Rural Youth Involvement in Oil Palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq) Processing in Okitipupa Local Government Area, Ondo State, Nigeria

Abstract

Youths have been found to lack interest in agricultural activities. This study investigated rural youth involvement in oil palm processing in Okitipupa local government area, Nigeria. Quantitative data were obtained from 120 rural youths through a multi-stage sampling procedure. Chi-square and correlation analysis were used to test the relationships between socio-economic characteristics, constraints on operations and the involvement of rural youth in oil palm processing. The mean age of respondents was 31 years; they were mostly single (65.0%) and literate (95.0%). Bad roads (x̅ = 2.98) and high cost of transportation (x̅ = 2.91) were the most severe constraints confronted by the respondents. Gender (χ2 = −32.85, p = 0.001) and years of education (χ2 = 96.51, p = 0.002) had a significant positive relationship with involvement in oil palm processing activities. Poor processing equipment (r = −0.38, p = 0.00) and bad roads (r = −0.40, p = 0.04) had a negative correlation with involvement in oil palm processing activities. Rehabilitation of road networks and access to innovative methods would improve involvement in oil palm processing activities.