Assessment of Extension Service Delivery on Improved Cassava Technologies Among Cassava Farmers in Osun State, Nigeria

Abstract

Extension service delivery is too often merely seen as a vehicle for spreading scientific and technical progress and technology transfer. In the real sense, however, dissemination of knowledge is not a one way affair from scientists to producers. The study was conducted to assess extension service delivery on improved cassava production technologies among cassava farmers in Osun State, Nigeria. Multistage sampling procedure was employed in the selection of 312 cassava farmers. Data were summarized with frequency counts, percentages, mean and correlation coefficient. Results showed that the extension services offered to famers in the study area included fertilizer procurement, agrochemicals, cooperative facilities, social networks, tractor hiring services, credit facilities, improved planting materials and marketing. The mean age of the cassava farmers was 50.57 years; majority (90%) of whom were males and married (95%) with mean cassava farm size of 3.12 hectares and mean cassava sales income of N56, 333 per annum. Almost three-quarters of the respondents (72%) expended less than N15, 000 on adopted improved technologies. The mean percentage awareness of the technologies by farmers was high while farmers had medium level of usage. The level of satisfaction of farmers with the services provided by the extension agency was medium and extension/advisory service was the most satisfactory of the extension services delivered to cassava farmers. It is therefore recommended that efficient extension services should be rendered by competent extension agents who are under continuous training and retraining programmes and continuously supported by a dynamic system of monitoring and evaluation and good government policy.

Key words: Agrochemicals, advisory services, awareness, extension agents, satisfaction