Technical efficiency of catfish production among smallholder farmers in Ikorodu local government, Lagos State

This study assessed the household farmers' technical efficiency in producing catfish in Ikorodu. 120 households were chosen using a multi-stage sampling procedure. Structured questionnaires were used to gather primary data, and logit regression models, descriptive statistics, gross margin analysis, and the stochastic frontier production function (SFA) were used to analyze the data. Majority of farmers were found to be well-educated, with 57.9% obtaining tertiary education, male (71.1%), and within the economically active age group (mean = 47 years). With a gross margin of ₦656,503.80, a rate of return on investment of 1.75, and an average total cost of ₦134,334.15, the business was extremely lucrative. According to the stochastic frontier results, labor, feed, and fingerlings have a major impact on output, but age and family size were mostly responsible for inefficiency impacts. Inefficiency accounted for 42% of output variation, indicating that the mean technical efficiency was moderate with potential for improvement. The results of logit regression showed that participation in catfish production was strongly influenced by gender, education, and the availability of a secondary occupation. Inadequate finance facilities, government policy barriers, poor road infrastructure, high feed costs, and restricted market access were among the main obstacles found. It is advised that government involvement be used to stabilize the input market and upgrade infrastructure, as well as capital-building initiatives to increase farmers' technical expertise and access to reasonably priced finance.