabilities are central to the issue of sustainable and equitable technology development and utilization. This paper examines critically the technology development processes and suggest framework for enhancing the integration and use of indigenous knowledge system in technology development [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agriculture plays an important role in our daily lives and that is why the agroindustry is seen as an engine in determining the social, political and economic development of the country. Therefore, this paper seeks to examine innovation as a mediating of the relationship between internal and external environment on agribusiness performance that is operating in Osun State Nigeria. The main purpose of the paper is to find out if innovation mediates between the internal and external environment. The specific objective of this study is to find out if competitive intensity and technology have an effect on agribusiness performance. The study makes a significant contribution by adding a mediating variable to the two-independent variable. The study used competitive intensity as a variable of internal environment and technology as a variable for the external environment. The study looks at four sub-activities of agribusiness in Osun State which are crop production, livestock, forestry and fishing. The study uses knowledgebased theory as a suitable theory that links the independent variable to the dependent variable. The study looks at the direct relationship of the independent variable to the dependent variable as well as the indirect relationship this time adding the mediating variable. The study retrieves data from owners/managers of the business. The study makes used of questionnaires using stratified sampling. 80 questionnaires were distributed to owners/managers of agribusiness in Osun State out of which, 72 questionnaires were retrieved from owners/managers of the agribusiness. Data were analysed using structural equation modelling processed on smartpl3. The findings show that the intensity of the competition has a negative and insignificant effect on the productivity of the agribusiness, while technology has a positive and significant impact on the productivity of the agribusiness. The research also establishes that innovation is an intermediary between technology and agribusiness performance, while innovation does not mediate between the competitive intensity and the performance of agribusiness. The study concludes that innovation only mediates the interconnection between the external environment and the performance of agribusiness. Therefore, the research recommended that managers/owners of the agribusiness pay less attention to the internal environment, since this has no influence on productivity, while a lot of attention has to be paid to the external environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper discusses the role of law in ensuring that the agricultural productivity of small-scale women farmers in Nigeria is not encumbered by cultural practices and absence of extant laws and policies. Employing the feminist theory, it examines the existence and enforcement of equality rights for women to access productive assets including land, credit and agricultural extension services. It explores the specific challenges women encounter from perspectives other than limited access, including gender-based violence and gender-specific roles. The aim of the paper is to challenge some ubiquitous sociocultural practices that hinder the active participation and contribution of small-scale women farmers in agriculture and food security in Nigeria. It suggests how laws and policies can help increase this productivity. It concludes with recommendations on adequate legal frameworks, policy awareness, a commitment to promote women’s rights, as well as increased public investment in rural infrastructure to promote production of adequate, affordable and safe food in an environmentally and socially sustainable manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of achieving and maintaining sustainable farming system is rapidly becoming a top priority of agricultural and environmental policy makers in most developing countries particularly Nigeria. The paper attempts to examine Nigerian agriculture within the context of climate change and sustainable development. The findings of the study show that efforts to ensure self-sufficiency in food production and raw materials for industries and severe climate change are causing increased pressure on the resources of the Nigeria economy. Several socio-economic and other human activities such as; bush fallow, application of modern technologies in farming, increasing population, transhumance, overgrazing, deforestation and exploitation of mineral resources are causing severe and uncontrolled problems of sustainable agricultural development all over the country. The paper recommends proper exploitation of natural resources, government commitment through research and development and public enlightenment campaign among others. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose -- The purpose of this paper is to develop a Muzara'ah-supply chain model for the purpose of enhancing agricultural financing and productivity in Nigeria. Design/methodology/approach -- In this paper, an expert survey approach was employed to validate the newly developed model. Findings -- A survey result on the model reveals that majority of the respondents agreed with the Muzara'ah-supply chain model and preferred it to the existing models. Research limitations/implications -- The main limitation of this study is limited number of respondents. Practical implications -- With this newly developed financing model that is based risk sharing principles, the application of this model could help to reduce moral hazard and enhance agricultural productivity. Originality/value -- To the best knowledge of the researchers, such kind of study for financing agriculture does not exists in the case of Nigeria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explored the status of climate-smart agriculture (CSA) in southeast Nigeria using qualitative and quantitative methods in data collection. One hundred and sixty farmers were selected from the area. Also, focus group discussions were conducted. Data collected were subjected to qualitative analysis and logit regression. The study identified five broad and important practices relevant to CSA in southeast Nigeria, which include: adjusting agricultural production systems, mobility and social networks, farm financial management, diversification on and beyond the farm, and knowledge management and regulations. The determinants of CSA in southeast Nigeria include: education, income, credit, extension, livestock ownership, farming experience, land area cultivated, distance to the market and water resources, leadership position, risk orientation, gender, land ownership, household size, and mass