Abstract

The study examined the agricultural land use of small holders in Agatu Local Government Area of Benue State, Nigeria. It provides both qualitative and quantitative information about the prevailing agricultural land use practices in the study area. Various aspects of the existing agricultural practices (such as land use types, mode of access to land, implements and labour characteristics and agricultural inputs) were examined to ascertain the linkage between the land tenure and agricultural output and income of farmers. The survey covered a sample of 300 farmers drawn from 30 villages using stratified and systematic random sampling procedures. The information on the farming system shows that, a great number of farmers (70%) mostly cultivate small plots using traditional farming implements. The chi-square technique was used to test the relationship between the farmers’ prevailing land tenure practices and the agricultural output of the study area. The results (Chi-square calculated 125.3 and table value 7.82) of the study proved that, land tenure practices has greatly constrained agricultural output of farmers in Agatu Local Government Area of Benue State. The study therefore, recommended: the expansion of Fadama (floodplain) farming, land tenure reformation and farm consolidation, improving the techniques of farming, provision of credits to farmers, formation of co-operatives and provision of infrastructural facilities in the area.

Key words: Land tenure, landuse practices, agricultural output, tenure security.