Assessment of an electronic wallet system and determinants of cassava farmers’ participation in off-farm activities in Abuja, Nigeria

Abstract

This study assessed an electronic wallet (e-wallet) system and determinants of cassava farmers? participation in off-farm activities in Abuja, Nigeria. A sample of 67 cassava farmers was selected through a multi-stage sampling technique from six selected agricultural extension blocks. Primary data were used. Data were collected using a well-structured and well-designed questionnaire. The analytical tools used were descriptive statistics and maximum likelihood estimates using the logistic regression model. The results indicated that an electronic-wallet is an innovative, motivational mobile phone technology, the first in sub-Saharan Africa to distribute mobile phones to farmers which bring fertilizers, improved seeds, financial services, and agricultural information tips to farmers, and this increases yields and output. The electronic wallet system targeted 20 million farmers with an intention to distribute 10 million mobile phones to farmers in 4 years. In 2014, 1,000 agro-dealers and fourteen million five hundred farmers were registered on the electronic wallet system respectively. Also, one million two hundred farmers have also received inputs via the electronic-wallet system. The electronic-wallet system added an estimated 30-40 billion dollars to Nigeria?s Gross Domestic Product in 2014. Furthermore, the result shows that the age of most sampled cassava farmers fell between 36 and 50 years. About 94% of sampled cassava farmers were male. Off-farm income has the potential to improve the income of farmers. These types of activities undertaken by cassava farmers off the farms include: teaching, tailoring, hunting, pottery, blacksmithing, petty trading, etc. Farmers? age, farming experience and number of off-farm activities were significant variables influencing farmers? participation in off-farm activities at P ? 0.01; P ? 0.10; and P ? 0.01 respectively. The coefficient of Nagelkerke (R2) value was 0.751.This shows that the explanatory variables explain the level of participation of cassava farmers in off-farm activities at 75% level of confidence. The coefficient of Cox and Snell determinant (R2) value was 0.547. Off-farm employment is an alternative strategy and has potentials to improve the income and well-being of farmers. The study recommends that government and nongovernment organizations should introduce innovations, motivations, interventions, policies that improve crop production and support the off-farm sector in order to create job opportunities so that poor households can participate and benefit directly.