THE CONSTRAINTS TO INCREASED AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION THROUGH AGRICULTURAL COOPERATIVE SOCIETIES (A CASE STUDY OF SELECTED AGRICULTURAL COOPERATIVES IN OWERRI NORTH LGA IMO STATE)

ABSTRACT

The major purpose of this study was to determine the constraints to increased agricultural production through agricultural cooperative societies. Structural questionnaire was constructed to collected primary data for this study. The hypothesis was formula to guide the study while 5% of level of significant was to test the hypothesis.

Finally, it was observed that the farmer’s cooperative in Owerri North were facing so many problems to increase agricultural production, these include: Lack of capital, difficulties in obtaining government facilities, lack of storage facilities, inadequate market outlet and attitude of banks towards agricultural cooperatives etc.       

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

Title page                                                              i

Certification                                                           ii

Dedication                                                             iii

Acknowledgements                                                 iv

Abstract                                                                v

Table of contents                                                    vi

CHAPTER ONE

1.0  Introduction                                                    1

1. General overview of the study                           2
   1. Statement of the problem                                 4
   1. Objective of the study                                      5
   1. Scope of the study                                           6
   1. Research hypothesis                                         7
   1. Significance of the study                                   7
   1. Limitations of the study                                    8
   1. Definition of terms                                           8

CHAPTER TWO

• Review of related literature                               10

2.1  The concept of increased agricultural production  11

• The nature of agricultural cooperatives               12
  • The activities of cooperative societies                 15
  • Problems of agricultural cooperative societies             17  
  • Effects of these problems on increased agricultural production                                                    19
  • Suggested solution to the problems                   20

CHAPTER THREE  

• Research design and methodology                     23
  • Sources of data collection                                 23
  • Methods of data collection                                24
  • Research population                                                24
  • Sample size                                                    25
  • Methods of data analysis                                   25

CHAPTER FOUR

4.0  Data Presentation and analysis                          28  

• Analysis of data                                               37
  • Test of hypothesis                                           39

CHAPTER FIVE

5.0  Summary of Findings, Conclusion and   Recommendations            43

5.1  Summary of findings                                        43

• Conclusion                                                      45
  • Recommendation                                             45

Bibliography                                                 47

Appendix                                                      48  

CHAPTER ONE

1.0  INTRODUCTION

Agricultural cooperative is a system by which farmers or associated agricultural related workers or business men are organized to help members increased their productivity and profit from their business. Agricultural cooperative engage in the production, marketing, processing and distribution of agricultural products. Therefore, all the cooperative societies that operate in the agricultural sector are engaged in these different operations belong to the group of agricultural cooperative.

 In Imo State most inhabitants survive through agriculture and their main occupation is subsistence farming which attracted the interest of many cooperative societies, both the old and new ones. Increasing the agricultural productions was their main target and at the same time lifting the level of it size and qualities. Most of the crop couldn’t grow well in other to product that was several affected were coca yams, vegetables cassava stems, yam tubers, and other root crops.

The constraints to increased agricultural production through cooperative societies Igobo (1996) said. It is now on the government that dependence on the external sources of fund because it has ties their independence to the uncertainties of ridiculed.

1.1  GENERAL OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY

Cooperative movement all over the world has been considered or taken as both means and instrument of development whereby individual as group of people with common socio-economic come together mutually to take and solve their common socio-economic problems. In our country today, sources of statements have been made in the newspapers and how others news media by scholars advocating the use of cooperative societies for the development and increasement of standard of living of the rural people.

In Nigeria, over 60 percent of populations are involved in agriculture. The green revolution as conceived in Nigeria was a cell for an accelerated increase in agricultural production through radial modernization of agriculture by removing all the known constraints to increased production and the provision of needed inputs and agricultural mechanization.

Moreover, many programmes has been introduced by the federal government in support of development agricultural in rural area such as Agricultural Development Project  (ADP), National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA), Directorate of Food, Road and Rural Infrastructure (DFRRI), Better Life Programme (BLP), National Accelerated Food Production (NAFP), Operation Feed the Nation (OFN) etc, Recently, “the Family Support Programme (FSP) was introduce by the Federal Government with the aim of increasing the life of the rural  dwellers through the formation of  Cooperative movement .

Cooperative movement spans through many aspect of our economic life such as production consumption, distribution, thrift saving and the provision of rural infrastructures.