Adoption of Improved Technologies for Cotton Production

There is a widespread recognition that non adoption of improved practices is a significant constraint on increasing cotton production and output. This constraint has persisted in spite of the fact that improved technologies for cotton production have been introduced to farmers over two decades. Government and donor agencies, like the World Bank have committed a lot of resources to rejuvenate cotton production. However, there has been no notable increase in production. The research problem centered on understanding some of the problems and challenges faced by cotton farmers. Such information is essential for a proper assessment of the need and potential of cotton farmers and would help to measure efficiency of cotton research and investment. The study examined the extent of awareness and level of adoption of improved technologies for cotton production in Katsina State. Relevant data were collected from primary and secondary sources. The primary data were collected by means of personal interview by trained enumerators in the year 2001 from 250 farmers randomly selected from three areas in the state. The list of farmers was obtained from the Zonal ADP office in the study area.