WOMEN ENTREPRENEURIAL EMPOWERMENT AND SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURAL PERFORMANCE IN SOUTHWEST, NIGERIA
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Agriculture in Nigeria is still largely practised at the subsistence level compared to more
developed agriculture-driven economies. Part of the reasons for this is that farmers lack
access to productive resources. Although, both genders contribute to agriculture, women
farmers have significantly less access to, control over, and ownership of productive assets
compared to their male counterparts. This has led to low participation and contribution of
female farmers. Also, the environment has been polluted over the years through
unsustainable farm practices. The underperformance index remains despite various efforts at
empowerment and incentives to engender sustainable performance. The 2021 Statista Report
indicates a notable decline in the contribution of the agricultural sector to Nigerian GDP.
These issues affect sustainable performance of farms and pose a challenge to meeting
Sustainable Development Goals like zero hunger, food security, and promotion of sustainable
agriculture. All these issues further aggravate the need to examine the intervening factors that
enhance the effect of women empowerment on sustainable farm performance of women
entrepreneurs. Hence, this study investigated the moderating role of entrepreneurial
orientation on the relationship between women empowerment and sustainable performance
of selected agricultural farms in Southwest Nigeria. To achieve the stated research objective,
the researcher employed a mixed research approach. Data were gathered through copies of
questionnaire administered to female planters registered under the Young Farmers
Association of Nigerian (YFAN) in Southwest Nigeria and key informant interview was
conducted among executives of each of the six selected state chapters. Descriptive and
inferential statistics were used as quantitative methods of data analysis while thematic
analysis was used for the qualitative data. Findings from this study revealed that
entrepreneurial orientation can strengthen women empowerment for performance of selected
agricultural farms in Southwest Nigeria. Strong relationship exists between technological and
social empowerment, with path coefficient significant at β= 0.722 and R2=0.521. Access to
land has a considerable significant effect on economic performance at at (β= 0.611,
R2=0.374, t-statistics= 10.356> 1.96, P-value= 0.000 <0.05). It is recommended that YFAN
should increase virtual training, especially on financial education to increase financial
autonomy of women farmers. Female farmers should also be better sensitised on the benefits
of entrepreneurial mindset or orientation. Female farmers need to be encouraged to take
proactive actions, engage in new ideas and creative processes that reduce farm input but
increase output to maximise performance. The technological know-how of female farmers
should be improved so that technological advancement can be to their advantage and not
detriment by making them jobles.
Keywords
H Social Sciences (General)