This paper determines the degree or extent of farmer’s risk aversion that affects sustainable maize production in Northern Nigeria. Using a ridge regression analysis, a measure of risk aversion was derived for each individual farmer in a model of safety-first behaviour from a cross-sectional...

The paper intends to take stock of the situation in the agricultural sector of Rwanda. The main purpose is to identify the gaps in the efforts so far; and subsequently to consider new policy interventions that are needed to achieve the goal of eliminating the ‘Fear of Want’. The sector’s...

Financing smallholder farming has been one of the major concerns of Kenya’s development efforts. Many credit programs have evolved over the years but with dismal performance. In a study that sought to find the best way to fund smallholder agriculture, it became necessary to analyze and...

Pests and diseases caused by bacteria, nematodes, fungi and viruses cause significant losses to tomato in West Africa. This study, carried-out within the framework of the IPM-CRSP implemented jointly by IITA, IER and Virginia Tech. and State University, assesses farmers’ perceptions on tomato...

Although microfinance has elicited different reactions from different stakeholders, there seems to be a general agreement that it is useful in reducing poverty. This study is an attempt to contribute in to the debate on the impact of microfinance on household incomes. We use a pooled data set...

The exacerbated spate of poverty and youth unemployment in Africa is greatly disturbing. While agriculture portends prospect for employment creation and poverty reduction, interest towards optimizing the benefits appears grossly divided. Subsequently, the critical mass, in terms of commitment...

In poor countries the agricultural sector is essential to growth, poverty reduction, and food security. In Sub- Saharan Africa, the agricultural sector employs 65 percent of the labor force and generates 32 per cent of GDP growth (Christian Friis Bach and all, 2008).More than half of rural...

Applying the general question of aid effectiveness to the sector of education, this paper reveals an overall positive effect of development assistance on primary enrolment. However, even the most optimistic estimates clearly show that at any realistic rate of growth, aid will never be able to...

Despite various approaches addressing the challenges of food insecurity in Nigeria, the country is still characterized by chronic food shortages particularly in the rural areas. This is an indication that the problem of food insecurity has not been adequately and critically analyzed. This study...