ASSESSMENT OF FARM LABOUR GROUPS AMONG IGALA AND EBIRA ETHNIC GROUPS IN KOGI STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

The study assessed farm labour groups in Igala and Ebira ethnic groups of Kogi State,

Nigeria. Specifically, the study examined the characteristics of farmers’ labour groups in the two ethnic groups; ascertained the perceived benefits of farmers’ labour group; found out  farmers’  level  of  awareness  and  use  of  farm  labour  laws;  determined  group potentials for farmer-to-farmer extension; assessed the effectiveness of farmers’ labour groups in carrying out farm and non-farm operations; and identified constraints to labour  group  formation  and  productivity. A  total  of  114  farm  labour  groups  were randomly selected from the two ethnic groups (89 from Igala ethnic group and 25 from Ebira  ethnic  group).  From  each  of  the  farmers’  labour  groups,  3  members  were randomly selected making a total of 342 respondents for the study. Structured interview schedule was administered to the selected farmers for data collection. Data collected were anaysed using percentage, mean score, standard deviation, student t-test, Chi- Square and factor analysis. Results showed that majority (92.2%) of members of farmers’ labour groups from both ethnic groups were males with mean age of 52.2 years. The overall results showed that most (60.5%) of these farmers had farm sizes between 1-4 hectares. Majority (48.2%) of farmers’ labour groups from both Igala and Ebira ethnic groups were formed before 1990, having a mean group size of 11 persons. Dearth of farm labour (86.3%); rural-urban migration (74.8%); and assisting one another and joint problem solving (44.7% respectively) were some of the major reasons for farmers’ labour group formation by farmers from both ethnic groups. While promotion of deep interpersonal relationships (M=3.84 SD=0.433); assisting indigent members in times of needs (M=3.37 SD=0.682) and increased in income (M=2.99 SD=0.815 were some of the  benefits  of  farmers’  labour  group.  Migration  of  youth  population  (M=  2.74SD=0.514); scarcity of farm labour (M=2.58 SD=0.547) and old age of some members (M=2.58 SD=0.623) were some of the constraints to farmers’ labour group formation and productivity. Farmers’ groups from both ethnic groups were aware of freedom of association act (M=3.34 SD=0.860) and child labour act (M=3.11 SD=860). While knowledge-sharing (M=2.86 SD=0.349); conflict resolution (M=2.45 SD=0.581) and problem-solving (M=2.48 SD=0.627) were the major farmer-to-farmer extension potentials developed by farmers’ labour groups from ethnic groups. Farmers’ labour groups were effective in the areas of expansion of farmlands, saving of costs of farm labour and bulk procurement of farm inputs for members. And the null hypotheses tested revealed that slight difference existed in the perception of benefits of farm labour groups (t=-2.134; P≤0.05) among Igala and Ebira ethnic groups; also great differences existed in the perceived constraints to farmers’ labour groups from the two ethnic groups. It was recommended that government and private institutions should intensify the process of urbanizing rural areas to stop the upsurge of rural-urban migration.

Chapter One

1.0.       Introduction

1.1.       Background Information

In Nigeria and most developing nations of the world, agriculture plays a vital role in economic transformation and food security. A review of the nation’s economic indices shows that the agriculture sector’s contribution to gross domestic product (GDP) was put at 60-65% in the sixties, 30-37% in the seventies, 36-37% in the eighties and 45% in the year 2000 (Mohammed, Achem, Omisore and Abdulquadiri, 2009). The contribution later dropped to  40.1% in 2001 (Central Bank of Nigeria CBN, 2011; Muhammed, et al., 2009; Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) in Koyenikan, 2008). Presently, the contribution stands at 41.8% (Opaluwa, 2013).  This  decline  could  be  attributed  to  factors  such as  migration of  young  and energetic youth to urban centers (Ekong, 2010), old age and health-related problems of rural farmers, limited/lack of farm labour, among others.

The  bulk of the  food consumed in most  cities  in Nigeria come from rural farmers who employ indigenous techniques and family labour for most of their farm operations. Rural people are mostly smallholder farmers whose farmlands are small and scattered. Smallholders make a contribution not only to agricultural productivity but also to overall economic growth, by providing labour, capital, food, foreign exchange, and a consumer good market (Biggs and Biggs, 2001).

