Challenges associated with livestock extension practice in agropastoral Fulani settlement areas of Ogun State, Nigeria.

Résumé

The study assessed the challenges associated with sustainable provision of livestock extension service in selected agropastoral fulani settlements in the state. The data for the study were collected with the aid of structured questionnaire, and analysed with descriptive statistics, Chi Square and Pearson Product Moment Correlation coefficient. The result from the study revealed that the challenges of livestock extension practice in agropastoral settlements are; lack of incentives to work in agropastoral areas and poor road networks perceived by (61.4%) and (54.47%) of the extension service providers respectively. The transhumance lifestyle of some of the households was perceived by (50.95%) of the extension service providers as a major challenge to livestock extension service provision in these areas. Pearson Product Moment Correlation analysis showed that, the challenges of livestock extension service were significantly related to the working experience of the extension staff (p< 0.05). Chi square analysis result also shows a significant relationship between the challenges of livestock extension practice in agropastoral settlements and the area of specialisation and language competency of the extension staff. It was therefore concluded that, the traditional organizational structure of extension services may be inappropriate for working in pastoral areas. The study recommended that, to reduce these challenges, extension staff from pastoral backgrounds, which are based in pastoral communities, could be recruited and trained for specialised livestock extension services to the agropastoral settlements.