DETERMINANTS OF PRODUCTIVITY LEVEL AMONG CASSAVA FARMERS IN ANAMBRA STATE, NIGERIA

The study examined the determinants of productivity level among cassava farmers in Anambra State, Nigeria. Multistage sampling techniques were used for the study. Four local governments out of the 21 local governments in Anambra state were purposely selected due to their popularity in cassava production. Two communities were selected from each local government to give a total of 8 communities that were used for the study. However, 15 cassava farmers were selected from each community using simple random sampling techniques and this gave a total sample size of 120 farmers. Data were collected through a structured interview schedule. Percentages, frequency, mean scores and regression analysis were used for data analysis. Results show that 78.3% of the farmers were female while 21.7% of the farmers were male. The average mean age of the farmers was 39 years. Majority (37.7%) of the farmers were married and about 65.5% of the farmers were full time cassava farmers. About 67.5% of the farmers completed secondary school while 18.3% of the farmers did not have formal education. The average farm size cultivated for cassava by the farmers was 1.6 ha while 85% of the farmers used improved cassava variety. The mean year of farming experience was 10 years. About 65% of the farmers have access to credit while majority (77.5%) of the farmers did not have access to extension service. Out of the fourteen variables investigated, only four variables were found to be statistically significant as the determinants of the productivity level among cassava farmers in the study area. They were farm size (t=6.668, p=0.000), educational level (t=3.365, p=0.001), extension contact (t=-3.605, p=0.001) and perceived constraints (t=-3.057, p=0.003) respectively.