Title : Determinants of labour migration among cocoa producing communities in Osun State, Nigeria
Abstract:
Cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) remains a cornerstone of Nigeria's agricultural export sector, contributing approximately 7% of the country's foreign exchange earnings and supporting the livelihoods of over 2 million smallholder households. This study examined the determinants of labour migration among cocoa producing communities in Osun State, Nigeria. A multistage sampling procedure was used to select 180 respondents. Data collected via questionnaires were analysed using descriptive statistics (percentages and means), Pearson Product Moment Correlation (PPMC), chi-square, and regression. The mean age of respondents was 32.69 ± 8.39 years, and 67.8% of respondents were male, 55.6% were married, 61.1% were Christian, and 53.3% had primary education, with an annual income of ?480,000 - ?599,999. More than half (55.6%) of respondents had low knowledge of labour migration. Also, 55.2% of respondents had high perceived push and pull factors influencing labour migration. More than half (53.9%) of respondents had a favourable perception of labour migration, while 53.3% reported that labour migration had a high effect on cocoa production in the study area. Results showed significant relationships between sex (χ² = 53.714, p = 0.000), marital status (χ² = 54.129, p = 0.043), age (r = − 0.383, p = 0.000), and years of experience (r = − 0.334, p = 0.000). Significant relationships were also found between perceived push factors (r = − 0.442, p = 0.000) and perception (r = − 0.462, p = 0.000) towards labour migration. The study concludes that respondents had low knowledge of labour migration and recommends that government labour officials should provide enlightenment and sensitization programme to help rural communities better understand labour migration and its implications.
Keywords: Labour, labour migration, cocoa farmers, rural communities
