ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF WATERMELON PRODUCTION IN SABON-GARI AND KUDAN LOCAL GOVERNMENTAREAS OF KADUNA STATE, NIGERIA

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the study

At independence in 1960, agriculture stood out as the most important sector of Nigeria‟s economy in several aspects. It employed over eighty (80%) of the nation‟s work force, served as the most important foreign exchange earner and constituted a major source of government revenue (CBN, 2000). The role of agriculture remains significant in the Nigerian economy despite the strategic importance of the oil sector. It accounts for more than one- third of the total domestic product (GDP) and labour force (FAO, 2003; World Bank, 2003). In an annual report, (CBN, 2004) reported that the real sector of the economy recorded a relatively impressive performance in year 2004 as the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 6.1 percent compared with 5.2 percent in the year 2003 and that agriculture is one of the major sources of the growth. Agriculture witnessed an increase of 6.2 percent growth in year 2004 compared to the 5.6 percent recorded in the year 2003 and the average of 4.6 percent for the period of 2001 to 2004 as the output of staples increased from 99,902 metric tonnes in year 2001 to 121,936.2 metric tonnes in year 2004. Although (Eme, 2004) described Nigeria as a food insecure country, the food problem which started in the mid-1960 has continued to deepen several decades after independence (Ime, 2002). The nation‟s agricultural production is still largely in the hands of the small-scale farmers with small holdings ranging from 0.05 to 3.0 hectares of land area, low capitalization and low yield per hectare (Ogundari and Ojo, 2007).

Food growth rate has been put at 2.65 percent and population growth rate at 3.2 percent, leaving a food deficit of 0.55 percent (CBN, 2007). The apparent disparity between the rate of food production and demand for food in Nigeria has led to:

i. A food demand and supply gap

ii. An increasing resort to food importation

iii. High rate of increases in food prices

As a result of these, widespread hunger and malnutrition are evident in the country (Ojo, 2003). Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus [Thunb.] Matsum and Nakai) is a member of the cucurbit family (Cucurbitaceae) and is one of the most widely cultivated crops in the world at large and global production in 2002 reached 89.9 million mega grains (FAO, 2003 and Huh, 2008). It is a vine-like flowering plant originally from Southern Africa. The crop is grown commercially in areas with long frost-free warm periods (Prohens and Nuez, 2008). China, Turkey, Iran, Brazil, United States, Egypt and Russian federation are the major water melon producers (FAO, 2010).

Watermelon fruits are 93% water by weight while about 6% consist of small amounts of protein, fat, minerals and vitamins. The major nutritional components of the fruit are carbohydrates, vitamin A, and lycopene, an anti carcinogenic compound found in red flesh melon. Lycopene may help reduce the risk of certain cancers, such as prostate, pancreas and stomach. As with many other fruits, it is a source of vitamin C. Water melon also contains large amount of beta caroten. Potassium is also available in it which is believed to help in control of blood pressure and possibly prevention of stroke (De Lannoy, 2001). Water melon is utilized for the production of juices, nectars and fruits cocktails.

1.2 Problem Statement

It has been observed that Nigeria has the potential particularly in terms of land and human resources needed to produce enough food for the country (Adeoye, 2012). To be self sufficient in food production, the problem of promoting the production of the most promising stable food crops in the country has to be tackled (Balogun, et al., 2012). Vegetable production has been playing a vital role in human nutrition, poverty reduction and improving the socio-economic status of the farmers. Vegetables are important items in the daily diet of the Nigerian family. They are cheap and easily available source of vitamins, minerals and dietary fibre and are low in fat and calories (Abba, 2004). There is little chance of malnutrition occurring where enough vegetables are eaten. Malnutrition reduces the working capacity of farmers and their families. In severe cases, serious physical and mental retardation or even death may occur. As a result of reduced working capacity incomes may decrease and poverty may increase (AVRDC, 1990). Watermelon consumption in Kaduna State is on the increase due to the increasing awareness of its nutritional value, while its production is on the decrease due to inefficiency in the resource management (Kaduna state government, 2011). Despite the nutritional value of watermelon, its production remained low in the state (Dauda et al., 2008). The productivity of farmers can be raised by adoption of improved technologies or improvement in efficiency or both.

The poor output 110,000t of watermelon realized by farmers may be an indication that resources needed in the production of crop are not being used at their optimal levels Darbie, et al., (2008) and this raises the question as to whether it is profitable to grow the crop or not? This situation calls for an examination of the profitability of growing the crop, an assessment of the resources needed for its production and how their resources are managed by its cultivators. There is therefore, the need to provide empirical information on farm level production efficiency in small-scale water melon production in the study area. For this to be fully realized there is need to address the problems of rural farmers who produce the bulk of Nigerian agricultural product. This study intends to provide answers to the following research questions.

i. What are the socio-economic characteristics of the watermelon farmers in the study areas?

ii. How profitable is water melon production in the study areas?

iii. Are farmers technically efficient in water melon production?

iv. What are the problems confronting water melon production?

Department: Agricultural Economics
Format: Microsoft Word

Chapters: 1 - 5, Preliminary Pages, Abstract, References, Questionnaire
Delivery: Email

No. of Pages: 91

Price: 3000 NGN

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