media exposure. Government policies need to support research and development that develops and diffuses the climate-smart technologies to help farmers respond changes in climatic conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses multiple rounds of panel data to assess the distributional implications of the variability in agricultural productivity in Nigeria and Uganda. It uses both a conventional decomposition and a regression‐based inequality decomposition approach to estimate the impact of climate‐induced variability in agricultural productivity. To mitigate the endogeneity associated with unobserved time‐invariant and time‐variant household fixed effects, we use rainfall shocks as a proxy for estimating the exogenous variability in agricultural productivity that affects consumption. Results suggest that a 10% increase in the variability of agricultural productivity tends to decrease household consumption by 38 and 52% on average for Nigeria and Uganda, respectively. Controlling for other factors, variability in agricultural productivity contributed to between 25% and 43% of consumption inequality between 2010 and 2015 for Nigeria; and 16% and 31% of consumption inequality between 2009 and 2011 for Uganda. We also show that variability in agricultural productivity increases changes in consumption inequality over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The persistent volatility in the price of crude oil has intensified the comparable challenges to generate jobs and foster inclusive growth in oil-exporting countries. The non-oil sector such as agriculture tends to be low and was subsequently the only source of growth and jobs. While a country like Nigeria has the forward and backward linkages of agriculture as the impetus for growth, the impact of dwindling oil prices on agricultural growth remains grossly understudied in extant literature. This study focuses on examining the impact of oil price on agricultural output growth in Nigeria over 1995-2019 through the quantile regression technique. This methodology provides a more robust estimate against outliers in response measurement of the nexus between indices of oil price and agricultural output growth. Our findings indicate that crude oil prices have a negative effect on the performance of the Nigerian agricultural sector and have been consistent with the results of the OLS assessment. The policy implication of this finding implies that agricultural production in Nigeria can be amplified by diversifying the economy; shifting emphasis away from the crude oil export only and focused more on the domestic production of agricultural output to compensate for the loss of revenue emanating from oil wealth. Also, the government as well as the private firms should team up to address the infrastructural deficit by investing in the agricultural sector to optimize the agricultural value chain for growth and development of the nation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Crop production in Nigeria is the main food supplier in the country despite the fact that the industry's output has been increasing, it is still lagging behind the demand from the country's rapidly growing population. Thus, national agricultural producers are unable to supply the population with food. This paper identifies a number of factors in the development of the industry that are responsible for the inability of Nigeria to provide itself food with required demand. The most significant factors are the lack of financing for farmers and insufficient access to the information on agricultural innovations. However, the proliferation of information through mobile phones in the country may facilitate the information to the farming sector rapidly but, on the condition that they are connected to a single network, which would integrate and streamline all relevant information on markets, products and services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates how remittances flow to Nigeria from household migrants affect farm production efficiency of the left behind in rural areas. We used the Living Standard Measurement Survey data set and applied production frontier models to generate production efficiency scores for migrant and non-migrant farm households. Using simple ANOVA and stochastic dominance analysis we test the hypothesis of a negative migrant remittances effect on production efficiency. The mean production efficiency for migrants was higher and statistically significant at p<0.05. We also find a higher technical efficiency across all percentiles for migrant households. Though access to remittances played an important role in the improvement of farmer's production efficiency, it may not be sufficient as there were observed crosses at some points of the stochastic dominance efficiency curves for migrant and non-migrant households that suggests some possible trade-offs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been a recurrent rate of prevalent and pervasive violent conflicts between herders and farmers in Nigeria. Issues emanating from environmental degradation, and socio-political disorder have shifted pastoralist migratory patterns and increased tensions between farmers and herders. This, however, has influenced conflicts and hostility between farmers and herders, leading to violent clashes, killings, forced displacement, attrition of inter-communal interactions, as well as the annihilation of agricultural and livestock outputs. The Nigerian press, however, has successfully created a shared meaning of the Fulani-herdsmen activities in the country within a particular rhetoric community. These include agents with different characteristics in a similar/different setting, taking several actions, thereby formulating a particular rhetorical vision. The major rhetorical vision established in this paper is conflict and the underlying symbolic reality of peace. This paper examined articles in the Nigerian press as related to Fulani-herdsmen's activities and the fantasy themes embedded in it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Smart agriculture has the potential for economic benefits through increased agricultural productivity, cost efficiency and market opportunities through increased communication; and environmental benefits as this will in turn, lead to greater food security, profitability and sustainability. This article presents the practices and challenges to smart agriculture among commercial arable crop farmers in Southwest, Nigeria considering the forms of digitalization in use, as well as the frequency of usage, period of usage, and challenges to the usage. We randomly sampled 45 commercial arable crop farmers across the southwest states in Nigeria. We made use of Structured questionnaire to extract needed information from the respondents. The data obtained were analysed with descriptive statistics. Our findings showed that the forms of digitalization used by agricultural firms include mobile