Accessibility and Determinants of Public Agricultural Extension Services Among Farmers in Kaduna State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study examined the accessibility and determinants of public agricultural extension services among farmers in Kaduna State, Nigeria. A multistage sampling technique was used to select 625 farmers from a population of 682,869, comprising 281 beneficiaries (45%) and 344 non beneficiaries (55%). Primary data were collected using structured questionnaires and analyzed using descriptive statistics, Likert scale, and binary logistic regression. The results showed notable socio-economic differences between beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries. Male farmers were more represented among beneficiaries (47.24%), while females dominated among non-beneficiaries (59.03%), indicating gender disparity in access. Beneficiaries also had higher farm income (₦283,797) compared to non-beneficiaries (₦73,822), and were more likely to belong to cooperatives (48.41%). However, age, household size, and years of schooling showed minimal variation between the groups. The level of access to public agricultural extension services was moderate (grand mean = 3.48), with strong access to advisory services such as crop management (3.63), soil fertility (3.57), and agronomic practices (3.61), but weak access to training, demonstrations, ICT-based services (3.25), and inclusive services for women (3.19) and youth (3.12). The logistic regression results revealed that gender (β = 0.391), education (β = 0.076), farm income (β = 0.00005), farming experience (β = 0.019), farm size (β = 0.167), and cooperative membership (β = 0.058) significantly influenced access to extension services. The model was statistically significant (LR χ² = 41.83, p < 0.001) with a pseudo R² of 0.19. The study concludes that access to public agricultural extension services in Kaduna State is moderate but uneven, with disparities driven by socio-economic and institutional factors. Based on these findings, it recommends that government and extension agencies promote gender- and youth-inclusive programs, strengthen farmer education and training, and support cooperative development to enhance equitable access and improve extension service effectiveness.