Determinants of Soybean Farmers' Adoption of Green Revolution Technologies in Oyo State, Nigeria

Soybean is a non-indigenous crop in Nigeria, but has become an important food security crop due to its nutritive, economic and agronomic benefits. In recognition of these benefits, numerous efforts have been made to boost soybean output and productivity in Nigeria through the 'green revolution' pathway. However, despite the impressive widespread adoption of high yielding varieties of soybean in Nigeria, observed yields are still below regional and global averages, prompting research into the disparity between actual yields observed and obtainable potential yield. One of the reasons suggested in literature is that farmers do not fully adopt the 'green revolution' technology package that includes fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides, leading to sub-optimal yields. This study therefore assessed the adoption rate and determinants of adopting the complementary components of high yielding varieties of soybean (fertilizer, pesticides and herbicides) among its farmers in Oyo State, Nigeria. The study made use of primary data collected from 108 soybean farmers in a cross-sectional survey with the aid of a questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Multivariate Probit regression model. The results show that most of the soybean farmers are male, married and middle aged (average of 50 years), with a mean household size and years of formal education of 9 persons and 4 years respectively. However, while herbicides (93.5%) and pesticides (92.6%) are widely adopted, the adoption rate of fertilizer is low (38.9%) among the soybean farmers. The adoption of these technologies is significantly influenced by gender, education, age, household size, extension contact and credit access, albeit heterogeneously. Soybean farmers that had contact with extension service are more likely to adopt fertilizers, while education and credit access positively influence the adoption of herbicides and pesticides. Female farmers have a higher likelihood of adopting herbicides, but are less likely to adopt fertilizers relative to male farmers. Based on these findings, it is recommended that efforts to expand the rural financial market to improve farmers' access to credit should be made. Similarly, extension activities designed to inform, train and monitor farmers about fertilizer use in soybean production should be intensified in order to encourage the adoption of these complementary components for improved yield, nutrition and welfare of soybean farmers.