Overcoming the challenges of value chain development of some selected crops for poverty reduction in Nigeria: the entrepreneurial dimension by Zaman, Ezekiel Y., Abdul, J. M., Otiwa, Godwin, Odey, Bernard O., , Adaaja, Blessing O & Raji, Umar. E , Scientific Research Journal (Scirj), Volume VII, Issue I, January 2019 Edition

Scirj Volume VII, Issue I, January 2019 Edition
ISSN: 2201-2796

Overcoming the challenges of value chain development of some selected crops for poverty reduction in Nigeria: the entrepreneurial dimension

Zaman, Ezekiel Y., Abdul, J. M., Otiwa, Godwin, Odey, Bernard O., , Adaaja, Blessing O & Raji, Umar. E

Abstract: The agricultural sector has been an engine of growth for the Nigerian economy with the crop sub-sector playing a dominant role, accounting for 90 percent of the sectoral output. But this seemingly substantial contribution is inadequate when juxtaposed alongside the potential of the sub-sector. In specific terms, of the 82 million hectares of arable land in Nigeria, only 34 million hectares are under cultivation with about 80 percent of the population employed in agriculture. The country’s poverty rate is high (36.19 percent, as at 2013) which is largely accounted for by those in the rural areas and employed in agriculture. The annual food import bill has been high ($4.2 billion), due to the short-fall between demand and supply of agricultural products, and is largely attributed to the low development of the value chains of crops. Equally, a large percentage of farmers in the country practice subsistence farming with little or no business approach in their production. This paper reviewed the challenges in the value chain development (such as poor or absent infrastructure, unsupportive laws and regulations, social barriers, inadequate financial support, poor access to information, market-related risk, and low bargaining power) of five selected crops: rice, wheat, maize, soybean and tomatoes, and suggested how they can be surmounted through enhancing the entrepreneurial capacity of farmers in the country for self-sufficiency in food production and extreme poverty eradication.

Reference this Paper: Overcoming the challenges of value chain development of some selected crops for poverty reduction in Nigeria: the entrepreneurial dimension by Zaman, Ezekiel Y., Abdul, J. M., Otiwa, Godwin, Odey, Bernard O., , Adaaja, Blessing O & Raji, Umar. E published at: "Scientific Research Journal (Scirj), Volume VII, Issue I, January 2019 Edition, Page 93-99 ".

Search Terms: Challenges, Entrepreneurship, Extreme poverty, Value-chain

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