Analysis of profit level and its socio-economic determinants in artisanal fish value chain in Kwara state, Nigeria.

Abstract

Artisanal fishery sector plays crucial roles in many coastal communities in Nigeria, contributing meaningfully to their food security and livelihoods. The study aims to identify key factors influencing level of profit in the artisanal fish value chain in Kwara state, Nigeria. Through a multi-stage sampling technique, 186 respondents, cutting across the value chain actors such as fishermen, fish processors and fish marketers were selected for this study. Descriptive statistics, budgeting technique, and multiple regression analysis were used to analyze the data. The findings showed that the artisanal fish value chain actors were middle aged with a mean age of 45.52years, 48.62years and 43.14years for fishermen, fish processors and fish marketers respectively. Their average years of experience were 24.73years, 26.54years and 22.67years respectively. The net margins for the fishing, fish processing and fish marketing were ₦54,723.90 per fishing cycle, ₦42,956.70 per processing cycle and ₦14,188.80 per marketing cycle respectively while the returns on investment for the enterprises were 0.98, 1.40 and 0.40 for fishing, fish processing and fish marketing respectively. Factors influencing the level of profit made by the respondents were age(  =16.350; p≤0.01), household size(  =10.320; p≤0.01), and experience(  =6.630; p≤0.05) for the fishing node; household size(  =4.064; p≤0.01) and experience(  =2.240; p≤0.05) for processing node; experience(  =5.399; p≤0.01), and primary occupation( =25.460; p≤0.05) for marketing node. Given the significance of work experience in influencing the level of profit among the three value chain actors, efforts should be directed toward enhancing practical experience through training and mentorship of less experienced actors