EVALUATION OF EFFECT OF THE THIRD NATIONAL FADAMA DEVELOPMENT PROJECT (FADAMA 111) ON FOOD PRODUCTION AMONG FARMERS IN KWANDE LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF BENUE STATE, NIGERIA (Published)
The study was conducted to find out the effect of Fadama 111 project on crop yield among the farmers participating in the project in Kwande Local Government of Benue State, Nigeria. Fadama 111 is the third phase of the Fadama Project in Nigeria, and is essentially an agricultural diversification project. The project which is demand-driven is funded by the World Bank, Federal Government, State and Local Governments in Nigeria. In conducting the study, 100 participants in the project were selected from Kwande Local Government of Benue State. To obtain a random sample, the stratified random sampling technique was used. The study area was stratified into four, namely: Nanev, Turan, Shangev-ya and Kyurav-ya clans. Twenty-five participants were selected from each stratum, giving a sample size of 100 farmers. Data for the study was collected with the use of a 5-point likert rating scale to enable the farmers rate the extent of increase in their crop yield. The data collected was analyzed using the mean and population t-test to test the significance of difference between sample and population means at 95 % confidence level (P ≤ 0.05). The difference between the sample mean of 4.2909 and population mean of 4.2920 was found to be insignificant. Therefore, the farmers were unanimous that their participation in Fadama 111 project has significantly increased their crop yield. The null hypothesis that there is no significant difference between the sample and population mean responses of the participants regarding how their participation has affected their crop yield was accepted, while the alternative hypothesis was rejected. Some recommendations were made