Entrepreneurship Skills of Small and Medium Scale Poultry Farmers in Central Agricultural Zone of Nasarawa State Nigeria

The study assessed the level of entrepreneurship skills of small and medium scale poultry farmers in central agricultural zone of Nasarawa State. A simple random sampling technique was used to select 70% of the listed poultry farmers in each of the four LGAs in the zone which gave a sample size of 55 respondents. Data collection was by a structured interview schedule. Data were analysed using both descriptive and inferential statistics such as mean scores, percentage and linear regression analysis. The results show that majority (78.2%) of the respondents were males, the mean age of the respondents was 41 years, most (58.1%) of them had tertiary education and most (47.3%) of them had between 6-10 years experience in poultry business. The average number of birds kept by the respondents was 260. Majority (85.5%) of them were not members of any group while the average number of extension contacts in a year was 3 and their mean monthly income was N27, 730.91. The respondents were rated high (M> 3.0) in 21 out of the 30 areas of entrepreneurship skills presented with an overall 70% level of competency. Results of the regression analysis show that extension contact, farm size and training had significant positive effects on level of entrepreneurship skills. The major constraints faced by the respondents were high cost of poultry feeds, inadequate capital and poor extension services. It was recommended that the Nasarawa Agricultural Development Programme (NADP) extension staff in the zone should focus more attention on small and medium scale poultry farmers in the area by mobilising them to form associations/cooperatives groups for self help.