Repayment Performance among Cassava Farmer-Beneficiaries of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) In Abia State, Nigeria

Main Article Content

K. C. Obike
C. K Osondu

Abstract

This study investigated repayment performance among cassava farmer-beneficiaries of microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Abia state, Nigeria. The instrument for data collection used was a semi structured and pre-tested questionnaire. Multistage random sampling technique was used to select 120 cassava MFI- farmer beneficiaries. The period of data collection under review covered a duration of five years (2005 – 2010).  Data collected was analyzed using descriptive statistics, discriminant function analysis and OLS multiple regression model. The empirical results revealed that the year 2006 under review has the highest average loan recovery rate of 86.0%, while the lowest average loan recovery rate was 78.0%.The result also revealed that 88 out of 90 MFI cassava farmer beneficiaries were grouped as worthy while 28 out of 30 were grouped as unworthy. The discriminant function analysis was significant at 1.0% with a canonical correlation of 0.795, wilk Lambda of 0.227 and a chi-square of 237.126  More so, cassava farmers with better education, larger farm sizes, good farming experience, extension supervision and low total operating expenditure to income ratio were credit worthy. However, cassava farmer MFI beneficiaries with lower loan to asset ratio were set to be non- credit worthy. Cassava farmers who repaid their loan according to the linear regression were those with better education, high loan volume and extension supervision all these variables had positive relationship to loan repayment. More so, the result revealed that farmers with more years of farming experience and late loan disbursement defaulted in their loan repayment. It is therefore, recommended that education and extension supervision should form a major trust in policy formulation in microfinance institution administration in Nigeria.

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Section
Articles/Agricultural Economics, Rural Sociology & Extension

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