Implementation Accuracy of Cocoa Rehabilitation Techniques (CRTS) Among Cocoa Farmers in Southwestern Nigeria

Abstract

Old age and cocoa farms abandonment in Nigeria has led to decline in production. Knowledge about Cocoa Rehabilitation Techniques (CRTs) was transferred to cocoa farmers to address these problems. The study investigated how accurately cocoa farmers in Southwestern Nigeria are implementing CRTs. Multistage random sampling technique was used to select two hundred and forty respondents for the study. Respondents’ mean age was 57.7years. More than half (55.7%) had secondary education as their highest educational level with a mean farm size of 2.4 hectares. The implementation accuracy (IA) level pooled together was very low (39.7%) for all techniques; however, the IA for gapping up technique was the highest (70.0%). Pearson Product Moment Correlation (PPMC) analysis showed that farm size (r = 0.45, p = 0.001), age (r = 0.23, p = 0.01), average yearly income (r = 0.34, p = 0.02) were significantly related to respondents’ IA while Chi Square analysis revealed that educational level showed significant association (χ² = 13.8, p = 0.01) with respondents’ IA of CRTs. IA level of cocoa farmers in CRTs was low.