Assessment of factors influencing the adoption of improved tomato production technologies among smallholder farmers in Jigawa and Kano States, Nigeria

Abstract

The study examined the determinant factors of adoption of National Horticultural Research Institute-NIHORT’s improved tomato production technologies among smallholder farmers in Kano and Jigawa state, Nigeria. A multistage sampling procedure was used in selecting 499 respondents for the study. Data were collected using questionnaire and analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistical tools. The mean age of the respondents is 36 years, household size of 12 persons, farming experience of 11 years, farm size of 1.14 hectares. Main occupation is farming (66.9%). Majority (75.2%) are males, married (69.2%) with either primary, secondary or tertiary education (65.7%) and are members of association (70.7%). Majority (59.7%) agreed that they very much adopted the NIHORT’s improved tomato production technologies. Perceived benefits of the NIHORT’s improved tomato production technologies increased income (95.6%). Factors of adoption of the NIHORT’s improved tomato production technologies are age (-3.782, p=0.001), farming experience (1.923, p=0.000), tomato production experience (-2.286, p=0.000), gender (-178,083, p=0.003), farm size (24,738, p=0.003), income (0.000, p=0.000), household size (26,078, p=0.014) and yield (11,398, p=0.000). The constraints to adoption of NIHORT’s improved tomato production technologies are glut period (73.3%), pest and diseases (57.9%) and inaccessibility of credits (45.7%) amongst others. It was concluded that the NIHORT’s improved tomato production technologies were very much adopted and recommended that all the positive determinants of adoption of NIHORT’s improved tomato production technologies be enhanced as well as the constraints to adopting the technologies among respondents in the study area.