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Assessment Of Women Involvement In Oil Palm Processing
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Before the boom in crude oil sector which has become the mainstay of the
economy, the country depended an agriculture particularly oil palm
fruit processing and marketing in the Southeastern state. During the
past decade, Nigeria has become the net importer of palm oil from
Malaysia. Nigeria’s palm oil production which in the past accounted for
43% of the world production now only account for 7% of the world
production (National Agriculture Project, 1997).
1.2 STATEMENT OF
PROBLEM Several traditional methods of oil palm processing still abound
in the study area including manual separation of kernels from fibre
after maceration, pounding in a mortar, squeezing out of oil by hand and
water displacement.
However, most of these processes are being
replaced by modern method (Omereji, 2005). The oil palm processors are
seen to be reluctant to adopt modern processing technique. Beside this,
virtually all the processors engage in small scale of oil palm
production leading to decrease in the total quantity of product. Not
withstanding this rapid decline in palm oil production, oil palm fruit
processing still provides for about 70% of rural small-scale farmers in
which women forms a great percentage. However, with the tripartite
burden of child bearing, domestic chores and other agricultural
activities, women in the study area are sand witched between several
constraints in the processing of oil palm fruit. Despite the
constraints, the participation of women in processing of oil palm fruit
is increasing as a result of increasing demand of the growing urban
population for palm oil. Since the major processors of oil palm fruits
are the rural farm household in which majority are women, the study is
targeted at the role of women and their constraints in the processing of
oil palm fruit in Etim Ekpo L. G. A. of Akwa Ibom State.
Often
Women’s Voices are ignored when research priorities are set and their
needs are thus not addressed. But for the fact that women contribute
immensely in socio-economic development of the rural areas with less
authority and opportunity than men implies that the socio-economic
constraints militating against their efficient resource management must
be fully understood. This would suggest possible solutions to their
efficient performance. It is against this background that the following
research questions become relevant:- (1) What are the socio-economic
characteristics of oil palm processors? (2) What is the level of women
involvement in oil palm processing in the study area? (3) What are
indigenous knowledge practices used by women oil palm processors in the
study area? (4) What are the different technological practices open to
them in the study area? (5) What are constraints to oil palm processing
faced by women in Etim Ekpo Local Government Area?
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