POVERTY AND RICE PRODUCTIVITY IN NIGERIA: A REVIEW OF THE RELATIONSHIP AND IMPLICATION FOR AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT
Rice plays a significant role in Nigeria’s food security, rural employment, and development of agricultural. However, persistent poverty among small-scale rice farmers continues to hinder their productivity and limit rural sector’s contribution to economic growth. This study therefore reviews the complex relationship between poverty and rice productivity in Nigeria. This review discovered that poverty limits farmers’ access to important inputs such as improved seeds, fertilisers, irrigation facilities, credit, markets, and extension services. And also, low rice productivity results in reduced household income, low asset accumulation, and reduced capacity to invest in improved farming practices. The study integrates four major theoretical perspectives: Sustainable Livelihoods Theory, Poverty Trap Theory, Agricultural Development Theory, and Institutional Theory, to provide a comprehensive model for understanding the interconnections between poverty, agricultural productivity, and institutional support systems. The Sustainable Livelihoods perspective emphasizes the role of livelihood assets and vulnerability contexts in determining farmers’ productivity outcomes. Poverty Trap Theory explains how limited access to resources and vulnerability to shocks strengthen persistent poverty and low productivity. Agricultural Development Theory highlights the importance of investment in technology, infrastructure, human capital, and institutions for improving productivity and reducing poverty. Institutional Theory further stresses the role of institutions in prompting farmers’ access to productive resources and opportunities. This study further discovered that previous studies have employed diverse analytical approaches, including descriptive statistics, regression analysis, structural equation modelling, propensity score matching, and system dynamics modelling to bring to fore the relationship between poverty and productivity in rice production. Empirical evidence from previous studies generally supports the existence of a strong relationship between rice productivity and poverty reduction, although inconsistencies remain due to variations in poverty measurement, data sources, analytical techniques, and sampling frameworks. The review identifies key research gaps, to include limited longitudinal studies, inadequate integration of climate change considerations, insufficient mixed-methods approaches, and limited focus on smallholder farmers and rural-urban linkages. Addressing these gaps requires integrated policy interventions that combine agricultural development strategies, social protection programmes, institutional reforms, and improved access to credit, markets, and extension services. Strengthening these interventions will enhance rice productivity, reduce rural poverty, and contribute to sustainable food security and agricultural development in Nigeria.
Keywords: poverty, rice productivity, agricultural development, bidirectional relationship
