Determinants of Technical Efficiency in Irrigated Ornamental Plants Production System of Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria

Abstract

There are obvious cases of low agricultural production and sluggish economic growth begging for immediate intervention in Nigeria. One of such is irrigated agriculture which is a catalyst of transformation, changing agriculture from subsistence level to commercial lines and giving substantial returns to farmers. The determinants of technical efficiency in irrigated floriculture were investigated. A total of 90 respondents/floriculturists were randomly selected from the six agricultural zones that make up the study area. Descriptive statistics and the stochastic production frontier function were the tools of analyses. More than 70.2% of the respondents are males in their very youthful age of between 21 and 50years. A total of 72.2% are graduates having between 5 and 10 years of farming experience. It is also revealed that farm size, capital, irrigation, fertilizer and planting materials were all positively and significantly related to technical efficiency. The variations among the respondents were largely influenced by age, level of education, farming experience and extension contacts. All the production resources were used below their economic optimum levels and floriculturists were producing below the maximum frontier, having their efficiency index between 0.10 and 0.98 with 0.86 as the mean. It is observed that there are potentials for improvement with high level of technical efficiency. Thus, increased farm size, more capital investment and more extension contacts are strongly advocated.

Keywords: Farmers efficiency, irrigated production system, floriculture, economic growth, Nigeria