Browsing by Author "Abdullahi, A."

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Adaptation Strategies and Utilization to Climate Change and Variability by Farming Households in Agricultural Zone 1 Niger State, Nigeria
(Journal of Science Technology and Education, 8(2), 2020) Ibrahim, M.; Mohammed, Y.; Abdullahi, A.; Shaba, E.; Yisa, K. M
The objectives of the study includes, describe the socioeconomic characteristics of farming households, examine the level of knowledge of farming households on climate change and variability, ascertain adaptation strategies to climate change and variability adopted by farming households and their perception of its effectiveness and examine the constraints associated with farming households on the adoption of climate change and variability adaptation strategies in the study area. Multistage sampling procedure was used to select a total of 188 respondents for the study. The data were collected through primary source using questionnaire and interview schedule and analyzed using descriptive statistics, Likert type rating. The finding revealed the hierarchy in adoption of adaptation strategies to climate change and variability with planting early maturing varieties and planting of high yielding varieties were 100% adopted. These variables were closely followed by use of agro-chemicals and use of manure (organic or inorganic) with 98.9%. In conclusion, adaptation strategies to climate change and variability that were found to be effective was identified and when adapted would reduce effect and impact of climate change and variability on farming household. It was recommended weather information that is more reliable should be adequately relate to farmers using right channel, High yielding and early maturing varieties should be made available to farmers at subsidized rate and timely by the releasing institutions and organization,
Adoption of Organic Farming practices among Rural maize farmers in Niger State, Nigeria
(Nigeria. Nigerian Journal of Rural Sociology, 18(2), 2019) Abdullahi, A.; Salihu, I. T.; Umar, I. S.; Hassan.S
The study investigated adoption of organic practices among rural maize farmers in Niger state, Nigeria, with specific objectives of describing socioeconomic characteristics of the farmers, identifying farmers’ sources of information on organic practices, examining adoption level of organic practices in maize production and identifying constraints limiting adoption of organic practices by the farmers. A multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select 222 maize farmers and data collected through structured questionnaire were analyzed using frequency counts, means and percentages. Results obtained shows that farmers in the study area were males (70.3%), mostly married (75.7%) with formal education (62.6%) at mean age and household size of 35.8 years and six (6) persons respectively. Also, farmers regularly acquire information about organic practices through extension agents (72.5%), relatives and neighbours (90.1%). Similarly, eight (8) out of the 15 practices identified were adopted. These include crop rotation (59.9%), mixed cropping (79.7%), mixed farming (73.0%), hoe/hand weeding (61.3%), slash and burn (54.1%), hoe/minimum tillage (66.2%), farm yard manure (53.2%) and crop residue incorporation (83.8%). Total adoption by the farmers was restricted by constraints such as; high costs of organic inputs (x=2.92), Difficulty in accessing loans for organic crop production (x=2.86) and low supply of manure (x=2.86). To this end, adoption level of organic practices among rural maize farmers in Niger State can be said to be moderate thus; it was recommended that change agents should enlighten farmers on various organic methods of weed, pest and disease control through the major sources of information in the area
An Appraisal of Farmers’ Knowledge Level on Information and Communication Technologies Utilization in Niger State, Nigeria
(Journal of Animal and Plant Research, Vol. 01, Issue, 03, 2024) Shuaibu, U.; Abdullahi, A.
The use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in sharing information is very important in disseminating of agricultural information in Nigeria. Therefore, this study examined farmer’s knowledge level on utilization of ICT tools for farming in Niger state, Nigeria. A ordered logit model and descriptive statistics were used to examine the data that were gathered from 135 respondents. The findings showed that the majority of respondents (86.7%) had a good level of education, had an average age of 30, and had an average of 11 years of experience producing food crops. However data analysis reveals that mobile phone (97.8%) ranked first in terms of types of ICTs equipment used by the farmers while, fixed telephone (32.6%) was the least. Farmers also had moderate (61.5%) knowledge level on ICTs equipment. The ordered Logit regression analysis indicates that the following variables were found to be important determinants of farmers' knowledge level about the use of ICTs equipment in crop production: age, gender, marital status, compatibility, relative advantage, educational level, and farming experience. Therefore, it was suggested that an ICT training program be set up or arranged to educate farmers about the benefits of utilizing ICT technology in their farming operations
An Assessment of the Factors Influencing Maize Farmers’ Perception and Adoption of Organic Farming Practices in Niger State, Nigeria
(Journal of Animal and Plant Research, 1(3), 2024) Abdullahi, A.; Shuaibu, U.
