Impact of cooperative membership on farmers’ uptake of technological innovations in Southwest Nigeria

© 2014 The Author(s). Published by Routledge. The underutilization of agriculture in Nigeria with attendant low yield per hectare is generally attributed to lack of innovation to cope with the challenges of climate change and land degradation. In this study, using information from 326 farmers in Southwest Nigeria, we examined the relative impact of cooperative membership compared with the effects of other socioeconomic factors on farmers’ adoption of technological innovations. Cooperative membership has a high impact compared to other socioeconomic factors such as land access, gender, and educational status. It is recommended that intervention programs in the agricultural sector should focus more attention on strengthening and expanding farmers’ cooperatives for better diffusion and use intensity of innovations and better linking social capital with extension agencies, banks, markets, and agricultural value chains

Venturing under fire: entrepreneurship education, venture creation and poverty reduction in conflict-ridden Maiduguri, Nigeria

Purpose: This paper examines how a new entrepreneurship education intervention offered at conflict-ridden Maiduguri, Nigeria is having transformative impacts through new venture creation and poverty reduction. Design/methodology/approach: The paper adopts a single case study approach, drawing from in-depth interviews of participants, experts and facilitators of the entrepreneurship training, in addition to relevant memos and documents. Findings: The findings indicate that the entrepreneurship education programme is, by generating awareness and facilitating skill development, contributing to new venture creation, poverty reduction and positive change in mindset. However, the impact is limited by inadequate support through venture capital and limited facilities for business incubation. Limitations: This study is limited in its focus on entrepreneurship education provided for university undergraduates and graduates. Further research should explore interventions aimed at less educated youth in the region, and in other conflict contexts. Practical implications: The study suggests that entrepreneurship education facilitates youth empowerment through venture creation, in the process transforming them from aggrieved outsiders to active stakeholders in societal peace and national prosperity. Originality/value: The nascent theory of transformative entrepreneuring identifies poverty reduction and conflict resolution as the main mechanisms. This paper focuses on how entrepreneurship education triggers new venture creation, which in turn contributes to poverty reduction and overall change in mindset of otherwise unemployed and aggrieved youths

Universal basic education in Nigeria: can non-state actors make a difference?

© 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited. Purpose: Against the backdrop of falling standards and failing government policies in the education sector in Nigeria, this paper aimed to investigate how and why non-state actors can make a significant impact on the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals for universal basic education (UBE). Design/methodology/approach: This study draws from semi-structured interviews of 15 heads and proprietors – six state-funded schools, six faith schools and three other privately owned schools – to examine and compare the different motivations, guiding principles and overall impact of these actors in the education sector. Findings: Religious actors, along with private providers, are making a significant contribution to the provision of basic education in Nigeria. Students from faith schools tend to perform better academically and they also tend to be more disciplined and resourceful. However, because these schools are fee-paying, fewer households are able to access them. Practical implications: The findings highlight the need to facilitate better cooperation and knowledge transfer activities between public, private and faith schools. It also emphasises the need for better government commitment and investment in provision of resources and facilities, effort in regulating the curriculum and regular inspection and quality monitoring of public schools. Originality/value: The study highlights, on the one hand, the superior capacity of non-state actors – especially religious actors – to deploy their vast social capital towards the mobilisation of funds and human resources. On the other hand, while they have made inroads in their share of total national school enrolment, non-state actors have not made significant impact on access to quality education, owing to high fees and entry barriers faced by poorer households

Diabetic ketoacidosis with pneumomediastinum: a case report

An 18-year-old male with type 1 diabetes mellitus presented to the emergency department after one day of lethargy and vomiting. Physical examination revealed a dehydrated male with tachycardia and Kussmaul’s respiration. There was subcutaneous emphysema in both supraclavicular regions. Chest auscultation revealed a positive Hamman’s sign. Laboratory investigation was significant for metabolic acidosis with venous blood pH 7.08. Plasma glucose was 1438 mg/dl; ketones were present in the urine. Chest X-ray showed subcutaneous emphysema and pneumomediastinum, which resolved spontaneously within 72 hours of initiation of treatment for diabetic ketoacidosis

Farmers' mobilisation of social capital for beneficial uptake of technological innovations in southwest Nigeria

Copyright © 2014 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd. Social capital has been identified as an important factor influencing successful uptake of technological innovations among small-scale, rural farmers in developing countries. This study draws on descriptive statistics and regression analysis of data obtained from 325 farmers in southwest Nigeria to examine the effectiveness of social capital mobilised by rural farmers. The results indicate farmers' cooperatives are, because of their stronger organisational capacity and formal structure, able to generate more effective social capital for information sharing and linking up with important external organisations providing technical and financial support for successful adoption of innovations

Impact of cooperative membership on farmers’ uptake of technological innovations in Southwest Nigeria

© 2014 The Author(s). Published by Routledge. The underutilization of agriculture in Nigeria with attendant low yield per hectare is generally attributed to lack of innovation to cope with the challenges of climate change and land degradation. In this study, using information from 326 farmers in Southwest Nigeria, we examined the relative impact of cooperative membership compared with the effects of other socioeconomic factors on farmers’ adoption of technological innovations. Cooperative membership has a high impact compared to other socioeconomic factors such as land access, gender, and educational status. It is recommended that intervention programs in the agricultural sector should focus more attention on strengthening and expanding farmers’ cooperatives for better diffusion and use intensity of innovations and better linking social capital with extension agencies, banks, markets, and agricultural value chains

