IAR Journal of Engineering and Technology ISSN Print : 2708-5155 | ISSN Online : 2708-5163 Frequency : Bi-Monthly Language : English Origin : Kenya Website : https://www.iarconsortium.org/journal-info/IARJET Fuel Wood Agro Business and Its Domestic Usage in Ngor Okpala Local Government Council of Imo State, Nigeria Article History Abstract: This paper examined the major facts which motivate households’ decisions to engage in agro business of fuelwood, determined the most preferred Received: 29. 01.2021 fuel wood species and availability of income inequality among selected Revision: 07. 02.2021 communities. The study sampled six selected communities in the Ngor Okpala Accepted: 19.02.2021 based on poverty and rural dependence mode. The paper used the simple random Published: 28.02.2021 sample along with a structured questionnaire to get information from respondents. Author Details The results showed that, increased in travel cost and cost of access to forested C.O OSUAGWU1, OBI-IHEBIE, U.I1 and K.I. sites impact negatively on the number of visits for fuel wood. The study further OSUAGWU2 revealed that, benefits from fuel wood agro business in terms of reducing income Authors Affiliations inequality differ from community to community. The study recommended that, 1 government and international organizations should facilitate the cultivation forest Department of Agricultural Extension Management, Imo State Polytechnic Umuagwo, P.M.B 1472, sites solely for fuel wood harvest to ensure environmental sustainability. In Owerri, Nigeria addition, fuel wood harvesters must be taught forest management and 2 conservation strategies in Imo State, Nigeria Department of Health Services, Federal University of Technology, P.M.B 1526, Owerri, Imo State, Keywords: Fuel Wood, Agro Business, Domestic Usage, Inequality, Forest Management Nigeria Corresponding Author* NTRODUCTION C.O OSUAGWU I Fuelwood studies have given rather less attention to the effect of How to Cite the Article: C.O OSUAGWU, OBI-IHEBIE, U.I & K.I. urban demand on fuelwood production and supply than to most other OSUAGWU (2021 Fuel Wood Agro Business aspects. The tendency to regard fuelwood as mainly the concern of rural and Its Domestic Usage in Ngor Okpala Local producers and consumers discouraged the study of the commercial Government Council of Imo State, Nigeria organization of the fuelwood industry, and of the role of fuelwood in the .IAR J Eng Tech, 2(1), 104-110. development process. Whilst it is highly probable that most fuelwood use lies outside the monetary economy, nevertheless there is growing, even substantial, evidence of the use of fuelwood in towns (including charcoal) for both domestic and industrial purposes (Osuagwu and Osuagwu, 2020). There is evidence too of the purchase of fuelwood by a small proportion of rural consumers, particularly those who are not farmers or who have higher incomes. Fuel wood has been further defined to be wood whose form is rough and could be branches of trees, logs, sawdust, pellets and twigs mainly for energy generation (Akther et al.,., 2010). Fuel wood has played significant role in domestic and commercial energy consumption world over. Cook et al.,., (2008) estimated approximately about two billion people world over use biomass in the form of fuel wood and charcoal for cooking and heating. These people have depended on these natural resources for their survival for a very long period of time. Human beings have always had a close relationship with environmental resources and therefore take their livelihood from it. Twerefou and Ababio (2012) put it that, more than half of the developing world inhabitants who are considered very active depend in part or whole on the environment which could be hunting, fishing, agriculture, forestry and so on. Forest and environmental resources are considered to have played an important role in both rural and urban livelihoods but particular reference is given to rural livelihood (Walelign, 2013). The rural inhabitants often subsisted through dependence on forest resources and the environment. Kiflu et al., (2009) explained that, researchers on fuelwood use in developing regions of Africa, Asia and Latin America believed that, wood fuel was a major factor in tropical deforestation and thus, accounted for forests loss and widespread wood fuel shortages. However, other studies disproved the notion that, wood fuel harvesting is a direct cause of deforestation since most wood fuel demand is met by trees and shrubs growing outside of forest areas and from farm clearance (Heltberg, et al.,., 2000). Imo State’s fuelwood consumption is been increasing for both urban and rural inhabitants. This invariably has motivated many people to engage in commercial harvest of the fuel wood. Fuelwood is still widely used as a dominant energy among all classes of people across sub Saharan Africa and Nigeria is no exception (Amuah, 2011). 