Livelihood Diversification among Rural Farmworker Households in Edo State, Nigeria

Abstract

The study examined livelihood diversification among rural farmworker households in Edo State. Ninety-six respondents provided data through the questionnaires which were analysed using percentages, the mean, chi-square, and the Cochran test. A sizable portion of respondents (24.0%) fell between the ages of 24 and 35, with a mean age of 50, and were predominately male (83.3%). Farming (100.0%) and small-scale commerce (78.0%) predominate among the livelihood possibilities for farmworker households, with a high percentage having a senior secondary school diploma (48.0%t). Lack of access to credit was the biggest obstacle to diversifying sources of income ( = 83.0). Rural farmworker households diversified their sources of income. The findings advocate for the involvement of relevant organisations in facilitating credit and loan facilities for smallholder farmworkers to boost their output and income, which may impact their degree of diversification and raise their standard of living.

Keywords

• diversification
• food security