Patronizing Agricultural Cooperatives: The Journey towards Zero Hunger Attainment in South-South States, Nigeria (Published)
The study focused on farmers patronizing agricultural cooperative societies as a journey towards zero hunger attainment in South-South States, Nigeria. A multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select a sample size of 144. A validated questionnaire was used to obtain data from respondents. Descriptive and inferential statistics were employed to analyze the data obtained. Results showed that the average age, farming experience, household size, farm size and annual farm income were 46 years, 11 years, 6 persons, 3 Ha and N282,638.89 respectively. The level of participation of the respondents activities in their groups was highest in payment of monthly dues and other necessary contributions (mean = 3.60) and the most benefit derived was increased human capacity development in farming (mean = 3.48). In addition, most (59.03%) of the cooperators indicated their high level of satisfaction with the groups they belong. Regression results showed that respondents derived significant (p<0.05) benefits from their belonging to cooperative groups. It was concluded that farmers were satisfied by patronizing cooperative societies as a strategy to attain zero hunger amongst households. The study recommends that there should be awareness creation for new entrants to join cooperative societies so as to accomplish zero hunger.
Keywords: Benefits, Cooperative Societies, Farmers, Participation, Satisfaction, zero hunger
Citizens’ Participation in the Decentralization Process in Ghana (Published)
Participation in decision-making is the root of democratization, as democratization is widely believed to be rooted in decentralization. As such, citizens’ participation in the decentralization process will bring governance closer to the people. The focus of the study was to explore the views and understandings of citizens about Ghana’s decentralization process. The researcher used the case study design for the study. Both questionnaire and interview protocol were used for data gathering. One hundred and six people in the area were conveniently sampled to become respondents in the study. For the method of data analysis, the researcher used tables and percentages. The study found out that nearly 25% of the citizens have no or very little understanding of the decentralization process. Even though majority of the citizens took part in local elections, the citizens were not part of the decision making process, planning of developmental projects and paying taxes/levies to the district assembly. The non-performance of Unit Committee Members were found to be the cause of citizens’ non-participation in the decentralization programme even though there were other factors that generally affected the programme in the North Tongu District. The study recommended that the need for some more education in the Decentralization Process for all citizens.
Keywords: Citizen, Decentralization, Ghana, Participation, Stakeholders
Community Participation as a Tool for the Promotion of Sustainable Community Development (Published)
The paper examined community participation as a tool for the promotion of sustainable community development. The paper explored the concept of community participation and sustainable community development. The paper identified areas of community participation in sustainable community development to include community needs assessment, community development planning, community mobilization among others. The highlights of the benefits that accrue from community participation in sustainable community development are community empowerment, promotion of meaningful change, community participation as a mechanism to address community problems and provision of learning opportunities. The highlights of the recommendations based on the issues discussed are: There is an obvious need to strengthen the level of awareness creation in people for community participation in sustainable community development, relevant stakeholders in community development projects should embark on sustainable mobilization for effective community participation in community development among others.
Keywords: Community, Community and Development, Participation, Promotion, Sustainable, Tool