This study used Heckman's analytical method to evaluate the impact on corn farmers' perception and adoption of organic farming practices. A multi-stage method was used to select 222 breeders and data collected from a semi-structured survey were analyzed using descriptive statistics (such as frequency, percentage, mean) and Hackman's two-stage selection model. The results showed that farmers in the study area were mostly male (70.3%), educated (62.6%), and had an average age of 35.8 years. Additionally, the fact that the majority of farmers were in favor of organic agriculture resulted in the approval of eight (8) of the 15 agreements in the region. Practices applied are: return of straw to the field (83.8%), mixing (79.7%), mixed tillage (73.0%), hoeing/reduced tillage (66.2%), hoeing/hand weeding (61.3%) and crop rotation (61.3%). 59.9%, slash and burn plants (54.1%) and farm manure (53.2%). The results of Heckman's two-stage analysis show evidence of sample selection problems where rho is different from zero, while lambda and efficiency (Wald chi2 = 40.51) are significant at 10% and 1% respectively. From the selection model, farmers' views on the use of traditional methods are positively influenced by socio-economic factors such as age, education, agriculture, access to extension services, similar benefits and income, while gender and family size are associated with understanding. In the outcome (adoption) model, the results showed that agricultural education and livestock production increased, with small farmers more likely to adopt organic farming than large farmers. Therefore, the culture of maize farmers in Niger is neutral and mostly influenced by the culture of the farmers. Therefore, it is recommended that agricultural suppliers provide sufficient amounts of organic material to corn producers and extension organizations that will train farmers regularly
Analysis of Statically Determinate Trusses using Exact Method (Joint Resolution Method) and Matrix Stiffness Method
(USEP: Journal of Research Information in Civil Engineering, 2017) Abdullahi, A.; Yusuf, I. T.; Abubakar, Mahmud; Aminulai, H. O.; Yusuf, A.; Alhaji, B.
Matrix Stiffness Method (MSM) as a tool for static analysis of structures is premised on the principle of Finite Element Method (FEM), which in itself is a numerical/approximate method capable of giving only approximate results. However, Joint Resolution Method (JRM) is one of the most popular classical/exact methods of static analysis capable of giving exact results. This paper presents an analysis of a statically determinate 2-D truss using Exact/Joint Resolution Method (JRM) and Matric Stiffness Method (MSM) to ascertain the validity of the latter against the former. In the JRM, the support reactions and internal member forces were obtained from considerations of the equilibrium conditions of the entire truss and isolated joints respectively. On the other hand, a computer program was written in MATLAB 7.8.0 (R2009a) based on the principles of MSM for ease of computation and increased accuracy to solve for member forces and reactions of the same truss. The element properties were obtained and employed to calculate the element stiffness matrices, these were then assembled into the global stiffness matrix, from which the unknown displacements, member forces and support reactions were calculated. The results obtained from using both JRM and MSM were found to be exactly the same or very close, with percentage errors ranging between 0% and 3%. Hence MSM results as compared to JRM have 97% accuracy and above, and can therefore be relied upon.
Appraisal of Bio-security measures among Poultry Farmers in Nassarawa State, Nigeria
(Nigeria. International Journal of Agriculture and Rural Development, 24 (2), 2021) Jibrin, S.; Salihu, I.T.; Abdullahi, A.; Muhammed, H.U.; Hassan, S.; Aliyu, A.
The study assessed the bio-security measure employed by poultry farmers in Nasarawa State, Nigeria, the objectives of the research were to examine socioeconomic characteristics of the poultry farmers; identify the sources of information on bio-security measures used by farmers; examine the types of biosecurity measures adopted by the poultry farmers; determine the factors influencing bio-security measures adopted by the poultry farmers and; examine the constraints associated with the adoption of bio-security measure by the poultry farmers in the study area. Data was collected from randomly selected 60 poultry farmers using well-structured questionnaire and interview schedule. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and multiple regressions. The result shows that mean age, farming experience and flock size was 35 years, 7years and 6363 birds respectively. Almost all (93.33%) of the respondents had tertiary level of education. The majority (73.33%) of the farmers sourced bio-security information from veterinary officer and co-poultry farmers (58.33%). Major bio-security measures used by farmers include, isolation and quarantine of new birds (WM=3.90), disinfecting vehicles and all equipment before entry into the farm (WM=3.83) and avoiding contaminated feed and stagnant water (WM=3.87). The regression analysis revealed that the factors influencing bio-security measures adopted by the poultry farmers include Age, Farming experience, educational level, cooperative membership and system of poultry farming with an 𝑅2 of 0.3140. The result shows that farmers carry out bio-security measure but have limited knowledge and resources for effective operation. The government, NGOs, and extension agent/workers should educate farmers on the importance and use of bio-security measures and effort should be made to bring down the cost of disinfectants for optimum production.
