The Empirical Determinants of Cassava Farmers Access to Microfinance Services in Abia State Nigeria

ABSTRACT The study analyzed the determinants of cassava farmers’ accessibility to microfinance services in Abia state, Nigeria. Specifically the study assessed the economic variables influencing cassava farmers’ accessibility to microfinance, the qualitative perception of farmers’ access and the empirical determinants of cassava farmers’ accessibility to microfinance. Multistage random sampling technique was used in selecting respondents who were beneficiaries of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) spread across the 3 agricultural zones in the state; from which primary data were collected using questionnaires. A total of 120 cassava farmers who are beneficiaries of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) were used in the study. Method of data analysis used were means, frequencies, percentages, likert scale analysis and the logit multiple regression model. The result revealed that gender, age, education, household size, farm size and farming experience are the socio-economic variables influencing cassava farmers’ access to MFIs. The varied level of accessibility enjoyed by cassava farmers were in terms of total amount of credit received, amount of credit used for cassava farming and distance to MFIs location. While the important significant determinants of accessibility are gender, age, education, farming experience, amount of loan repaid and ownership of house. It is therefore recommended that government policies can capitalize on the socio-economic variables in this study as veritable tools to encouraging accessibility to MFIs