phone (100%), cloud computing (56%), software (58%), remote sensing (40%), digital marketing (52%), and GIS (35%) while the average period of usage of digitalization was 10years. Our findings also revealed that the main challenges to the use of digitalization are high cost of procurement and installation (93%), low awareness of current state of digitalization in agriculture (84%), limited technical knowhow (78%), poor power supply (67%), and high cost of energy (62%). Although evidence at short-term revealed that smart agriculture has the potential of tackling key development issues such as food insecurity, poor output, poverty, and unemployment; the study showed that there is a need to enlighten agricultural firms of the benefits of smart agriculture, as well as plan and invest on sustainability of digitalization in agriculture to harness its full benefits/potentials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Investment in R & D in the agricultural sector is one of the means to propel the growth of the sector, but failure to ensure the efficient use of resources allocated to agricultural R & D would lead to wastage and underproduction. Based on this, the paper seeks to look at the efficiency of investment in agricultural R& D in relation to the food production index in the West Africa sub-region. To achieve this objective, the number of full-time researchers and spending in terms of percentage of the share of agriculture to GDP were treated as inputs and the food production index as an output (agriculture output). The study used panel data from 2009 to 2014. The Malmquist index approach was adopted to measure the efficiency of food production in selected West African countries. The mean Malmquist index of 0.991, 1.032, 0.976, 0.995, 1.051, 0.908, 0.966, and 0.961 for Ghana, Benin, Burkina-Faso, Ivory Coast, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, and Togo, respectively, were recorded. Benin and Niger experienced growth in food production within the period. The remaining countries, however, did not experience growth in food production as their respective means were less than 1 (Mi <1), which was an indication of inefficiencies in the application of investments committed to agricultural R & D. To help identify the role played by various components, technical efficiency change and technological progress change for the respective countries were also calculated. The results of the study show the need to go beyond mere allocation of resources to the agricultural sector and push towards efficient use of resources. The allocation of resources without measures to ensure their proper use would not yield the desired outcome. Various countries exhibited some levels of inefficiency across the dimensions assessed. This, therefore, calls for close attention to the use of agricultural resources. There is a need to ensure efficient use of resources committed to agricultural research and development across respective countries. Measures should be put in place to reduce wastage and redundancy in the allocation of resources for agricultural research and development, to improve efficiency and productivity in the agricultural sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As of 2000, the total population estimate of Nigeria stood at about 124 million people, this number increased to 170 million in the year 2012, which shows a growth rate of 3.8% between 2000 and 2012. This figure provides an indication that the Nigerian population is among the fastest-growing populations in the world, on the other hand, food production increases marginally, at a rate lower than the population growth rate. This paper examined the effect of the Nigerian population on agricultural production over a period of 53 years. Descriptive analysis was used to analyse the pattern and the trend of agricultural production. Granger causality and Ordinary Least Squares were used to examine the relationship between agricultural production and population growth. It was recommended that there is a need for the government to support innovative ways for increasing agricultural production, to meet the demand of the increasing population of the country. There is a need for research bodies to improve production to match the country's increasing population, so sustainable development could be achieved. In order for agricultural production to meet the increasing population demand, there is a need for the development of improved high-yield, disease-resistant varieties coming from certified nurseries where the varieties can be traced. There is a need for innovative processes through which agricultural products and processing methods can be learned through extension services by the general population, so as to reduce malnutrition and poverty in the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present research offers an economic assessment of climate change impacts on the four major crop families characterizing Nigerian agriculture. The evaluation is performed by shocking land productivity in a computable general equilibrium model tailored to replicate Nigerian economic development up to 2050. The detail of land uses in the model has been increased by differentiating land types per agro-ecological zones. Uncertainty about future climate is captured, using, as inputs, yield changes computed by a crop model under ten general circulation models runs. Climate change turns out to be negative for Nigeria in the medium term, with production losses and increase in crop prices, higher food dependency on foreign imports, and GDP losses in all the simulations after 2025. In a second part of the paper, a cost effectiveness analysis of adaptation in Nigerian agriculture is conducted. The adaptation practices considered are a mix of cheaper "soft measures" and more costly "hard" irrigation expansion. The main result is that the cost effectiveness of the whole package depends crucially on the possibility of implementing adaptation by exploiting low-cost opportunities which show a benefit-cost ratio larger than one in all the climate regimes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