Is women empowerment a zero-sum game? Unintended consequences of Microfinance for women empowerment in Ghana

Purpose: Against the background of growing concerns that development interventions can sometimes be a zero sum game, the purpose of this paper is to examine the unintended consequences of microfinance for women empowerment in Ghana. Design/methodology/approach. The study employs a participatory mixed-method approach including household questionnaire surveys, focus group discussions and key informant interviews to investigate the dynamics of microfinance effects on women in communities of different vulnerability status in Ghana. Findings: The results of hierarchical regression, triadic closure and thematic analyses demonstrate that the economic benefits of microfinance for women is also directly associated with conflicts amongst spouses, girl child labour, polygyny and the neglect of perceived female domestic responsibilities due to women’s devotion to their enterprises. Originality/value. In the light of limited empirical evidence on potentially negative impacts of women empowerment interventions in Africa, this paper fills a critical gap in knowledge that will enable NGOs, policy makers and other stakeholders to design and implement more effective interventions that mitigate undesirable consequences

Institutional barriers to successful innovations: Perceptions of rural farmers and key stakeholders in southwest Nigeria

Diffusion studies in sub-Saharan Africa have typically focused on the impact of traditional adoption factors on uptake of technological innovations. This study draws on semi-structured interviews of rural farmers and in-depth interviews of stakeholders in southwest Nigeria to examine the impact of institutional factors on the success of technological innovations. The findings indicate that government policies, markets, financial institutions, infrastructure and other institutional conditions play significant role on the success of technological innovations. A successful innovation package should integrate institutional reforms with promotion of innovative inputs, and vibrant farmers’ cooperatives can be at the heart of such agrarian reform. This is the accepted manuscript of an article whose final and definitive form has been published in African Journal of Science, Technology, Innovation and Development 2014, 6(4) © 2014. Institutional barriers to successful innovations: Perceptions of rural farmers and key stakeholders in southwest Nigeria is available online at: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/20421338.2014.96603

Technological constraints to firm performance: the moderating effects of firm linkages and cooperation

Manufacturing and services SMEs in Africa face challenges and constraints exacerbated by ineffectual government policies, environmental turbulence and the near-absence of institutional support. This study investigates if informal linkages and formal cooperation are helping firms to overcome constraints to uptake of technological innovations in Nigeria. The paper is based on quantitative data obtained from structured interviews of 631 Nigerian firms. These firms were selected using stratified random sampling from a total population of 18,906 manufacturing and services companies in the national database obtained from the National Bureau of Statistics. The result of the binary logistic regression indicates that, while informal linkages appear to be insignificant, formal inter-firm cooperation is an effective moderator of barriers to technological innovations. The paper focuses only on technological, rather than non-technological, innovations. The paper recommends that, in addition to other interventions to promote diffusion of technological innovations, governments should give priority to interventions that support formal cooperation among SMEs. Previously studies have generally looked at the impact of cooperative networks on firms' innovation uptake. This paper provides original insights into the "how" of cooperative impact, specifically with respect to helping SMEs to overcome constraints. The paper also delineates formal cooperation from informal linkage

Youth Empowerment for Sustainable Development: The Role of Entrepreneurship Education for Out-of-School Youth

Nigeria has one of the poorest sets of national development indices in the world and it is widely believed that the underdevelopment of human capacity is a major factor contributing to Nigeria’s underdevelopment. Demographic segregation of the Nigerian population indicates that youths form the largest segment of the population. Hence, developmental efforts must target and/or capture the youthful population to have tangible and meaningful impact. The term youth empowerment is broadly employed to explain efforts aimed at providing coping skills and an enabling environment for youths to lead decent lives and contribute meaningfully to national development. An emerging trend in youth empowerment in Nigeria is entrepreneurship education. Entrepreneurship education assumed importance against the background of poverty, widespread unemployment and the need to shift the attention of the citizenry away from white collar jobs and government patronage. This study highlights the importance of youth empowerment towards attaining sustainable development of the Nigerian nation. It examines the place of entrepreneurship education in the empowerment of youths, and attempts to identify missing links in the execution of entrepreneurship education initiatives in Nigeria. The researchers segregated the youthful population into two categories; in-school and out-of-school youths. Using literature study and unstructured observation, the researchers appraised the relative spread and intensity of entrepreneurship education initiatives (especially government-facilitated entrepreneurship education) amongst both groups. While entrepreneurship education initiatives targeted at in-school youth are easily noticeable nationwide, the same cannot be said about out-of-school youth. Meanwhile, based on national literacy, school enrolment, and tertiary institution matriculation examination/admission records, it can be inferred that out-of-school youths in Nigeria far outnumber in-school youths. The authors therefore recommend specific and deliberate nationwide efforts to impart entrepreneurial skills to out-of-school youths as a means to empowering them to contribute to sustainable development of the Nigerian nation and society. Such initiatives could have as primary targets, drop-outs from secondary schools, and young people who cannot proceed to higher institutions after their secondary education. Key Words: Entrepreneurship, in-school youth, out-of-school youth, national developmen