Community Empowerment with the Musa spp Enterprise Expansion Programme, Nigeria

This study was designed to identify implementation strategies and approaches that contributed to the success of the expansion of hybrid plantain/banana (Musa spp) enterprise programme in Rivers State, Southern Nigeria. Forty contract farmers directly involved in the project were selected. Primary data were generated through the use of structured questionnaires, while secondary data were obtained from published and unpublished materials from the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture. Data analysis involved qualitative techniques, descriptive statistics, the Kolmogorov-Simirov test gross margin analysis, and t-test. Farmers preferred workshops and services of extension agents to other modes of technology transfer. Strategies/approaches were tailored towards overcoming constraints to the success of the project. Farmers were organized in groups based on their residence so that they could have easy access to demonstration plots. A cost sharing approach was adopted where farmers donated parcels of land as demonstration plots while the funding agencies provided the improved breeds and technical knowhow. Training programmes involved field trips and workshops. This study demonstrated that the use of cost sharing formulae helps in the success of an extension programme. It was recommended that community development programmes should adopt some level of cost sharing formulae, work in line with established and prevalent cultural patterns and community institutions, and encourage cooperation among farmers to avoid lack of interest or poor acceptance of innovations and projects.