The adoption of family labour does not really bring about the much needed economies of scale in food production. Before the advent of civilization, the extended family  system  played  significant  roles  in  the  lives  of  the  people.  Members of the extended family lived and worked together and reinforced each other against the difficulties they had to contend with, especially farm tasks.

Agriculture cannot play this dynamic and wealth-creating role (such as food production, employment creation, income generation etc.) without an enabling policy environment, adequate institutions, and sufficient, well-targeted public and private investment. The experience of recent decades has been disappointing in this regard in a number of countries, particularly the least developed countries (LDCs), where investment has declined, rural poverty remains widespread and a very large share of the labour force is engaged in low-return agricultural work. Cuts in health and education budgets and in other public services, as well as the dismantling of publicly funded agricultural extension services during the structural adjustment processes of the 1980s and 1990s, undermined the foundation for bottom-up development for a generation. The effects are being felt today with a large number of poorly educated rural youth with few skills and poor job prospects and a smallholder agriculture sector that cannot thrive due to lack of steady farm labour and support in terms of policy, infrastructure, inputs and investment.

Wage labour which was later introduced was a means of getting quick returns to address other domestic needs such as food, clothing, payment of children school fees, among others. Increased income has led to the development of deep taste for western luxury goods in recent times. In consequence, urban areas began to attract young men in their large numbers since it is in the cities that better social services and jobs are to be found. This drift of the rural population to cities had begun with the resultant decline in rural farm labour force. Worthy of note too is the fact that, the Nigerian rural setting that provides the bulk of the food needs was neglected during the colonial era and has still not yet witnessed any major transformation in the post independence era (Raphael, 2002). According to Daramola in Raphael (2002) and Opaluwa (2013), Nigeria’s rural setting is made up of neglected rural majority who lack almost all the essential amenities such as health care, good access roads, electricity, modern markets, pipe-borne water, among others. Ojile (2010) notes that the state of infrastructure of an area is an indication of development of that area: and most rural areas in Nigeria lack these infrastructures. The absence of these infrastructures in rural areas can lead to low farm productivity. Nigeria Agriculture Digest (2013) contends that lack of adequate and functional infrastructure such as electricity and road network are major problems militating against effective agribusiness in Nigeria. The deficiencies in electricity supply for instance leads to low capacity utilization of production machineries, reduced output of products and high costs of production (Nigeria Agriculture Digest, 2013).

Increase in population worldwide has necessitated increase in food production. Nigeria as a nation is not only experiencing increase in population like other parts of the third world but rapid increase in population which is similar to what is obtained in many developing countries without a corresponding increase in the levels of food production (Mohammed, et al, 2009). The gap between food demand and domestic food production in sub-Saharan Africa and Nigeria to be specific has widened considerably over the past decade to its present level of becoming an economic, social, political and human crisis (Ojetunji, 2003). Apart from poor or lack of infrastructural facilities in the Nigerian rural

sector, lack of credit and readily available farm labour constitute major factors constraining economies of scale in food production. Statistics South Africa (2000) reports that farm labour is a major source of employment opportunity for the rural labour force in South Africa. And data evinced that there has been a steady decline of 25.1% in farm labour supply in South Africa since 1996.

According to Ojetunji (2003), Sub-Saharan Africa can be described as a land- surplus rather than a labour-surplus case of development paradigm. The authour further states that, in spite of the absolute labour scarcity (compared to Asia) the level of labour productivity in African agriculture is generally low, operating with simple (traditional and simple machinery) technologies under rain-fed production conditions. The characteristics of the rural areas in Nigeria coupled with the poor-resource base of rural farmers has led to the out-migration of rural people especially the young, energetic and educated men to urban areas where the so-called life-enhancement facilities abound. The implication therefore is that, farming activities are therefore left to the aged people who are not energetic enough to take food production to the level needed.   According to wikipedia.org/wiki/Labour,    the available labour force in Nigerian rural areas comprise mostly of old people to the exclusion of young men and women between the active working age, thus having a negative impact on agricultural productivity. Labour flow is not peculiar to African countries alone, but also to the Caribbean’s and Pacific countries (Francis, Agapi and Xinshen, 2000).

