Abstract

Maize is an important staple food in Nigeria; however, Nigeria’s local maize production only meets about 60% of its demand due to low yield (t/ha). The low maize yield has been linked to limited technology adoption, while finance has been identified to strongly impact technology adoption. Using a qualitative approach, data were collected through focus group discussions and interviews to identify the typology of existing practices, the technology used and the role of finance in the degree of adoption by smallholder maize farmers. The results indicated that finance was available in the study area, and the smallholder maize farmers’ ability to adopt and combine varying degrees of technology can be attributed to the accessibility and affordability of finance. The study identified inadequate collateral, timeliness of disbursement and, more importantly, misconception as significant constraints affecting smallholder maize farmers’ financing. Based on the respondents’ preference for government source of finance due to its accessibility and affordability, the government is best placed in providing finance for smallholder maize farmers. The study suggests the need for a mechanism to review collaterals and documentation requested from the smallholder farmers by finance providers and the creation of awareness about finance schemes pre-cultivation season.

Key words: Availability, accessibility, affordability, finance, technology adoption, Maize, Nigeria.