Fish farmers' attitude toward agricultural insurance scheme in Ondo State Nigeria

Abstract

The study assessed fish farmers' attitude towards agricultural insurance scheme (AIS) in Ondo State, Nigeria. A multi-stage sampling procedure was adopted to select the respondents for the study. Data were obtained through questionnaire and were analysed using descriptive statistics and mean score from a five point Likert type of scale. The study showed the mean age of fish farmers to be 44.6±10.1years and the majority (83.4%) were married. The mean household size was 5±2 and about 96% were able to read and write. The mean years of fish farming experience was 13.54 and all of them were smallholders. More than half (57.3%) of the respondents had neutral attitude, 23.7 per cent had favourable attitude while 19 per cent had unfavourable attitude towards AIS. They perceived that insurance belongs to God and not any insurance company (μ= 1.8) and that small scale farmer do not really need to insure their farms, (μ= 1.8). The study recommended that the respondents should be empowered to increase their scale of fish production as this might change their attitude to the scheme. Also, government should re-subsidize agricultural insurance to enable serious farmers afford the premium.