Artificial Intelligence and Structural Reliability Analysis in Nigeria: A Review
(Department of Civil Engineering, FUT Minna, 2024-12-12) Olorunpomi, M. D; Kolo, D. N.; Abdullahi, A.; Agbese, E. O.
Reliability is a probabilistic measure of structural safety. In Structural Reliability Analysis (SRA), both loads and resistances are modelled as probabilistic variables, and the failure of structure occurs when the total applied load is larger than the total resistance of the structure. This review presents the recent advances in using Artificial Intelligence (AI) in SRA; it explores the application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in assessing the structural reliability of structures, particularly focusing on the integration of machine learning models, predictive analytics, and data-driven approaches. AI-based tools can enhance accuracy, speed, and efficiency in structural assessments, offering a potential solution to Nigeria's infrastructure challenges. Machine learning-based techniques have been introduced to SRA problems to deal with its huge computational cost and increase accuracy. ANNs and SVMs are two popularly used tools in the ML-based SRA literature. They have been widely used for the SRA because of their adaptability to different well-known reliability calculation methods such as MCS, FORM, and SORM. While these technologies have been successfully implemented in other parts of the world, its application in Nigeria faces challenges related to data availability, infrastructure, and expertise. Nonetheless, with the increasing adoption of digital technologies in Nigeria’s construction industry, AI offers a compelling opportunity for improving the safety and sustainability of concrete structures.
Assessment of Adoption of improved Ginger Production Technologies in Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna State, Nigeria
(Nigeria. Journal of Agriculture and Environment, 15(2), 2019) Ibrahim, M.; Abdullahi, A.; I.I. Yakubu; K.M. Yisa
The study examines the adoption of improved ginger production technologies among farmers in Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna State. Multistage sampling was adopted. Kajuru LGA was purposively selected because of the preponderance of ginger production. In the second stage, a random selection of four extension blocks was made and eight extension cells were also randomly selected. Data were collected from 172 respondents through structured questionnaire and analysed using simple descriptive statistic. The result shows that the mean age of respondents was 32.5years and majority (82.5%) were literates. Mean farming experience was 15years. More than half (56.7%) of the respondents acquired their land through inheritance and majority (81%) got to know about improve ginger production technologies through radio. Improved production technologies such as use of herbicides ( =3.4), use of tarpaulins ( =3.4), use of jute bags ( =3.4) ranked highest among other production technologies adopted by the farmers. Constraints to adoption of improved ginger production technology were; lack of interest among youths ( =2.6) and high cost of hydro chemical ( =2.5). It was concluded that radio was the major source of awareness of ginger production technologies and use of chemical for land treatment ranked 1st in terms of adoption and farm size not adequate being major constraint. The use of radio programme should be strengthened for information dissemination. Land tenure regulations should be modified to allow famers access to land. Chemical weed control should also be encouraged among ginger farmers.
Assessment of Consumer Preference and Willingness to Pay for Local Rice in Selected Local Government Areas of Niger State, Nigeria
(Book of Proceedings of the 11th International Mardin Atuklu Scientific Researches Conference, 2023-12-13) Abdullahi, A.; Shuaibu, U.; Jibrin, S.; Muhammad, H.U.; Ahmed, I.I.
The research work assessed consumers’ preference and willingness to pay for local rice in Niger state, Nigeria. It specifically described the socioeconomic characteristics of local rice consumers in the study area. Data of 103 consumers was collected through a well-structured questionnaire. Heckman two step regression model and likert type of measurement were used to measures the collected parameter. Multi-stage sampling techniques was employed for this study, since the state is divided into three agricultural zones (zone A, B, C). The choice of local rice consumption is evident by their positive perceptions that local rice is healthy, have good taste and superior in quality than polish rice. The households’ characteristics reveal that 55.3% of the respondents were 21-40years old. The mean household size was about 8 persons, 65% were married and 60.2% of the respondent had formal education. The study further revealed that more quantity of locally processed rice is demanded as compared to that of imported rice. Further findings revealed that reasonable price, taste and satisfaction were the major preference for local rice. The study reveals that grain size, market price, marital status and swelling capacity, ease of preparation affects consumers’ preference and willingness to pay for local rice. The study also revealed that majority of the respondents gets their source of information about local rice from friends and neighbors and radio. It is recommended that local processors of rice should ensure the upgrading the locally processed rice as clean as the imported rice to compete favorably in domestic and potential international market.
