Abstract
The study examined the strategies for empowering women participation in agricultural production for promoting food security and reduce unemployment in Enugu State, Nigeria. Three specific purposes guided the study while three research questions were answered. The study adopted survey research design. The population for the study was 26 university lecturers of Agricultural Education from University of Nigeria, Nsukka and Enugu State University of Science and Technology. There was no sampling since the population size was manageable. A structured questionnaire containing 26 items was used for data collection. The instrument was face validated by three experts and tested for reliability using Cronbach Alpha method. The reliability coefficient of 0.89 was established. Data were collected through direct contact with the respondents; and analyzed using mean and standard deviation. The findings of the study revealed that women need empowerment in different areas of agriculture such as crop production, fish farming, bee keeping, snail rearing, pig farming, poultry production, pest and disease control, storage of agricultural produce, processing of crop and animal produce and others. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended among others that the state government should provide training for women to acquire relevant skills needed in agricultural production and initiate policies that will target women's access to land, technology and empowerment in order to enhance agricultural production, ensuring food security and reduce unemployment.
Keywords: Food Security, Agricultural Production, Women Empowerment, Unemployment
Publication Date: 2023-09-09