Fish Farmers’ Perception of Extension Agents and Constraints to Extension Service Delivery in Oredo Local Government Area, Edo State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study was conducted to examine fish farmers' perception of extension agents and identify constraints to extension service delivery in Oredo Local Government Area, Edo state, Nigeria. Specifically, it described the socio-economic characteristics of fish farmers, examined fish farmers' perception of extension agents in the area of information dissemination, identified the constraints of extension delivery to the respondents, and determined the relationship between socio-economic characteristics and constraints to extension service delivery. The study was carried out in Oredo Local Government Area of Edo state. A multistage sampling procedure was used for the study. In the first stage, purposive sampling was used in selecting six (6) communities within Oredo Local Government Area where fish farming is dominant. Twenty (20) fish farmers from each village were randomly selected from a list of farmers in each village obtained from the Edo State Agricultural Development Programme (ADP). This gave a total sample size of one hundred and twenty (120) fish farmers. The farmers selected were then interviewed using structured questionnaires. Primary data were obtained through the use of a structured questionnaire while secondary data were obtained from already existing articles, journals and proceedings from the internet. Data was analysed using frequency counts, percentages, mean score and Chi-square was used to find out if fish farmers' socio-economic characteristics were linearly correlated with constraints to extension service delivery. The results showed that 28.6% of the total respondents of the study were between the ages of 41 and 50 years, 52.9% were male, 53.8% were married, 67.8% were Christians, only 11.8% of the respondents have no formal education as majority even have tertiary education, 82.5% have a farm size of between 0-0.5 hectares, 63.2% have 3 ponds in their farm, 57.1% have 4 to 6 years farming experience, 37.6% made an average of ₦51,000 - ₦100,000 monthly and 76.8% sometimes come in contact with extension agents. Regarding farmers' perception of extension agents, 45.5% perceived patience as the most important attribute in the area of information dissemination, followed by technical knowledge and competence (42.0%), and good communication skills (38.7%). On constraints to extension service delivery, 62.2% identified inadequate trained extension staff as the major constraint, followed by inadequate mobility and transportation for extension agents (58.0%), lack of regular in-service training for extension agents (54.6%), and insufficient extension teaching materials and aids (51.3%). It was concluded that there is no significant relationship between socio-economic characteristics and constraints to extension service delivery. This implies that the constraints identified are systemic and structural in nature, affecting all categories of fish farmers regardless of their socio-economic characteristics. It was therefore recommended that the mobility of extension agents must be adequately enhanced for effective coverage, and they should also be updated through in-service training on any new technology for quick dissemination. Additionally, government and extension organizations should prioritize the recruitment and training of more extension personnel to address the critical shortage of trained extension staff. Extension agent training programs should emphasize the development of interpersonal skills, particularly patience and effective communication, which farmers identified as highly valued attributes.

Keywords: Fish farming, Extension agents, Farmers' perception, Extension constraints, Extension service delivery, Oredo Local Government Area