Assessment of Crop Farmers’ and Pastoralists’ Perceptions on the Establishment of Cattle Ranches in Niger State, Nigeria
(Proceedings of the 52nd Annual Conference of the Agricultural Society of Nigeria, 2019) I. M.Mayaki; H. T. Jacob; I. S. Umar; Abdullahi, A.
The Nigeria government have tried in many ways, initiated lots of policy and programmes which is aimed at restoring the country’s agricultural sector to its pride. Despite the efforts to promote positive perception and adoption of innovative technologies (IT) by the Government and international development projects, the adoption rate among farmers has always been low in Nigeria. In continuation, recently the federal government of Nigeria introduced the Rural Grazing Areas (RUGA Settlement).The idea was an initiative of the National Economic Council (NEC) presented under the National Livestock Transformation Plan .The essence of the initiatives to abolish the age-long crop farmers and pastoralists’ crisis and to massively develop the livestock industry and seek to promote ranching as the way forward for cattle rearing in the country. According Alh. Mohammadu Umar, the Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development,made it known to News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on 25th of June 2019 that nomadic livestock production in Nigeria is facing major challenges and is at crossroads due to declining availability of pasture, overgrazing, and expanding fatal conflicts between crop farmers’ and pastoralists’.
Assessment of efficient utilization of production inputs among women rice farmers in Niger State, Nigeria
(Proceedings of the 52nd Annual Conference of the Agricultural Society of Nigeria, 2019) Yusuf, A.; Tsado, J. H.; Salihu, I. T.; Abdullahi, A.
Rural women have feature prominently in rice production enterprise, specifically; up to 70% of the rice produced in Africa comes from women (FAO, 2011). In Niger State, rice is traditionally regarded as a product of women. Women living in this area are having high knowledge about traditional farming methods of rice production. However, low productivity coupled with stiff competition posed by importers over the years has restrained the women farmers from earning significant returns from their investment and this has created rice production deficit. To minimize the effect of the rice production shortfalls on state demand, several efforts have been made by successive governments together with donor partners in a form of implemented projects to increase rice production. However, this effort is still ineffective due to limiting factors such as: inadequate institutional support (access to credit, research and extension), inappropriate production system, inadequate basic infrastructures, production risk and inefficiency on the part of the farmers. In light of these assertions, the challenging question to this review is that ‘can women rice farmers improved on their technical efficiency to reduce production risk and increase output’? Thus, this review seeks to assess the efficient utilization of production inputs among women rice farmers in Niger State, Nigeria.
Assessment of factors influencing poultry production among rural farmers in Katcha and Lapai Local Government Areas of Niger State, Nigeria
(Journal of Agriculture and Agricultural Technology (JAAT) 13(1), 2024) Muhammad, H.U.; Muhammad, Y.; Abdullahi, A.; Jibrin, S.
The study assessed factors influencing poultry production among small-scale farmers in Katcha and Lapai Local Government Areas of Niger State. A three-stage sampling procedure was used to select 132 small-scale poultry farmers, to whom structured questionnaires were administered to collect primary data. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics (frequency count, percentages, and means), inferential statistics (multiple regressions), and farm budgeting techniques. The socio-economic characteristics of the farmers showed that most (45.5%) were between 30-40 years of age with a mean age of 36 years, 70.1% of the farmers were male, and 57.5% were married. The mean household size was six persons, while the mean farming experience was 5.2 years. Over half (53.0%) of the farmers had primary and secondary school education. The costs and returns evaluation result revealed that the farmers incurred more expenses in purchasing feeds (₦68,616.34). In contrast, returns on poultry production were ₦357,103.54 with a profitability and efficiency ratio of 1.28 and 2.28, respectively, per 100 birds. The multiple regression results revealed that feeds (0.0561), drugs/vaccines (0.0577), credit (0.0520), age (0.0192), education (0.0122), household size (0.0425) and farming experience (0.1617) significantly influence poultry output at 1% and 5% level of probability. Meanwhile, the high cost of feed (ẋ=2.45) and high temperature (ẋ= 2.29) were the most severe constraints faced by the poultry farmers. These findings showed that the poultry farmers were making reasonable returns from poultry farming. The government and other relevant stakeholders should encourage the farmers to adopt climate-smart agricultural practices to mitigate the effects of temperature on poultry birds. Also, extension services should be intensified, for increased poultry production in the study area.
