Exploring the access of agricultural extension services among small-scale garden egg farmers in Abaji area council, Abuja

Abstract

The study was carried out to ascertain exploring the access of agricultural extension services among small-scale garden egg farmers in Abaji Area Council, Abuja. The research was carried out in Nigeria's Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The study was directed by three objectives. The research was conducted in the form of a survey. Respondents for the study were selected using a multi-stage sampling process. The first stage was the purposive selection of three zones from the territory's six ADP zones. Gwagwalada, Kwali, and Abaji were the zones chosen. The second stage consisted of selecting three blocks from each of the three zones, for a total of nine blocks. In the third stage, two cells from each of the nine blocks were chosen, for a total of 18 cells. The fourth and final stage was the random selection of 20 respondents from each of the cells. The total number of respondents for the study was 360. Primary data were used for the study and these were collected using well-structured questionnaires which were administered by the researcher with the help of trained ADP enumerators who are familiar with the study area. Descriptive statistics like frequency, percentage and mean were used to achieve the objectives of the study. The result revealed that the most available extension service in the study area was “advisory services”, as indicated by 93.6% of the respondents. Age, Gender and education are some of the factors that can significantly influence the productivity of the farmers. Therefore, the following recommendations were made, Regular training should be organized for extension workers to build their technical abilities and ensure that they are equipped with the latest trends in agricultural innovations. The government and other extension service providers should ensure that more extension workers are recruited. Modern technologies like social media, telephone and the likes should be leveraged on to promote the efficient delivery of extension services to farmers.