Determinants of Productivity among Farmers in Ondo State of Nigeria

This study examined the determinants of cocoa productivity in Ondo State of Nigeria. Primary data were used and collected by using semi-structured questionnaires administered to 140 respondents who were farmers from three selected local government areas which constituted the sampling blocks of the multistage random sampling technique. The methods of data analysis employed were both descriptive and inferential. Determinants of productivity were analyzed using Ordinary Least Square (OLS) method to estimate the parameters of estimates of the variables thereby giving the relationship between the output and the explanatory variables. The results of the study showed that cocoa production was in stage II of production in the study area with return to scale (RTS) of 0.956. The RTS is decreasing in nature being less than unity but positive. This showed that cocoa production in the study area is productive with rooms for improvement on the side of farmers by using efficient techniques that can enhance their productivity. The variables such as farm size, quantities of fungicides and fertilizers, age of farmer and farming experience are positively related to cocoa output while other variables insecticides, labour, age of farm (age of cocoa trees), family size and educational status (years spent in school) are negatively related to cocoa output. Of these variables, quantity of fertilizer used, labour and educational status of the farmers were statistically significant at 5% meaning they are the major determinants of cocoa productivity in the study area while other variables are statistically insignificant at any level.