White yam (Dioscorea rotundata) is an important tuber crop of West Africa and the Caribbean, and one of the key limiting factors in its production is the availability of good quality planting material. The Adaptive Yam Minisett Technique (AYMT) was designed to help overcome this constraint. The paper presents an analysis of agronomic and economic data collected across four years (2013 to 2016) of AYMT plots planted in two areas within the middle-belt of Nigeria. Of the 136 plots that were established, 11% were lost to flooding and damage from Fulani cattle. Mean yield was 13.16 t/ha, 17,747 tubers/ha and the mean tuber weight was 0.73 kg. Plot yield declined with an increase in planting time, while plots owned by female farmers were on average planted later than those owned by their male counterparts; this helps explain the effect of gender noted in a previous study. Differences in yield were also noted between the two areas, which could also partly be explained by differences in planting time. The plots were profitable, with a mean cost over the four years of Naira 915,196/ha, revenue of Naira 3,197,786/ha and gross margin of Naira 2,282,591/ha (equivalent to US$4,039, US$14,319 and US$10,280 respectively). The main factor influencing costs and revenue was year, with no effect of gender. There is a need for more research on planting time in AYMT and how it interacts with factors, such as yam variety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose African indigenous vegetables have high nutritive value which contains high levels of minerals. The current status of indigenous vegetable production in developing countries shows that these crops are “under-recognized” and “underutilized” with respect to nutritional value and opportunities for food security. The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of the production of underutilized vegetables on the livelihood of farmers in South Western Nigeria.Design/methodology/approach The population for the study includes all the vegetable farmers in South Western Nigeria with a special focus on farmers’ groups formed by the NICANVEG project in Osun, Oyo, Ondo and Ekiti states. Descriptive statistics and propensity score matching (PSM) was used to analyze the objective.Findings Perceptions on individual household income reveal that the majority of participating respondents perceived higher production and harvesting density. This is due to the fact that harvesting is done by cutting the stems of the vegetables. The probability score shows that the dependent variables have an average effect of 44.6 percent on the probability of farmers participating in NICANVEG project. The PSM results reveal that average treatment effect on the treated is ₦269,254.87. Average treatment on the untreated is ₦11,990.63 while average treatment effect is ₦139,336.43. The total income of the participants from all the various livelihood strategies is increased by 29.73 percent because of their participation in the NICANVEG project.Originality/value This work has not been carried out by any other person before. This work will add to the existing knowledge on the impact of evaluation in agricultural economics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing from the basic tenets of the Marxist structuralist theory of the state, this article argues that the government's pursuit of neoliberal economic reforms since the 1980s undermined investment in agriculture, particularly cereal crop production. The findings of this research are crucial as they reveal that the drop in food production following the reduced investment in agriculture led to increasing reliance on importation to meet rising domestic food demands. Documentary methods and content analysis were used for data collection and analysis. Findings show that inadequate government funding and the withdrawal of agro-based incentives affect farmers’ access to enhancers of agricultural productivity such as fertilizers, credit facilities, irrigation, and extension services. Furthermore, farmers’ limited access to these facilities and services affected crop yields and food production in Nigeria. Hence, the article recommends the adoption of a national economic policy that will encourage massive investment in agriculture and support infrastructures as well as protect local agro-based industries as bases for attaining food security for both consumption and export purposes in Nigeria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change has always been a thing of concern in agricultural production, especially in yam production. The study investigated farmer adaptation strategies to the effect of climate change on yam production in Kogi State with the specific objectives of assessing the socio-economic characteristics of farmers, farmers’ climate related constraints, the adaptation strategies employed by farmers, and yam farmers’ level of knowledge on climate change. A multistage sampling technique was used to select one hundred and twenty respondents from the different communities selected in the study area in year 2019. Data were collected through structured interview schedule. The data were analysed using frequency counts, percentages and Pearson Product Moment Correlation. Results obtained showed that farmers in the study area were mostly males with a mean age of 44.5 years. Most of the yam farmers in Kogi State got information on climate change from other farmers (77.3%) and (81.3%) of the respondents aware of climate change. Furthermore, the major effects of climate change as identified by the respondents were pest infestation (90.8%) and high rate weed growth (88.3%). Various strategies adopted by yam farmers include mulching (Mean=5.0), intercropping yam with other crops (Mean=4.5), use of weather-resistant variety (Mean=4.1) and use of early maturing crop varieties (Mean=3.8). Pearson product moment correlation shows that there is a significant relationship between estimated annual (r = 0.887), income farming experience (r = 0.274) and the farmers’ level of awareness. Therefore, efforts should be made towards developing and making available, yam seeds and yam tubers that can adapt to the change in climate and weather elements like flood and drought. These findings suggest the need for more training on climate change, the adaptation methods, environmental education and sustainability of yam cropping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From land cover analysis, cropland expansion was a major driving factor for land use land cover changes in Nigeria from 2000 to 2020. This further highlights the food production needs in the country. While this land use change indicates a significant alteration in land cover, it was exigent to assess land suitability using a Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) combined with geospatial techniques to identify areas with agricultural suitability potential and to analyze cropland suitability. The results showed that the country had 8% of very high suitability, high suitability (25%), moderate suitability (29%), and marginal suitability (25%) croplands. However, low suitability accounts for 14% of the entire cropland. The spatial distribution of cropland suitability shows that most areas in the South East, South South, and South West, respectively, have the most suitable cropland as they meet the biophysical conditions for crop production, followed by the North Central regions, while most places in the North (North East and North West) have a higher share of moderate to low suitability. This study highlights the potential of the country to target localized self-sufficiency. Therefore, this study recommends using the cropland suitability map to launch food security programs across the six geopolitical zones to maximize their inherent environmental