THE CURRENT STATE OF FARM MACHINERY UTILIZATION AND MECHANIZATION IN TARABA STATE

Abstract

The imbalance between food demand and domestic production requires improvement and this can be done with the availability of and utilization of farm machinery for carrying out farm operations to enhance large scale production. This study investigated the level and extent to which farmers in Taraba State have delved into the use of modern farm implement to achieved crop production. The study employed a quantitative research design to examine the effects of farm mechanization on productivity and rural livelihoods. The population comprised farmers engaged in crop production, ranging from smallholders to larger commercial operators. Stratified random sampling was used to select 1680 respondents across Taraba state. The state was divided in 168 strata based on the 168 wards in the state. Structured questionnaires were designed and administered to respondents and were later retrieved.  Random sampling was used to select 10 farmers from each ward which sums up to 1680 copies of questionnaire distributed across the state. However, only 1570 questionnaires were retrieved and analyzed. The data collected was based on 1, socioeconomic characteristics: Age, gender, education, and house hold size; 2, Mechanization levels: usage of machinery; and, 3, Farm productivity indicators: Farm size, crop diversity, and input use intensity. 4, rural livelihood indicators: Income, employment opportunities, and household well-being. Both descriptive and inferential statistical methods were used to analyze the data and Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 26 was used. Descriptive Statistics include Frequencies and percentages summarize the variables. Inferential Statistics: Multiple linear regressions was used to determine the impact of access to credit, availability of machinery, aff1ordability, technical skills, government policies, and environmental sustainability on mechanization levels. Pearson correlation analysis evaluated the relationship between mechanization levels and productivity indicators. The findings generally revealed that a very small percentage of farmers, amounting 6.06% have access to farm power and machinery owing to multiplicity of factors ranging from economic, government policy, technical skills and so on, and infract, only 11.4% machinery are available to farmers