Analysis of adoption of safety measures by Spray Service Providers (SSPS) in Kano State, Nigeria

Abstract

The study analyzed the adoption of safety measures by Spray Service Providers (SSPs) in Kano State, Nigeria. Multi-stage sampling technique was used to select 185 respondents for the study. Data were collected from primary sources by the use of an interview schedule questionnaire administration technique and analyzed using descriptive statistics and multiple regression. The findings indicated that the entire (100%) respondents were male and educated with mean age of 30 years; 45% were married. They had mean household size and spraying experience of 3 people and 5 years, respectively. The multiple regression results showed that age (P<0.01), years of spraying experience (P<0.01), access to credit (P<0.01) and educational level (P<0.05) positively and significantly influenced adoption of safety measures. The result further revealed that use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) had the highest adoption score of 95%. High cost and non-availability of PPE (63.78%), Triple rinsing of equipment after application (54.05%) and inadequate application equipment such as gloves, coveralls, boots and hats (49.72%) were the most serious constraints facing SSPs. Use of PPE, knowledge of mixing and selecting of the right pesticides were adopted. The study concluded that safety measures were highly adopted by the SSPs which may help in safeguarding farmers health and the environment of the study area. The study recommended that priority should be given to provision of this PPE and at affordable price to SSPs.