potentials to alleviate the country's food production needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study was designed to analyse the impact of capital formation and investment sources on Nigeria's agricultural productivity from the period 1980 - 2021. The time series data were analysed with Malmquist Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and the tobit regression models using DEA, the Total Factor Productivity Change, which quantifies the degree of productivity, was estimated at 1.022, which implies an average productivity progress of 2.2% annually. Again, since the value of technical efficiency change is less than technological change, it implies that the productivity gains are mainly attributable to technological progress instead of efficiency improvements in the periods under the study. The results of tobit regression indicate that domestic capital formation significantly influences agricultural TFP, highlighting the importance of government expenditure on agriculture (GEA) and gross fixed capital formation (GFCF) in enhancing productivity, although with minimal effects. Human capital formation (HCF) also showed positive impacts on Total Factor Productivity TFP, suggesting that improvements in workforce skills and knowledge are crucial for agricultural efficiency. However, FDI exhibited no significant correlation with TFP, implying that local investments are more beneficial than foreign aids in the context of Nigeria's agricultural sector. The findings emphasize the need for robust policy frameworks that align capital disbursements with agricultural production periods to optimize TFP. This study contributes to the discourse on agricultural productivity by providing empirical evidence on the critical role of capital investments in enhancing TFP within developing economies like Nigeria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Mustafa Kemal University Journal of Agricultural Sciences / Mustafa Kemal Üniversitesi Tarım Bilimleri Dergisi is the property of Mustafa Kemal University, Faculty of Agriculture and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper attempt to examine the factors that determine non-farm occupations among rural farming households and to what extent has livelihood strategies improved the wellbeing of their households. Primary data were generated through random sampling of 200 respondents from four (4) Local Government Areas (LGAs) in Kwara State, Nigeria through field surveys. Descriptive statistics, double hurdle models and Foster-Greer-Thorbecke (FGT) index were employed in the analysis. The result confirmed the assertion that economic factors are often the most important determinants of searching for non-farm job. The proceeds from non-farm activities were used mainly either for consumption (34.5%) to minimize the income fluctuation or, to supplement the working capital (26.5%) for their primary occupation through purchase of farm inputs. The results also indicated that the factors that influence the rural farming household decision to participate in non-farm activities showed slight variation from those influencing level of decision (livelihood strategies) taken to engage in non-farm activities and where it does, not by the same magnitude and direction. For instance, distance travelled and adjusted household size was found to significantly influence the farmer's decision. In contrary, education, poverty status and per capita income did influence the level of participation significantly. Of the sampled 200 respondents, 49.5% live on less than US$1 a day which portends extreme poverty and about 87% on less than US $1.5 a day. Concerted effort by stakeholders must encourage continuous farming throughout the year through irrigation to avoid part-time farming which may become the dominant farm model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is currently no study that focuses solely on the causal relationship between Crop Production Index (CPI) and Permanent Cropland (PCL) in developed and developing countries, especially in Nigeria. However, understanding the causal relationship between CPI and PCL is crucial to both food security and economic growth of any nation. In this paper, we investigated the causal relationship between CPI and PCL time series variables using unrestricted Vector Autoregressive (VAR) modeling techniques. Pre-examination of the CPI and PCL time series data extracted from the repository of World Bank showed that these two series were not only difference stationary series of order one {I(1)} but are also not cointegrated. The results of optimal lag length confirmed that VAR (3) model best fitted the data. The findings showed that Nigeria's crop production index is predictable by Nigeria's permanent cropland and vice versa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper examines the determinants of the adoption of land management practices and impact on crop production and household income. The study employed a multi stage sampling technique to select 100 respondents who were adopters of inorganic fertilizer, crop rotation and organic manure. Descriptive statistics, budgetary technique and multinomial logit were used to analyze the data collected from respondents. The gross margins for adopters of inorganic fertilizer, crop rotation and organic manure were ₦88690.6/ha, ₦55620/ha and ₦84130/ha, respectively (₦ is Naira, Nigeria currency; ₦1 equal $0.0065). Net incomes were ₦77252.6/ha, ₦44040/ha and ₦74506.6/ha. Rate of returns were 2.7, 1.8 and 3.3 for adopters of inorganic fertilizer, crop rotation and organic manure, respectively. The multinomial logit estimates indicated that education level and household size were significant determinants of adoption of fertilizer use while household size was the only determinant of the adoption of crop rotation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is possible to assert that one of the reasons behind Nigeria's inability to break even in agricultural production is the sociolinguistic complexity of the nation. But then, some advanced nations that equally have many languages are faring better in food production. In Nigeria, taboos and wrong beliefs by farmers towards agriculture as obtained in the past are still extant. Majority of farmers find it difficult to adopt modern agrobased technologies except the few who are into large-scale farming. Based on this background, the study holds that the indigenous languages which ought to have been fully harnessed as models for effective transmission of improved agro-technologies to alter the obsolete methods and promote virile agricultural enterprise have been treated with a wave of hand. This paper therefore provides rationale and framework for latent use of our indigenous languages for integrating relevant innovations in science and technology into agriculture for sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to assess the sustainability of a forestry management strategy