Food Crop Farmers’ Health and Poverty Status Nexus in Ondo State, Nigeria

Abstract

Poverty may lead to ill-health because it forces people to live in conditions that cause sickness, as a result of indecent shelter, lack of clean water or adequate sanitation. Poor health brings loss of labour hours, loss of money and it may cause death of the farmer. This study therefore evaluated food crop farmer’s health and poverty status nexus in Ondo State, Nigeria. Primary data were used and a sample of 210 farm households was drawn through a multistage sampling procedure. The data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics, Foster-Greer-Thorbecke (FGT) poverty index, quantitative method (cost of illness procedure) and probit regression analysis. The findings revealed that 88% and 44% of the respondents were married and had secondary education respectively, with a mean age of 44 years. Also, 55% of the respondents were actually poor while 19.5% of the poverty line was needed to get out of poverty. The result of probit regression model indicated that number of years spent in school, household size, farm distance, farm income, financial cost of illness and time cost of illness had significant influence on poverty level of the respondents in the study area. Therefore, government should design holistic policies that will focus on the factors highlighted above in order to alleviate poverty and improve the welfare of the food crop farmers in the study area.

Keywords: Health, poverty, farmers, illness