Agribusiness participation and income effects among rural households in South West Nigeria

This study examined the influence of agribusiness participation on household income in Southwestern Nigeria using data from 230 rural households selected through a three-stage random sampling technique. Descriptive statistics and Tobit regression were used for data analysis. Results showed that 47.4% of respondents were aged 41–60 years, 60.4% were male, and 40.9% had secondary education. Tobit results revealed that age (β = 0.3164, p < 0.10) and association membership (β = 2.1120, p < 0.01) positively influenced agribusiness participation, while credit availability (β = -0.8566, p < 0.05) and labour cost (β = -0.5181, p < 0.05) negatively affected participation. The income model indicated that age (β = -0.0991, p < 0.05) and labour cost (β = -0.0787, p < 0.01) reduced household income, whereas farm output (β = 0.1263, p < 0.05) and agribusiness diversification (β = 0.1744, p < 0.01) increased income. Financial and market constraints were identified as the major challenges affecting 64.5% of respondents. The study concludes that improving access to credit, reducing labour costs, and strengthening farmers’ associations are essential for enhancing agribusiness participation and household income in Southwestern Nigeria.