APPLICATION OF LIVELIHOOD ANALYSIS AMOUNG FARMERS IN AMAH COMMUNITY OF RIVER STATE NIGERIA: IMPLICATION FOR EXTENSION AGENTS TRAINING

The study is aimed at providing foundation for designing and developing agricultural extension programmes that will address the priority needs and interests of farmers in Amah community. Through an interactive process using a sustainable livelihoods framework, it was found that the main source of livelihood in Amah community is crop farming where priority crops are cassava and yam. The type of props grown and the division of farm labour are gender biased. Crop farming activities take place round the year because most farmers are engaged in rain fed and Fadama farming. All farm operations are carried out manually without access to modern farm implements. The farmers’ natural, financial and physical assets bases are poor while they have high social and human assets. Therefore, extension programme should facilitate farmers’ access to natural, financial and physical assets to enable them attain sustainable livelihood. The study suggests that livelihood analysis tools be included in the in-service training module for extension agents to promote their effectiveness and efficiency.