According to Francis, Agapi and Xinshen (2000), since the start of economic reforms in 1978 in China, China has experienced the largest labour flow from primary industries (farming) to other sectors of the economy. As China’s economic development

advances further, migration of rural labour to urban industrialized areas doubled. The size of landholdings in rural China is still small averaging between1-3 hectares per household. As a result, productivity and income per agricultural worker becomes quite low. Large income  differentials  between  agricultural  and  non-agricultural  employment  provide strong incentives for labour to move to the non-agricultural sector (Francis, et al, 2000). This scenario is similar to most rural people in developing countries of Africa including Nigeria.

It is probably due to the dearth of farm labour as a result of exodus of young learned men to the urban centres that led to the multiplicity of labour groups and/organizations by smallholder farmers in Nigeria’s rural sector especially in Kogi State. A group like farmers’ labour group is an assemblage of two or more human beings with common identity who  are  bound together in a  formal relationship, and whose members interact together to satisfy complementary needs (Francis. et al, 2000).

Farmers’ labour group is the association of people who have voluntarily come together to achieve common objectives through the formation of a democratically controlled organization; making equitable contributions to the capital required and accepting a fair share of risks and benefits of the undertaking (World Bank, 1999; Ebony and Jimo, 2002). The need to form farm labour groups by rural farmers to provide needed farm labour is seen as a sure way of ensuring mass food production. According to Odebode and  Arimi  (2008)  the  importance  of  farmers’  labour  groups  or  organizations  in agricultural development of a nation cannot be overemphasized when considering the roles they play in agricultural production. Apart from the ready availability of farm labour, farmers voluntarily come together with the  intent  of pooling their resources together for the accomplishment of farm tasks.

According to Aldrich and Marsden in Giddens (2010), people frequently band together to pursue activities that they could otherwise not readily accomplish by themselves as individuals. A principal means for accomplishing group actions is the formation of group with an identifiable membership that engages in concerted collective actions to achieve a common purpose. Farmers’ labour groups formed by smallholder farmers are examples of farmers’ organizations found in rural areas to provide mainly farm labour to members.  The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD,

2004)  asserts that,  ‘group formation both fosters participation and  enables the  poor themselves to own their own development efforts’, which improves targeting, sustainability, rural economic growth and revitalization.

Smallholder farmers in rural Nigeria face farm labour shortages and the need to find ways of dealing with this problem is therefore necessary for food security.  The World Bank’s Rural Strategy has defined smallholder farmers as those with a low asset base operating less than 2 hectares of cropland. On the basis of this, 85 per cent of the world’s 525 million farms are smallholdings, and three-quarters (3/4) of these are made up of less than 1 hectare of land (World Bank, 2003). The small landholding is attributed to low farm mechanization and paucity of farm labour. Asia accounts for 87 per cent of the world’s small farms, with China alone accounting for half (43.5%), and India accounting for 23 per cent. Farms of less than two hectares make up 95 per cent or more of all farms in Bangladesh, China and Viet Nam. Some 80 per cent of African farms are small-scale. Farms of less than 2 hectares make up 97 per cent of farms in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, 90 per cent  in Egypt  and 87 per cent  in Ethiopia (World Bank, 2003). According to Orebiyi (2004), farms of less than 2 hectares constitute more than 70% of Nigeria’s farms. Farmers’ labour groups in Kogi state usually embark on other enterprising or non-farm activities for the benefit of members. (Edoka, 2011).

Farmers’ labour groups are recently changing from their main role of supplying labour hands to their members to other non-farm activities such as organization of thrift and loans to assist needy members and non-members in cushioning their financial problems,  building  of  houses  for  members,  construction  of  rural  market  stalls, procurement of farm inputs for members and non-members, assisting members during marriage and burial ceremonies among others. This change in roles of farmers’ labour groups is also seen among the Igala and Ebira ethnic groups of kogi state, Nigeria. Sociological approaches to ethnicity place great emphasis on culture. They distinguish human groups primarily according to the distinctiveness of their lifestyles (Haralambos and Holborn, 2008). Ethnic groups like Igala and Ebira often have a common origin respectively, and therefore share common ancestors and common racial characteristics though with some distinctions.