in checkmating desert encroachment and it also examines the impacts of the Forestry II program on agricultural productivity in the rural communities. Design/methodology/approach – The study adopted a quantitative approach in assessing the rural farmers’ level of participation in the Forestry II program in which 201 respondents were interviewed in the study area. Structured questionnaires’ were also administered to afforestation officials/extension workers in the two states regarding the different components of the projects and probable cause(s) of failures/successes as well as the level of involvement of the community in the project. Field observations of the project sites were also carried out with a view to examining the level of achievements on the physical components of the projects. Findings – The findings of this study revealed that, involvement of the stakeholders and participation of the community was lacking at the early stage of the program and the negligence of indigenous knowledge as well as the influence of bottom up approach was not incorporated in the project. The study further revealed that, appreciable positive impacts have been recorded at various levels of its implementation. The improvement of livelihood of the rural people through increased forest products supply was noted, fuel-wood and poles supply were also increased and this had gone a long way in creating employment for the rural dwellers. Research limitations/implications – The study involved the establishment of shelterbelts, windbreaks, woodlots, orchards and nurseries which were complimented by social forestry, and which raised public awareness through campaigns such as school forestry programs, forestry extension services and a fuel-wood conservation program. Originality/value – The study articulated success and failure as well as a detailed assessment of the Forestry II project. The study showed that government could significantly combat desertification in the arid zones through sustainable afforestation if adequate resources were employed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose -- The purpose of this paper is to estimate production and scale efficiency of maize producing farms in South-Western Nigeria. Design/methodology/approach -- This study is based on a semi-parametric approach and uses a combination of econometrics and linear programming to build two stage Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model. Findings -- Model findings shows existence of production and scale inefficiencies in maize production. The study concludes that there is still room for efficiency improvements in the existence of the current maize production technology. It also finds several socio-economic variables such as, off-farm work, education, extension services and credit, which positively impact on technical efficiency of farm households. Practical implications -- Efficiency indicators could be used to monitor resource use efficiency in crop production by local government. Social implications -- Efficiency improvements will increase maize production in the country which in turn reduce social unrest and food insecurity. Originality/value -- This study is one of the first which has employed DEA approach to analyze maize productivity and pioneer in using non-traditional bootstrapping approach to obtain robust efficiency scores in the case of Nigeria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study focuses on examining the marketing policies of cocoa in West Africa with specific interest in comparing the prices of cocoa during marketing board eras of Nigeria and Ghana. The objectives of this study include examining the prevailing economic situations; comparing producer prices during the different pricing eras; and evaluating the effect of the marketing board eras on cocoa production in Ghana and Nigeria. Time series data for the period 1966 to 2009, were sourced from Cocoa Research Institute, Ibadan; Cocobod Annual Report, Accra; Food and Agriculture Organization of United Nation Statistics Division (FAOSTAT) and Annual Bulletin of Statistics of the National Bureau of Statistics of Nigeria. Descriptive statistics, trend analysis and Co-Integration Analysis were used to analyse the data. Results from this study revealed that there is linear trend in the cocoa production during the marketing board era as compared to the post-marketing board era in the two countries. This is attributed to the increase in the prices experienced in post marketing board era. The study established that the marketing board era and prices affected the production of cocoa. The marketing board era had positive impact on the cocoa production although the trend analysis revealed the post marketing era has higher production. However, in Ghana the marketing board era was not significant while cocoa price was significant in explaining the variation in Ghana's cocoa production. The study recommends that Government of West Africa counties especially Nigeria and cocoa farmers should learn from the price stabilization mechanism of marketing board era especially from the Ghana reformation in order to have a sustainable economic development and policy that stimulates production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was carried out to examine the agricultural extension services and farm input supply linkage in Ogun State, Nigeria. Data was obtained from interviewing sixty farmers randomly in Ifo Local Government Area, Ogun State. All the extension agents for the two block offices in the locality were also interviewed to corroborate the data obtained from farmers. Socio-economic characteristics of the respondents were ascertained to have positive influence on agricultural production. Inputs were found out to be supplied mainly by Ogun State Agro-Services Corporation (OGASC) and Ogun State Agricultural Development Programme (OGADEP), but these inputs are not always available at the required time and quantity while the linkage between OGADEP and OGASC was confirmed to be inexistence i.e. OGASC being the commercial arm of OGADEP supplies inputs directly to farmers through the Farm Service Centres (FSCs) and Input Sales Centre at the OGADEP Headquarters. Through these Centres, the farm inputs get to the Block Offices via the Zonal Office, from where the farmers are expected to purchase them. On the other hand, OGADEP supplies information on input needs of farmers to OGASC which assists the latter in making inputs available at the right time and in the right quantity. In addition to this, OGADEP also supply information on input availability to the farmers through the Village Extension Agents (VEAs) who also take recommended practices to these farmers. However, apart from their above mentioned roles, the VEAs are also involved in actual purchase of inputs to the farmers. This deviation from the "professionalism" dictate of the Training and Visit System of Extension Services would have good influence in