Resource information
The Nigerian labor force, like that of
many countries in Africa, is heavily concentrated in
agriculture. According to World Bank reports, the
agricultural sector in Nigeria grew by about 6.8 percent
annually from 2005-2009. This report focuses on the
characteristics of the agricultural sector and rural
households in Nigeria, and their implications for poverty.
This report examines the relationships using nationally
representative data from the general household survey panel
(GHS), 2010-11. It was found that an elasticity of poverty
reduction with respect to agricultural productivity of
between 0.25 to 0.3 percent implying that a 10 percent
increase in agricultural productivity will decrease the
likelihood of being poor by between 2.5 and 3 percent.
Agriculture in Nigeria is varied across regions, and, not
surprisingly, most households involved in the sector reside
in rural areas. The report is organized as follows: section
one gives introduction. Section two gives brief description
of selected agricultural programs and the targets of
government expenditure in the sector in recent decades.
Section three presents detailed profile of rural households
and the composition of economic activities with a particular
focus on agriculture. Section four examines the determinants
of agricultural productivity, and highlights the factors
(land ownership, input use, labor, plot management, land
tenure, and household characteristics) most important for
small-holder productivity. Section five concludes.