The Igalas and Ebiras are highly “ethnified” as they tend to adopt cultural characteristics which distinguish them as ethnic groups. According to Oxford Dictionary of Sociology (2005), ethnic group or ethnicity is a collection of individuals who consider themselves, or are considered by others to share common characteristics (such as religion, language, occupation, politics etc.) that differentiate them from the other collectivities in a society, and from which they develop their distinctive cultural behaviour. The idea of ethnicity implies that the culture of a group is different from that of another group.

Farmers in these two ethnic groups (Igala and Ebira) differ in certain characteristics. Farm tools used by the Igala ethnic group differ from those used by the Ebira ethnic group: for instance, the Igalas use West African hoes that have wide blades and long wooden handle, while the Ebiras use hoes with very short wooden handle with small blades. The Ebiras also prefer wide cutlasses which they tagged as “202”. The 202 name is derived from the inscription on the metal part of the cutlass. But the Igalas use both flat and curved cutlasses for their farm work. One major distinguishing features of these two ethnic groups as regards to farm operation is the sizes of mounds or heaps they made, it is small in the eastern (Igala ethnic group) and large and tall in the central (Ebira ethnic group).  The bigger mounds in the central area of the state can accommodate 2 to 3 crops such as yam, water yam and cassava. In another development, marrying of several wives is common among Ebira ethnic group probably to have more hands for their farm labour. Another reason for this is that, majority of the Ebiras are Muslim, and Islam permit polygamy.   This is not the case among Igalas, as majority of them are Christians and Christianity does not permit polygamy. Despite these differences, both ethnic groups are highly involved in the formation of farm labour groups to meet their farm labour needs.

In the words of Akande (2002), farmers come together to form farm labour groups or organizations through which they meet their farm and non-farm needs. A given farm labour group may consist of 5-20 farmers working together under mutual trust. Farmers working in group help to promote knowledge sharing, networking, joint problem-solving and peaceful co-existence amongst members.

1.2 Problem Statement

The agricultural sector of Nigeria according to Nnenna (2004) has high potentials for income generation and food security. However, over the years the potentials have not been fully harnessed due to small uneconomic production land units, predominance of traditional techniques of agricultural production, lack of credit facilities, excessive land fragmentation leading to little or no mechanization and most importantly, peasant agriculture which is usually organized around family labour.

Given the low ratio of farm labour to land combined with the rural-urban out- migration, the food economy in Nigeria and Kogi state to be specific is confronted by a generally inelastic agricultural labour supply. Studies have shown that, shortage in farm labour supply results in low farm productivity which eventually culminates in poverty among rural farming communities in  Africa (Gebremedhin and Switon, 2001). Low productivity due to shortage of farm labour during planting seasons in both Igala and Ebira ethnic groups has greatly affected productivity and economies of scale. To cope with farm labour needs, rural farmers in Kogi state tend to form organizations (farm labour groups) in order to solve their farm and off-farm problems. According to Ini, Ubong and Akpan (2002), farmers’ labour groups are formed to enable members achieve through joint efforts what they are unable to achieve singly by themselves. Farmers’ labour groups operate on the basis of a specific set of principles (such as open membership, democratic control, service at cost, promotion of membership interest etc.), and they are seen as groups of persons who have voluntarily joined together to achieve common objectives through the formation of a democratically controlled organization, making equitable contributions to the capital required and accepting a fair share of the risk and benefits of the undertaking.