boosting agricultural production in the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the impacts of climate change on okra and tomato yields. Fertilizer consumption and credit to the crop sector were considered as covariates in the analysis. Time-series data, spanning a period of 40 years, were obtained from various sources. An autoregressive distributed lag model was applied to analyze short- and long-term impacts of climate change and agricultural inputs on okra and tomato yields. Not all variables were stationary at levels (order zero), but they were all significant at first difference, indicating the presence of cointegration. The Bound's test F-ratio was statistically significant and implied the presence of long- and short-term relationships among the variables studied. The mean temperatures had negative impacts on okra and tomato yields in both the short and long terms. Credit guaranteed to the crop sector had positive short- and long-term impacts on tomato yield; fertilizer consumption had a negative long-term impact on okra yield. Our study concludes that climate change, particularly rising temperature, impacts herbaceous fruit crop production in Nigeria. Therefore, we recommend that breeding and disseminating climate-smart tomato and okra varieties will help fruit crop farmers respond to rising temperatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on achieving sustainable food security through analysis of risk in honeybee production farms and determines the risk behaviour of bee farmers in kebbi and kwara states of Nigeria. Primary data were obtained using structured questionnaires and interview. A multi-stage random sampling procedure was employed for selecting 148 respondents comprising 102 traditional bee farmers and 46 modern bee farmers. Descriptive statistics: mean, percentage, standard deviation, the coefficient of variation and, safety model was used to determine the risk attitude coefficient of bee farmers. The conditional distribution of the honey harvest probabilities per ha for a food secure and insecure was plotted against the poverty index using normal kernel cumulative density. Result revealed that risks in apiculture are related to socio-economic and production characteristics. The bulk of traditional bee farmers (57.8%) is categorized as risk neutral while the majority of modern bee farmers (67.4%) belong to risk preferring (with an index of 1.52). The results revealed that the set of significant explanatory variables and their sign vary across the traditional and modern groups. The coefficient for marital status, bee farming experience and family labour were statistically significant for traditional bee farmers. While education, investment, family labour and hired labour were statistically significant for modern bee farmers. Bee farmers are encouraged to form cooperative society and if already existing should liaise with relevant agencies such as the ministry of agriculture and agricultural insurance companies for training, workshops and seminars on the capacity to handle risk-taking into cognizance their socioeconomic and institutional traits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agricultural Extension Agents (AEAs) in Nigeria are saddled with the responsibility of helping farmers improve their knowledge and skill in agriculture thereby improving their livelihood opportunities. Based on this the study looked into the effectiveness of the agents in ensuring sustainable agricultural development. Specifically the study described the socio-economic characteristics of the AEAs, determined their levels of knowledge and skills in sustainable agricultural development activities and identified their training needs. Three states: Lagos, Oyo and Ondo states were randomly selected from the six in southwest Nigeria and all the AEAs in the Agricultural Development Projects in the selected states were sampled. Data were collected using a validated questionnaire. Data analysis was done using appropriate descriptive and inferential statistics. Results of the study revealed that males (68.1%) dominated extension service in southwest Nigeria. The mean age of the AEA was 39 years and the mean year of experience of the AEA was 10 years. AEAs highest mean score on knowledge in sustainable agricultural development activities was recorded in livestock manure management (x = 3.37) and the highest mean score in skill was recorded in farmers organization establishment (x = 2.98). Some of the training needs identified included participatory needs analysis and livestock manure management. The study concluded that many of the identified training needs are outside the pre-service training of the AEAs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inorganic fertilizer use across Sub-Saharan Africa is generally considered to be low. Yet, the notion that fertilizer use is too low is predicated on the assumption that it is profitable to use rates higher than currently observed. There is, however, limited empirical evidence to support this. Using a nationally representative panel dataset, this paper empirically estimates the profitability of fertilizer use for maize production in Nigeria. We find that fertilizer use in Nigeria is not as low as conventional wisdom suggests. Low marginal physical product and high transportation costs significantly reduce the profitability of fertilizer use. Apart from reduced transportation costs, other constraints such as soil quality, timely access to the product, and availability of complementary inputs such as improved seeds, irrigation and credit, as well as good management practices are also necessary for sustained agricultural productivity improvements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Farmer livelihoods and agricultural growth in many Sub-Saharan African countries are at risk due to climate change as it impacts on agricultural production and income. Furthermore, smallholder farmers are affected disproportionately as their sustenance is totally dependent on agriculture. This study explores smallholder farmers' understanding and perception of climate change as well as the coping strategies they are adopting. Information was gathered through structured questionnaires and household surveys in Ibarapa/Ibadan and Ogbomoso Agricultural Zones of Oyo State Nigeria. Results revealed that smallholder farmers perceive climate change as increased temperature, delayed onset of rain, and increased drought. The effects of climate change include longer periods of heat stress on crops, reduced crop yield, increased health hazards, discomfort at work, increased outbreaks of disease, and reduced soil fertility. Farmer responses linked to their perception of climate change include mixed cropping, bush fallowing, cover cropping, crop rotation, use of fertilizers, mulching, and the use of improved crop varieties. Additional responses in the study area included having other sources of income generation such as