TRAINING NEEDS ANALYSIS OF WOMEN IN AGRICULTURE (WIA) EXTENSION OFFICERS IN KANO STATE, NIGERIA.

The study analysed the training needs of Women in Agriculture (WIA) extension officers in Kano State, Nigeria. A multi-stage sampling technique was used to purposively select two local government areas (LGAs) from the three agro-ecological zones in Kano based on the intensity of the WIA officers, making a total of six LGAs for the study. From the six LGAs, 74 WIA officers were randomly selected for the study. Data were collected through the use of structured questionnaires and analysed using frequency counts, percentages, and the mean. Results revealed that the average age of the women was 34 years, 56.8% were married, and the average household size was 9 people. 50.0% of the respondents had secondary school education and averaged 8 years of working experience as extension agents. The study further revealed that the majority of the women (95.9%) received training on crop production technology and (64.9%) on marketing agricultural commodities. It was also revealed that the WIA needs training on livestock production and disease control, ICT in agriculture, and fish farming. Conclusively, WIA officers competently perform their job in the demonstration of improved technologies and the dissemination of information. It is therefore recommended that women extension officers be trained and provided with training facilities based on their requirements.