Effect of Skills Training Among Poultry Farmers in Eleme Local Government Area in Rivers State

Abstract

The study was on the effect of skills training among poultry farmers in Eleme Local Government Area in Rivers State. The specific objectives of the study were to; describe the socio-economic characteristics, identify the training areas, ascertained the level of poultry farmers involvement in skills training, ascertain the effect of skills training on poultry production among poultry farmers livelihood and examine factors hindering the acquisition of skills training in poultry production among poultry farmers. Multi stage sampling technique was used. Simple random sampling technique was employed to select 60 poultry farmers. Data were collected using questionnaire and interview schedule. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and mean score analysis derived from Likert scale. The result revealed that 63.3% were males, 45.0% and 36.7% were of the age limits of 31-40 years and 41-50 years respectively, 58% of the respondents were married. Furthermore, 71.7% indicated farming as their main occupation. High-priority training areas were Chick rearing (95%), disease diagnosis (91.7%), culling/selection (88.3%), and brooding management (83.3%), suggesting that training programs prioritize bird survival and health. The grand mean of 2.72 confirms that, overall, farmers are involved in skills training. The grand mean of 3.31 confirms that skills training has a perceived positive effect on poultry production among the farmers studied. The grand mean of 3.25 confirms that, overall, the identified factors were perceived to hinder the acquisition of skills through training in poultry production among poultry farmers in the study area. The study concluded that poultry farmers in the study area are involved in skill training and have actually acquired skills in poultry production. it was recommended that future training programs should balance technical and economic content, address financial barriers, and ensure equitable access to all training areas.