World Bank assisted National Agricultural Research Project (NARP) - University of Port Harcourt
Abstract
There is a growing interest to understand the role of tree nursery
enterprises in Nigeria and the horn of Africa. Tree nursery
enterprises, which are vital economic activities in major cities of
Nigeria and particularly in the city of Lagos are not adequately
studied and well documented. Therefore, this study seeks to fill a gap
in understanding the socioeconomic importance and profitability
potential of tree nursery enterprises. Multistage sampling technique
with a 3-stage design was adopted in this study using aquantitative
data collection techniques through the use of structured questionnaire
administered to 120 nursery entrepreneurs. Data were analyzed using
descriptive, inferential, and budgetary analysis. The result revealed
that tree nursery entrepreneurs are literate, mostly male in their
youthful age. Furthermore, the total annual revenue earned by the
respondents was \u20a61,712,222.22 with a mean annual net income of
\u20a61,458,038.72 while the return per naira invested was
\u20a65.71. This shows that tree nursery enterprise is profitable in
the study area. However, most entrepreneurs were faced with shortage of
land for establishments of tree nursery in the study area. Therefore,
appropriate actions in reducing cost of land lease/purchase are
recommended to encourage new entrepreneurs and strengthen the
sector\u2019s development