104 C.O OSUAGWU, et al., IAR J Eng Tech; Vol-2, Iss- 1 (Jan-Feb, 2021):104-110 Dominance in fuelwood agro business has had method. The results showed that, a daily average of gender dimension in Nigeria both rural and urban areas 91.9 tons of wood was harvested from the forest and and could relate to gender dimension to poverty and transported into Kaduna State through various classes livelihood alternatives. Women in most cases in the of vehicles. Approximately, about 15% of the harvested rural settings in Nigeria undertake major part of the wood had a diameter of less than 5cm, 40% (5.1–10 farm activities including walking to distant places to cm), 14% (10.1–15 cm), 16% (15.1–20 cm) and 15% (> gather fuel wood. Osuagwu and Osuagwu (2020) stated 20 cm). They revealed harvesters did not use any that gathering and collecting fuelwood alongside their specific scientific method of harvesting and the rate of farming activities involve women walking long regeneration and/or replacement planting trees were distances and this impact negatively on women. below the rate of harvesting. They viewed the demand Azeez et al.,., (2014) further opined that, to achieve for fuel wood, poverty level, the harvesting cost, and poverty reduction based on forest products, there has to availability of fuel alternatives would affect the rate of be an increase in the creation of wealth through forest wood harvesting. They recommended that, Government products production, processing and marketing, and to at all levels; NGO (Non-Governmental Organisations) streamline mechanisms to guarantee that some of that and CBO (Community Based Organisations) should wealth is captured by the intended beneficiaries. Thus, expand the forest and at the same time put in place a commercialization of fuel wood perhaps could enhance sustainable method of harvesting. This support the welfare. intent of the current study as fuelwood harvesters in the The objective of the study was to assess fuelwood study area share similar characteristics. agro business and domestic usage in selected rural areas of Imo State, Nigeria. The specific objectives were to: ATERIALS AND ETHODS identify the major factors which motivate households’ M M decision to engage in agro business of fuelwood in The study was conducted in Ngor Okpala Local Ngor Okpala, Imo State, Nigeria. Determine the most Government of Imo State of the cattle corridor. preferred fuelwood specie by households and Ngor Okpala is a Local Government Area of Imo availability of income inequality among participating State, Nigeria. Its headquarters is in the town of communities in Ngor Okpala, Imo State, Nigeria. Umuneke Ngor. It has an area of 561 km²; it has a Establish fuelwood agro business and domestic usage in population of 159,932 at the 2006 census. It is a notable sampled communities in Ngor Okpala, Imo State, place in Imo state because of the LGA's locational Nigeria. position. Ngor Okpala Local Government Area in Imo A study by Azeez et al., (2014) on the utilization State of Nigeria which is located in the rain forest belt pattern and economic evaluation of fuelwood of Nigeria; was carved out of Owerri North and Owerri Municipal. Ngor Okpala lie between latitude 5o 25`N enterprise: A case study of some areas in Ibadan o 0 o Metropolis, Oyo State, Nigeria to evaluate the and 5 31`N and longitude 6 59`E and 7 04`E. Ngor profitability and factors influencing fuelwood Okpala has a land area of about 12, 145 square profitability among marketers in the study area. They kilometers, with population of about 950,000. employed descriptive and quantitative techniques in the Climatically, Ngor Okpala is characterized with heavy analysis of the data. The result showed that majority of rainfall pattern averaging about 1900mm (190cm) per households used fuelwood for cooking purposes and annum, temperature ranging from 220 C-340 C daily that the marketing of this product is highly profitable. (Imo State Government, 2007). The area was chosen The average Profitability Index for all farms was 0.75, because most of the inhabitants are engaged in various indicating that out of every N10 earned; about N7.5 types of farming; this is justified by the presence of accrue to the marketer as profit after accounting for all thick forests in the area which from time origin. The cost. Therefore marketing of fuel wood holds a great maps of the study area and the state are shown in potential for income generation as it was found to be a Figures 1 and 2 below. very profitable business. This justifies for the current Primary data were collected by a pre tested semi- study in this area considering the fact that, both structured questionnaire administered through face to face locations have higher rates of employment. interviews to capture the underlying social, cultural and Taiye and Emmanuel (2015) examined the economic data. Data collected included age, sex of the sustainability of fuelwood harvesting from Afaka Forest household head, size of the grazing land owned, access to Reserve in Kaduna State, Nigeria.