INFLUENCE OF ENGAGEMENT OF FARM CHILDREN IN FARMING ACTIVITIES ON THEIR WILLINGNESS TO CHOOSE AGRICULTURE AS A PROSPECTIVE CAREER IN ODEDA LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF OGUN STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

For the farming profession to continue and to ensure sustainable agricultural output to feed the teeming population, farm children must participate in farming activities.The study attempted to assess the influence of the engagement of farm children in farming activities on their willingness to choose agriculture as a prospective career in Odeda LGA of Ogun State, Nigeria.A multistage process was employed to select one hundred and forty farm children and interviewed via a questionnaire survey.Data obtained were summarized and presented using descriptive statistics such as means, frequency counts and percentages and analysed utilizing inferential statistics (Chi-square and Pearson's Product Moment Correlation).Approximately half (50.7% and 49.3%) of male and female farm children were respectively sampled for this study.The respondents were within the age range of 12 and 20 years, with an average age of 17 years and seven persons per household.Findings showed that planting (=1.51),wetting (=1.49)land clearing and preparation (=1.41)and harvesting of farm produce (=1.41)were the main farm activities engaged in by the respondents.Though the respondents had a positive disposition to the economic importance of agriculture, the majority (72%) of the farm children were not willing to choose agriculture as their prospective career.Statistically significantly, engagement of farm children in farm activities (χ 2 =4.437,P=0.509) was not associated (P>0.05) with their willingness to choose agriculture as a prospective career.As a result, the study recommended exposing and acquainting farm children with a range of careers in agriculture.