Fuelwood Utilization and Marketing in Kogi State

Abstract

This study focused on fuelwood utilization and marketing in Kogi State. A survey of rural and urban households was carried out in Kogi State. The aim was to generate the necessary data that would form the bases for putting in place an energy policy most appropriate for the state. Data were generated through the use of questionnaires and interview schedules. Findings show that the fuelwood still represent the predominant domestic energy in use in the state as indicated by 56.7% of the respondent followed closely by kerosene as indicated by 40.8% of the correspondent. Major reason adduced for its common usage include its ready availability, (41.7%), ease of use (23.3%) and relatively cheapness (20.0%) of respondent respectively in comparison to other energy sources. The result however showed that even though majority of the respondent (54.2%) still obtain their fuelwood needs free, a significant number (39.0%) now have to purchase their fuelwood needs, an indication of their increasing scarcity in Kogi State. Its increasing scarcity is further manifested by the finding that the majority of those involved in its collection (house helps, mothers and their children as reveal in the study) now have to travel long distances (an average of 2km) to obtain supplies and these activities are mostly performed twice weekly. It is recommended that government should put in place an appropriate energy policy that would ensure continued availability of fuelwood in the state.

Keywords: Fuelwood, Utilization, Marketing And Sustainable Development