Assessment of Farmers’ Adaptation Strategies to Flood Related Losses in Zone One Area of Ekiti State, Nigeria
(Book of Proceedings of the 3rd International Mediterranean Scientific Research and Innovation Congress, 2023) Abdullahi, A.; Shuaibu, U.; Muhammad, H.U.; Jibrin, S.; Ahmed, I.I
This study assesses farmers’ adaptation strategies to flood related losses in zone one area of Ekiti State, Nigeria. A multistage sampling technique was adopted in the selection of 147 crop farmers. Data obtained were analyzed by the use of descriptive statistics and inferential statistics tool used was the Poisson regression model. The results indicated that crop farmers in the study area have the average age of 43years, dominated by males and were married. Majority about 79.7% of the crop farmers were educated in formal institutions and have a mean household size of 5 people. Also the respondents had the mean of 18years of farming experience and 59.9% owned their land with the mean of 1.4 hectares of land. The study revealed that respondents strongly perceived flood effects of loss in farm produce, loss in quality of yield, loss of farm infrastructure, causes soil degradation, pest challenges. The study findings show that common adaptation strategies adopted by the crop farmers include change in planting date, crop rotation, mixed cropping, planting of cover crops and mulching. Furthermore, the Poisson regression result of the determinants of adaptation strategies to flood showed that age, level of education, farming experience, extension visit, credit, compatibility and cost of practice were statistically significant in making decisions. However, the major severe constraints perceived by the respondents include: poor access to adaptation strategies information, high cost of improved crop varieties, lack of access to weather forecast technology by crop farmers and government irresponsiveness to risk management. Therefore, it was recommended that Extension agencies should provide adequate information on various adaptation strategies to farmers, which was one of the major constraints they face, relevant stakeholders and concerned organization should provide farmers with weather forecast technology, financial institutions should make access to credit facilities to farmers to enable them adopt adaptation strategies.
Assessment of Honey Production under Box Hive Technology in Selected Local Government Areas of Kaduna State, Nigeria
(Book of Proceedings of the 11th International Mardin Atuklu Scientific Researches Conference, 2023) Abdullahi, A.; Shuaibu, U.; Jibrin, S.; Muhammad, H.U.; Ahmed, I.I
This study was undertaken to assess honey production under box hive technology in Kaduna state, Nigeria”. The specific objectives were socio economic characteristics, profitability of honey production, the resource use efficiency of honey production. A purposive sampling technique was used to purposively select 139 bee farmers from three local government areas namely, Giwa, Kagarko and Kachia. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics, Farm budgeting techniques, Cobb Douglas regression model and resource use efficiency ratio. Result revealed that majority of the bee farmers in the study area were male and within the age bracket of 40-49 years with a mean age of 44. The average household size was 6. About 60.4% of the bee farmers had no formal education, indicating that they are largely illiterates. The average years of farming experience was 15years. About 52.5% of the farmers had contact with extension agents, about 61% had 13 beehives on their farm land. The calculated net farm income of beekeeping in the study area was N13020415, also the returns to naira invested of 2.46 implies that for every N 1 invested in bee farming , a profit of N 1.46 was generated. The regression model shows the fitness of the model with an R2 value of 0.6338. The results showed that the number of breed (bees) used was significant at 1%. The resource use efficiency ratio result revealed that labor, box hive were over utilized, land was under- utilized while the number of larvae was optimally utilized in the study area. Some of the problems encountered by bee farmers in the study area include pesticide and insecticide application close to the apiary, poor road network, theft, problem of securing agricultural loans and excess smoking. From the findings it was concluded that beekeeping is profitable in the study area and can serve as source of income to households. It is recommended that more extension agent should be trained on modern beekeeping so that they can disseminate beekeeping information to the farmers.
Assessment of Rural Households’ participation in empowerment programmes of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in Niger State, Nigeria
(International Journal of Agricultural Economics, Management and Development (IJAEMD), 10(1), 2022) Usman, U. N.; Salihu, I.T.; Abdullahi, A.; Umar, S.
