Challenges Of Physical Distribution Of Agricultural Produce Among Rural Smallholder Farmers In Enugu North Senatorial Zone In Nigeria
Okolo Victor O
Department of Marketing, University of Nigeria Nsukka, Enugu Campus, Nigeria
Keywords: Physical distribution, road transportation, storage facilities, agricultural produce, Enugu North
Abstract
Effective and efficient physical distribution of agricultural produce had had serious challenges in Enugu North senatorial zone of Enugu State, Nigeria. The study sought to determine the influence of poor road transportation network on effective and efficient distribution of agricultural produce in Enugu North senatorial zone. Secondly, it sought to ascertain the influence of inadequate storage facilities on effective and efficient distribution of agricultural produce in the zone. The population of study comprises famers of agricultural produce in the zone which is unknown as there is no registered farmers’ association in the area. Cochran’s sample size determination was used to determine the sample size of 384. Survey method was used to distribute structured questionnaires to the 384 respondents who eventually retuned 250 well filled questionnaires. For the reliability of the study, Cronbach’s alpha was used and the value of 0.982 was determined. Analysis of data was done using simple linear regression statistical technique and the findings revealed that poor road transportation network has a significant negative influence on effective and efficient distribution of agricultural produce in Enugu North senatorial zone. Similarly, it was revealed that inadequate storage facilities have a significant negative influence on effective and efficient distribution of agricultural produce in the zone. Thus, government has to encourage the local and international supply of agricultural produce in the entire zone and internationally by building good road network as well as providing adequate storage facilities for farmers aimed at safe keeping and safe delivery of their agricultural produce to avoid post-harvest losses and reduce poverty by improving the farmers’ income