CONTRIBUTION OF PERI-URBAN FORESTS TO NEIGHBOURHOOD LIVELIHOODS IN ABEOKUTA, OGUN STATE, NIGERIA

The study examined the contribution of peri-urban forest to neighbourhood livelihoods in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria. Stratified sampling technique was adopted for the study. Four strata represent-ing different communities were selected; Ajegule, Ibode Olude, Ilugun Titun and Mawuko. From each stratum, twenty five respondents were randomly selected with a total of 100 respondents from the neighbourhood. Questionnaire was used as the instrument of data collection. The result showed that poverty line was N8,871.41 monthly and 41% of the respondents were categorised as poor (Poverty incidence). Household assets acquisition as poverty indicator showed that majority of the respondents could not afford luxury items such as cars (89%), generators (71%) and electric cookers (99%). Liveli-hood activities identified in peri-urban forest with respondents distribution were firewood collection 24%, wages 24%, snail gathering 7%, medicinal leaves collection 5%, hunting 8%, teak leaves collec-tion 21% and geological materials extraction 11%. The earnings and income shares by source indi-cated that forest contributed 17% of total income in Ajegunle, 15% in Ibode Olude, 18% in Ilugun Titun and 15% in Mawuko. This showed the contribution of peri-urban forest to welfare of the respondents in the neighbourhood. Consequently, it is recommended that conservation efforts must increase through forest policy for peri-urban forests coupled with adult literacy for adequate education to reduce de-pendence on forests in peri-urban areas to enable the forest impact positively through eco-services on the lives of residents in the locality