NGOs have become tremendously active in a wide range of discipline and other more specialized roles such as poverty alleviation, emergency response, human rights work; hence the need to know rural households’ participation in these programmes. Therefore, this study assessed rural households’ participation on empowerment programmes of nongovernmental organizations in Niger state Nigeria. Data was obtained from randomly selected 112 households using structured questionnaires and analyzed with descriptive and inferential statistics. The result revealed that majority of the respondents (66.1%) were females, single (63.4%), had no formal education (66.1%) and are mostly farmers (63.4%). to The result on the extent of household participation in empowerment programmes showed that skill acquisitions and vocational training (X ̅=3.85) ranked first while Community sanitation services (X ̅=2.18) ranked the least. Probit regression model was used to analyzed the factors affecting the participation in empowerment programmes of NGOS, the result revealed that marital institution (0.66), formal education (0.71), distance to nearest market (-0.47), household size (-0.20), age (0.44) and complexity of the programme (-0.87) are significant determinants. The constraints of households’ participation in empowerment programmes of NGOs were inaccessibility to the programmes, lack of awareness and language barriers. Thus, it was recommended that Non-Governmental rganizations should broaden their links so as to expose the rural people to a variety of empowerment/ training programmes.
Assessment of the Compressive Strength of Concrete Produced with Fine Aggregate from Different Locations in Minna
(3rd International Engineering Conference (IEC 2019) Federal University of Technology, Minna, Nigeria, 2019) Aminulai, H. O.; Abdullahi, A.; Abubakar, Mahmud; Abdulrahman, H. S.; Alhaji, B.; Joseph, O. F; Aliyu, S. Y
The construction industry in Nigeria has been witnessing serious collapse of buildings resulting from the qualities of materials used in their construction. This continuous collapse necessitates the need to investigate some of the materials used in the production of the building components in order to ascertain their appropriateness. This research thus investigates the compressive strength of concrete produced using fine aggregate from different locations in Minna. Fine aggregates were obtained from Chanchaga, Maikunkele, Bosso, Lapai Gwari and Garatu areas of Minna and subjected to series of tests namely: sieve analysis, Specific gravity, bulk density, moisture content, and water absorption. Concrete samples were produced using the mix ratio 1:2:4 and the water/cement ratio of 0.6. These samples were subjected to both the slump test and compressive strength test. For each of the fine aggregates, nine cubes of concrete (150mm x 150mm x 150mm) were cast, cured and tested at 7, 14 and 28 days. The results obtained for the mean compressive strength of the concrete produced shows that they all have mean strength greater than 20N/mm2 with fine aggregate from Chanchage having the highest mean of 25.17N/mm2 at 28days of curing. Thus all the fine aggregates could be used in the production of structural lightweight concrete but for structures that require higher strength, the fine aggregate from Chanchaga is recommended
Assessment of Youths participation in cassava production under the value chain development programme (VCDP) in Bida Local Government Area of Niger State, Nigeria
(Scientific papers series management, Economic Engineering in Agriculture and Rural Development, 19(3), 2018) Jirgi, A.J.; Adebayo, C. O.; Abdullahi, A.; Ibrahim, F. D.; Coker, A. A. A.
The study was carried out to assess youths participation in cassava production under value chain development programme (VCDP) in Bida local overnment Area of Niger State, Nigeria, with the specific objectives of describing the socio-economic characteristics of the VCDP participants, costs and returns, level of youths participation and factors influencing youth participation in the VCDP. A multi-stage sampling technique was used to select 100 young cassava farmers and data collected were analyzed using simple descriptive statistics and probit regression analysis. The level of profitability was measured using gross margin and net farm income analysis. The results obtained shows that farmers in the study area had low formal education and were mostly married males with an average age and household size of 32 years and six (6) persons respectively. The gross margin and net farm income were N 109,050.00 and N 103,450.00 per hectare, respectively. The level of youths’ participation under the VCDP was moderate and this was influenced by their age, gender, level of education, marital status, household size, farming occupation and cooperative membership. The major constraints faced by the farmers includes: poor extension agents/farmers’ ratio, inadequate capital and lack of market linkage. To this end, it was recommended that change agents should enlighten farmers on the benefit of VCDP and functional cooperative that could facilitate credit and group dynamism.
