Determinants of the Adoption of Improved Shea Butter Processing Technologies in Oyo State, Nigeria

Abstract

This research was conducted to find out factors that may be associated with low adoption of improved shea butter technologies in Oyo  State. A combination of sampling procedures was employed to select the respondents. Data was collected both qualitatively through  interview schedule and qualitatively through key informant interviews from 400 respondents. Multiple regression was utilized for the  analysis of the determinants of adoption of improved shea butter processing technologies. The outcome of the research revealed that  91.5% of the respondents were female, 60.2% were literates, with at least primary school education, average of 55.2 years of age, average  experience of 21 years in processing shea butter, average of 7 household members, average annual income of ₦1,006,782.38. Multiple  regression results revealed that socio-economic factors in the model were able to explain up to 61.8% of the variation in the adoption of  improved shea butter processing technologies of respondents. The coefficient estimate indicated that scale of income diversification (β =  0.086), annual income (β = 6.196), access to extension contact (β = 0.041) and access to resources for shea butter processing (β = 0.244)  showed a positive significant relationship. With 62% impact of socioeconomic factors, this study concluded that adoption or otherwise of  improved shea butter processing technologies is massively influenced by socioeconomic factors in Oyo State. A unified approach for training processors is required to enhance understanding and adoption of shea butter processing technologies in Oyo State.