Analysis of University Students’ Perception on Agricultural Entrepreneurship Option Towards Tackling Unemployment Among Educated Youths

Yıl 2017, Cilt: 34 Sayı: 3, 172 - 181, 29.12.2017

Kemi Funmilayo Omotesho Oluwafemi Peter Olabanjı Debora Adedoyin Olabode Israel Ogunlade

https://doi.org/10.13002/jafag4324

Öz

Despite the scourge of unemployment among university graduates in Nigeria and the potentials of agriculture in employment generation, there is low participation of educated Nigerian youths in the agricultural sector. This study analysed the factors associated with undergraduate students’ perception on self-employment through agricultural enterprises. A multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select three hundred and seventy-two respondents. Data for the study was obtained with a well-structured questionnaire. Precision counts, frequencies, percentages, and the Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation were used for data analysis. The results reveal a high (68 %) negative perception on agricultural entrepreneurship. This perception was significantly related to the respondents’ sex (0.638), parents’ occupation (0.738), home background (0.737), sources of agricultural information (0.439), and prior interest in agriculture (-0.917) at p<0.05. Poultry (84.7 %) and fish farming (79.6 %) were the most preferred agricultural ventures among the respondents. Access to start-up capital and availability of ready markets for produce was identified as major motivational factors for the engagement of educated youths in Agriculture. The study concluded that educated youths had a negative perception of self-employment in agricultural ventures but could be motivated towards same. It also put forward, some recommendations towards enhancing self-employment in agriculture among youths.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Agricultural entrepreneurship, perception, self-employment, youth, unemployment

Kaynakça

• Abdullah, A.A., and Sulaiman, N.N. (2013). Factors that influence the interest of youths in agricultural entrepreneurship. International Journal of Business and Social Science 4(3): 288-302
• Amadi, P. N. U. (2012). Agricultural Entrepreneurship Development for Youth Empowerment in Nigeria: Constraints and Initiatives for Improvement. Journal of Educational and Social Research. 2 (10).
• Bahaman, A.S., Jeffery, L.S., Hayrol-Azril, M.S. and Jegak, U. (2010). Acceptance, attitude, and knowledge towards agriculture economic activity between rural and urban youth: The case of contract farming. Applied Science. 10(19): 2310-2315
• Fajana, S. (2000). Functioning of the Nigerian Labour Market, Labonfin and Company, Lagos.
• Federal Government of Nigeria (2001), National Youth Development Policy
• International Labour Office (2006), Stimulating youth entrepreneurship: Barriers and Incentives to enterprise start-ups by young people. SEED working paper 76: 1-117
• Iwala, O. S. (2006), Assessment of Youth in agriculture of Ondo State: Describility and effectiveness in Onibi, G. E., and Akinbuluno, M. O. (Eds) 2006, Proceedings of 2nd Annual Conference in Agricultural Research for Development in Nigeria and Agricultural Technology. Federal University of Technology, Akure Pp 223-231
• Manpower Group (2012) youth unemployment, challenges and solutions. Retrieved 02/05/2017 from http://www.3weforum.org/docs/Manpower_YouthEmplomentChallengeSolution
• Matanmi, B.M., and Olabanji, P.O. (2013), Attitude of programme presenters towards broadcasting of agricultural programmes on Electronic media in Kwara state, Nigeria. Journal of Agricultural Research and Development.12(2).
• Muhammad-Lawal, A., Omotesho, O. A., and Falola, A. (2009). Technical efficiency of youth participation in agriculture: A case study of the youth - in -agriculture programme in Ondo State, south western Nigeria. Nigerian Journal of Agriculture, Food and Environment 5(1):20-26.
• Muthee, M., (2010), Hitting the Target, Missing the Point: Youth Policies and Programmes in Kenya. Woodrow Wilson International Centre for Scholars, Washington DC. National Poverty Eradication Plan (1999-2015). Government of Kenya. Government Printers.
• Mwiria, K. (2005). Vocationalisation of Secondary Education. Nairobi- Kenya: Kenya Literature Bureau Press.
• National Bureau of Statistics, (2012) Labour Force Statistics No. 476. Abuja: The NBS Publication. Retrieved from http://www.nigerianstat.gov.ng
• National Bureau of Statistics, (2016) unemployment Statistics No. 476. Abuja: The NBS Publication. Retrieved from http://www.nigerianstat.gov.ng
• National Population Commission, NPC (2013). Nigeria’s Unemployment rate rises to 23.9% -NPC, Punch Newspaper, October 13, 2013.
• Nnadi F.N. and C.D. Akwiwu (2008), “Determinants of Youths’ Participation in Rural Agriculture in Imo State, Nigeria”, Journal of Applied Sciences, 8:328-333.
• Oyekale, T. O. (2011), Impact of poverty reduction programs on multidimensional poverty in rural Nigeria. Journal of Sustainable Development in Africa, 13 (6): 1-11.
• Patterson, N., Okafor, O., Williams, D. (2006). Globalization and employment generation: Evaluating the impact of trade on Aggregate employment in Nigeria’s I Industrial Sector” NES 2006 Annual Conference Nigeria.
• Sum, A., Fogg, N., and Mangum, G. (2002). Confronting the youth demographic challenge: The labour market prospects of out-of-school young adults, Sar, Levitan for social policy studies, John Hopkins University, Baltimore.