ADOPTION OF GROUNDNUT SHELL TECHNOLOGY ON THE IMPROVEMENT OF SOIL FERTILITY AMONG FARMERS IN ASKIRA LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF BORNO STATE.

ABSTRACT The study is to assess the adoption of groundnut shell technology on the improvement of soil fertility among farmers in Askira Local Government Area of Borno State. The specific objectives used for the study were: demographic information of the respondents in the study area, assess the practices of groundnut shell technology on the improvement of soil fertility, assess the impact of groundnut shell technology on improvement of soil fertility, find out the level of adoption of the groundnut shell technology among the farmers, and to identify the constraints to the adoption of groundnut shell technology on improvement of soil fertility in the study area. The sources of data used for this study were obtained from both primary and secondary sources. The primary data was collected through the use of structured questionnaires administered to the farmers and through oral interviews. The population used for this study were 90 farmers engaged in agricultural activities in Askira Local Government Area. Multi-stage random procedure was used to select the samples. Multi-stage sampling techniques was used in the selection of wards and villages. The analytical tools used for this study includes descriptive statistics such as frequency distribution and percentages. The results of the findings indicate that majority (43.3%) of the farmers had an average age of between 46–55 years, and most of the farmers were females (56.7%). The result states that majority (70%) of farmers were married men and women, and most (41.1%) had secondary school certificates. Majority (42.2%) of the farmers had farming experience of between 21–30 years, whereas majority (54.4%) of the farmers were from households of 11–15 persons. The findings also revealed that majority of the farmers (54.4%) had a farm size of more than 4 acres/hectares. The results on farmers’ practices regarding groundnut shell technology on soil fertility revealed that most (64.4%) did not use GSA as soil improvement, while majority (58.9%) stated that they used it on an annual basis. Most (52.2%) of the farmers applied more than 50 kg of GSA on their farmlands, and majority (62.2%) preferred broadcasting method of application. The majority (67.8%) of respondents stated that other soil fertility management practices used included inorganic fertilizers. The study concludes that majority of the farmers (76.7%) do not use GSA to improve soil fertility in the study area, though 76.7% are confident in its potential effectiveness. Most (64.4%) prefer inorganic fertilizers due to ease of farm work. The major constraints faced by farmers in practicing Groundnut Shell Technology were labour constraints (ranked 1st) and poor accessibility to groundnut shells (ranked 2nd). The study recommended that Government and private sectors should help introduce mechanized tools and equipment to reduce labor requirements for collecting, drying, and grinding groundnut shells. Government should also establish groundnut shell collection centers in strategic locations to facilitate easy collection from farmers, traders, and processors.