THE SPONTANEOUS FACTOR IN RURAL CHANGE: THE CASE OF YAM PRODUCTION AND MARKETING IN THE ZARIA AREA OF KADUNA STATE, NIGERIA
THE SPONTANEOUS FACTOR IN RURAL CHANGE: THE CASE OF YAM PRODUCTION AND MARKETING IN THE ZARIA AREA OF KADUNA STATE, NIGERIA
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Date
1985-03
Authors
EFFEH, ENO JOHN
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Abstract
Specific examples from many third world countries,
including Nigeria, point to a general case in which
agricultural production of rural societies tends to
increase under rising prices and contract under falling
prices. In the case of the Zaria rural area, however, the
study shows that the forces behind increased yam production
in the area are (1) the efficiency of the marketing system
and (2) the relative profits which the farmer earns from
the cultivation and marketing of yam vis-a-vis cotton and
groundnuts which are the two other commercial crops in the
area.
The study shows that the process of yam cultivation
passed through three evolutionary stages in the study area.
The first was the preliminary stage when yam cultivation
was in its infancy. The second was the pre-commercial
stage when yam cultivation developed only gradually. The
third and final stage, the commercial stage set in about
the end of the Nigerian Civil War when there seemed to
have been an increase in the tempo of growth in many
Nigerian towns including Zaria. The final stage was
characterised by a marked increase in yam cultivation.
The study traces the physical and human resources
which have made the yam evolution possible. It suggests
that a close relationship exists between the yam evolution
and growth in urban Zaria.
An assessment of the dynamics of Zaria urban growth
indicates that this urban centre will continue to be a
viable market although the demands of other urban markets
also exist for the Zaria yams. In response to the market
opportunities, the Zaria rural societies have expanded the
process of yam production which has in turn raised the
demand for farm labour in the study area.
The study notes that the new labour demand situation
led to longer hours of family labour in farms as well as
to the emergence of paid migrant labour in the area. Other
changes both institutional and structural have also emerged
under the influence of the evolution. Some of the changes
include increased number of personal assets which represent
physical signs of the material well being of the rural
societies and evidence of the transformation in rural Zaria.
However, the project further notes that since these personal
assets lack basic infra-structure, rural responsiveness is
not sufficient to take care of rural development. Never
theless, it sees the spontaneous responsiveness as being
necessary in revealing local resources on which effective
plan for rural change may be based.
The study also considered the problems of the rural
areas and noted, among other things, that the absence of
basic infrastructure and essential services has inhibited
the production process in the research area. On the basis
of the foregoing inadequacies and in the light of the
finding of the present study, the study recommends a
rural development plan which relates to the production
pattern of the rural producer. Such a plan would emphasises the
installation of rural infrastructure and the
establishment of institutions to step up the product
capabilities of the rural areas and improve the
standard of life of rural societies in Nigeria,
Description
A thesis submitted to the Postgraduate school
Ahmadu Bello University, in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts
Department of Geography
Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
Ahmadu Bello University
Zaria
March, 1985
Keywords
SPONTANEOUS,, FACTORS,, RURAL,, CHANGE:, CASE,, YAM,, PRODUCTION,, MARKETING,, ZARIA,, AREA,, KADUNA STATE,, NIGERIA.