IIARD International Institute of Academic Research and Development

International Journal of Agriculture and Earth Science (IJAES )

E- ISSN 2489-0081
P- ISSN 2695-1894
VOL. 11 NO. 2 2025
DOI: 10.56201/ijaes.vol.11.no2.2025.pg72.82

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Youth Empowerment Through Cassava Production and Farming Enterprise: A Study of Benue, Kogi and Plateau States of Nigeria

Blessing Iveren Nomor PhD

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Abstract

The study investigated youth empowerment through cassava production and farming enterprise: empirical studies from Benue, Kogi and Plateau states of Nigeria. The study adopted the cross sectional survey research design. A sample of 1200 youths who engage in cassava farming was employed. A 15-item questionnaire with a 5-point Likert Scale type instrument titled Youth Empowerment and Cassava Farming Rating Scale (YECFRS) was used for data collection. The instrument was validated and the reliability was calculated using Cronbach Alpha Method. The reliability coefficient was calculated to be 0.78. Three research questions were raised and answered while two hypotheses were formulated and tested at 0,05 level of significance. Data analysis was achieved using mean and standard deviation to answer the research questions while correlation statistics was employed in testing the hypotheses. The finding revealed that There is no significant relationship between participation in cassava farming and youth empowerment. (r=0.000, at P = 0.00<0.05) There is significant relationship between participation in cassava farming and sustainable development. (r=0.021, at P = 0.00<0.05). The study recommends among others that Stakeholders in agriculture should encourage cassava farming and subsidize farm inputs which could assist in meeting the market demands and providing the youths with the set of competencies needed for global challenges.

keywords:

Youth, Empowerment, Cassava farming and Sustainable Development

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