Causes and perceived socio-economic implications of Rural-Rural migration on Livelihood of some selected Communities in Makwa Area of Niger State, Nigeria.
(International Journal of Agriculture and Development studies, 3(1), 2018) Salihu, I.T.; Muhammed, H.U.; Abdullahi, A.; Muhammad, U. S.
The diversity of the ecological features, the varying local resources and location of agricultural activities in rural areas serves the major pull factors for migration directed towards rural areas. The study assessed the causes and perceived socio economic implications of rural rural migration on the livelihood of selected communities of Mokwa area of Niger State, Nigeria. A multi stage random sampling technique was employed to select 120 migrant farmers and non migrants used for the study. The interview schedule was used to elicit information for the study. The responses were analyzed using frequency counts, percentages and mean scores. The results revealed that rural rural migration is mostly undertaken by young adults within the age range of 30 50years and with low level of education. Environmental degradation factors such as infertile land (41.56%), incidences of flood (23.37%) and inadequate cultivable land (15.58%) were the major push factors causing rural out migration. While availability of cultivable fertile land (56.94%) was the major pull factor that attract migrants to the study area. The perceived socio-economic implications of the influx of migrants to the study area were increased rate of crime ( = 4.19), increased political unrest ( = 3.79), high level of sexual promiscuity ( = 3.64), introduction of new diseases ( = 3.31), and increased level of agricultural production ( = 3.27). The major problems encountered by the migrants in the study area were inaccessibility to infrastructural facilities (28.57%), insecurity (25.28%) and difficulty in land acquisition (20.88%). The study recommended that there is need to strengthen awareness campaigns and redirection of policies that can check poor land utilization and unsustainable agricultural practices in rural areas to curb the menace of out migration.
Comparative assessment of Rural Women poverty status in Suleja and Gurara Local Government Areas of Niger State, Nigeria
(Journal of Agriculture and food environment, 9(1), 2022) Muhammad, H. U.; Salihu, I.T.; Abdullahi, A.; Jibrin, S.; Hassan, S.; Aliyu, A.
Poverty is pervasive in rural areas of Niger State. Women living in rural households are more vulnerable to poverty than men. Thus, this study seeks to assess rural women farmers’ poverty status in Suleja and Gurara local government areas (LGAs) of Niger state, Nigeria. Interview schedules complimented with a questionnaire were used to obtain information from a total of 142 respondents. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, Foster-Greer-Thorbecke (FGT) and Probit regression models. The results revealed that majority of the women were married (70.0%) and (78.5%) at mean ages of 38 and 40 years respectively. The result also showed that 85.7% and 93.7% of the women farmers identified processing of farm produce as their major source of farm income in Suleja and Gurara LGAs respectively. FGT analysis showed that 41% and 24%, of women in Suleja and Gurara LGAs of the State were poor at a Poverty line of ₦19,102.29 and ₦19,931.08 per month, respectively. The Probit regression results revealed that age, marital status, level of education, farming experience, number of extension visits, farm income and access to credit were the major factors influencing poverty among the rural women of Suleja and Gurara LGAs of Niger State. The study concluded that there was a higher level of poverty among the rural women farmers of Gurara compared to Suleja LGA, hence efforts should be made to diversify the livelihood portfolios of rural women in the study areas to enhance sustainability through the various women empowerment programs, extension services and credit facilities.
Development of an Android Based Mobile Application for Design and Detailing of Pad Foundations to BS8110
(Epistemics in Science, Engineering and Technology, 2017) Yusuf, A.; Aminulai, H. O.; Abdullahi, A.; Abubakar, Mahmud; Alhaji, B.
Many innovative computer software have been developed to perform the task of designing and detailing structural elements such as beams, columns, slabs and foundations. This design and detailing can be done using mobile devices but software developed to operate on such devices have not been fully developed. However, this research is aimed at developing an android based mobile application for the design of pad foundations to Bs8110. The mobile application developed designs isolated axially loaded-only; axially loaded with moment pad footings as well as combined pad footings. The mobile application developed was tested using three typical test parameters and results compared to the manual computations. There was no significant variation in the steel sections required and provided for the manual design and that generated by the mobile application. The steel required by manual design for the axially loaded pad footing was 835mm2/m and that generated by the application was 837.2mm2/m. That of the axially loaded with moment gave required steel section as 1019mm2/m using manual design. This android based mobile application would thus give the structural engineer the leverage to design pad footings anywhere and anytime.