Farmers in Kogi state, particularly those from Igala and Ebira ethnic groups suffer labour shortages during critical periods of their farm operations. This has led to low productivity recorded over the years in the two ethnic groups. The unavailability of farm labour has been found to have negative impact on planting precision, better weed control,  timely completion of harvesting and  crop  processing (Oluoye,  Adebiyi and Adejumo, 2007). Labour therefore is a major constraint in peasant production especially during early planting, weeding and harvesting (Gocowski and Oduwole, 2003). Francis (2011) reported that lack of adequate farm labour supply could be a barrier to adoption of a more sustainable farming system, especially given the ageing farm operators’ deteriorating  health  through diseases  and  seasonal  nature  of  farming.  This  poses  a problem during peak season.

The need to meet this challenge has called for farmers to form labour groups. The  labour  situation  has  further  pushed  the  farmers  in  Kogi  State  into  a  need  to harmonize efforts to probably solve production problems. Labour used to be one of the cheapest factors of producing food in rural areas. This was when children and the many wives were mobilized to provide the needed labour in the farm. Today children are in their various schools of learning, and polygamy is gradually losing its popularity due to social change that made many individuals to give priority to other social amenities like housing, education among others to make life more meaningful. Educated children in the state (Kogi) migrate to the urban centres for white collar jobs thereby abandoning their parents’ means of livelihood. In view of this, there is the need to replace family labour with hired labour, but the fund to meet this new dimension is also not available. The paucity of farm labour constitute a gap between farm productivity and  farm labour demand, and the formation of farm labour group by farmers therefore assists in closing the gap. Rural farmers in kogi state therefore, decide to come together to form groups which to meet their input and labour demands. How these farmers have been able to meet this challenge call for some questions. How are farmers’ labour groups organized among smallholder farmers? Are the farmers actually benefiting from this arrangement? What are the constraints faced by the farmers in forming farmers’ labour groups?  Are these rural farmers’ labour groups protected by law? What potentials do these farmers’ labour groups have for farmer-to-farmer extension? And how effective are these farmers’ labour groups in carrying out their farm and non-farm operations.

1.3       Purpose of the Study

The purpose of the study was to assess farm labour groups among Igala and Ebira ethnic groups in Kogi State, Nigeria. Specifically, the study was designed to:

1.  describe farm labour groups among the two ethnic groups;

2.  ascertain perceived benefits of farmers’ labour organizations;

3.  find out farmers level of awareness and use of labour laws;

4.  determine group potentials for farmer-to-farmer extension;

5.  assess effectiveness of farm labour groups in carrying out both farm and non-farm operations; and

6.  identify constraints faced by farmers’ labour groups.

1.4  Hypotheses

Ho1: There is no significant difference in the perception of benefits of farmers’ labour groups among Igala and Ebira ethnic groups.

Ho2:  There  is  no  significant  difference  in  the  perception  of  constraints  faced  by farmers’ labour groups among Igala and Ebira ethnic groups, and

Ho3:  There  is  no  significant  association  between  farmers’  labour  group  and  their involvement in farmer-to-farmer extension.

1.5    Significance of the Study

This study will be relevant to farmers and other stakeholders in farm business who may be in short supply of farm labour for their farm operations and productivity. This study will also help policy-makers to come out with clear-cut policies and intervention programmes that will help sustain rural labour groups as a major source of farm labour especially in the rural areas.

The  importance this  study cannot  be  overemphasized as  it  showcases group potentials  for  farmer-to-farmer extension thereby  facilitating  diffusion of  innovation within a given social system. The extension agents can exploit these farmers’ potentials in the cause of popularizing any innovative idea among rural farmers.  The study also portrays the need for group spirit “we –feeling” which a good extension worker can exploit for the attainment of set goals. The donor agencies can also benefit from this study as the quickest way to reach rural people is been spelt out herein.

The study will therefore serve as a baseline for researchers who want to go into farmers’ labour groups or organizations in terms of creating conducive environment for smooth and sustainable farm operations. The study will help administrators in the identification of local leaders whom the extension workers and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) can go through to reach out to their target clientele.  And the study showcases the need for a more bottom-up approach for purposes of involvement of

farmers’ ideas and initiatives. With this, farmers’ interests in policy development and implementation will be taken care of (Royal Tropical Institute, 2006).

₦5,000.00 – DOWNLOAD FULL PROJECT DOWNLOAD FULL PROJECT Added to cart

---

---

---

---

Related Project Topics :