trading, transportation businesses, and crafts. Respondents are making efforts to adapt to climate change in various ways; however, it is recommended that more insight and awareness campaigns are carried out on effects of climate change, and coping strategies should be encouraged to enhance adaptive capacity and productivity, thus improving the livelihoods of smallholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study assesses the mechanization challenges of peasant farmers in Gboko Local Government Area of Benue state in Nigeria. The peasant farmers produce over 90% of Nigeria's agricultural output and these peasant dwell in the rural areas wherein about 60% of the population live. The vast majority of these farmers have serious challenges in accessing modern inputs and other productive resources, including education and they are unlikely to have access to assortment of fertilizers, hybrid seeds and irrigation. This study employed a multi stage sampling techniques to collect information on the socio-economic characteristics of the farmers and available machinery. Analysis revealed that farmers in the study area were relatively low educated. Most of the farm sizes in the study area are in the range of 1-5 ha, most of the needed modern machinery were not available and many of the farm operations were carried out manually, that is, land clearing (70.56%), tillage (91.77%), planting (78.79%), fertilizer application (84.85%), weeding (65.80%), and harvesting (80.52%). This study also show that majority of respondents were smallholder farmers who were often too poor to employ the available machinery. Despite this ugly situation, over 75% of the foods consumed in this country come from these peasant farmers in rural areas. The current world food situation, socio-economic and population displacement as result of internal and external conflict of all kinds, this situation of peasantry should not be allowed to continue if the population must be salvaged from hunger. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite Nigeria`s plentiful agricultural resources and oil wealth, poverty is widespread in the Country and has increase since the late 1990`s, neglect of rural infrastructure affects the profitability of agricultural production. The lack of roads impedes the marketing of agricultural communities prevents farmers from selling their produce at reasonable price and leads to spoilage. The study was designed to analyze the economics of groundnut processing in Akwanga Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, Nigeria. A purposive sampling technique was adopted in collecting the data used for the study from a sample of 60 groundnut processors. Descriptive statistics and gross margin analysis was used to analyzed the data collected. The study revealed that 98.3% of the respondents are females who used groundnut seed, firewood, water, labour and grinding machine in processing groundnut. The study estimated the average variable cost per 100 kg of groundnut seed per cycle at N27,487.12 while the average total revenue was estimated at N36,340.00 thus, a gross margin of N8,852.88 per 100 kg of groundnut seed per cycle. The return per naira invested (ROI) was estimated at N0.322. This indicates that groundnut processing is a profitable business in the study area. The study further revealed that majority of the respondents were constrained by inadequate capital, inadequate processing machine, risk of buying low quality raw materials, inadequate capital, unstable prices of inputs and unsteady market for products. Based on the findings the study recommended that groundnut processors should be encouraged to form cooperative societies so that they can speak with common voice in their attempt to acquire input and sell their output, affordable and accessible credit facilities should be made available to processors among others. Farmers should be persuaded to dry their groundnut seed properly before barging them to prevent the seed from spoilage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study looked at the effect ofFADAMA III program on food crop production among rural women farmers in Akoko South-West Local. Government area of Ondo State, Nigeria. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from 120 respondents, including sixty (60) participating and sixty (60) non-participating rural women farmers. The study data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, net farm income models, logit regression models, and Ordinary Least Square regression (OLS). The study found that participating and non-participating rural women farmers had mean ages of 46 and 49 years, respectively, and had completed secondary education. At 1% and 5% levels of likelihood, age, farm size, times of extension visit, and farming experience were all significant in the logistic regression results. FADAMA III participants and non-participants had net farm income (NFI) of N189,691.82 /Ha and Ml08,417.73 /Ha, respectively. The cost-benefit ratios for participants and non-participants were 12.82 and 8.40, respectively. According to the OLS regression, farm size (2515.581) is the only variable that is significant at 5% for non-participants, although educational status (59846.796) andfarming experience (167547.42) are significant at 1% and 5% for participants as factors determining their net income. Inadequate extension agent output, poor leadership, a negative attitude toward the program, and a lack of knowledge of the program were the major constraints. The study revealed that Agricultural programs such as FADAMA III programs and other empowerment programs are essential to the agricultural sector, most especially the rural dwellers in most of the developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study examined the contributions of sub-units of the crop subsector to the economic development of Nigeria (approximated by the per capita GDP (PCI)) from 1962 to 2020. The Autoregressive Distributed Lag Model (ARDL) was used to establish the existence of the cointegration among the specified series. The findings revealed that, the sub-components of the crop sub-sector co-integrate with the per capita GDP in the long run. The empirical results further revealed that in the short run, sugar-based crops gross production, vegetable, and fruit gross production have a significant relationship with the PCI in Nigeria; whereas the cereal gross production, oil-based crop gross production, sugar crop gross production, and vegetable and fruit gross production were long run significant determinants. The findings call for appropriate short and long-term economic policy packages that should stimulate investment opportunities in the crop sub-sector to increase the sub-sector’s productivity for greater economic development stimulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Agronomía Colombiana is the property of Universidad Nacional de Colombia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)