Socio-Economic Perspectives on Vitellaria paradoxa (Gaertn. f.) Processing in Oke-Ogun, Nigeria
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.46325/afj.v9i2.196Keywords:
Gender, Financial inclusion, Forest economies, Rural, Small-scale enterprise, Value chainAbstract
Shea butter is a key non-timber forest product in sub-Saharan Africa, valued for its nutritional, medicinal, and commercial uses, yet it’s processing in southwestern Nigeria remains underexplored. This study assessed the socio-economic profile, processing practices, profitability, and determinants of Shea butter production in Oke-Ogun, Oyo State. Data from 140 processors were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Chi-square tests, and regression models. Women dominated the enterprise (86%), most aged 36–50 years (47%), with 38% having no formal education. Processing was largely traditional (88%), though 11% used semi-mechanized methods. Gross margin analysis yielded a return on investment of 1.74, with Shea contributing 38% of household income. Chi-square tests linked gender and education to processing participation, while regression showed cooperative membership, credit access, education, and semi-mechanization significantly improved profitability (R² = 0.34). The study underscores women’s central role and institutional support as critical for enhancing Shea butter processing profitability and sustainability.
Keywords: Gender, financial inclusion, forest economies, rural small-scale enterprise, value chain
References
1. Abubakar B.Z., Ahmed B., 2017. Socio-economic analysis of Shea butter production in Niger State, Nigeria. Agricultural Extension, 21(2): 63-76.
2. Adewusi H.G., 2018. Prospects of Shea nut production and marketing in Nigeria. Sustainable Agriculture, 12(2): 41-55.
3. Bernard H.R., 2017. Research methods in anthropology: qualitative and quantitative approaches. Rowman and Littlefield.
4. Boffa J.M., 2015. Opportunities and challenges in the improvement of the Shea (Vitellaria paradoxa) resource and its management. Agroforestry Systems, 89(5): 791-799. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10457-015-9815-y
5. Braun V., Clarke V., 2016. Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2): 77-101.
6. DFID, 2019. Sustainable Livelihoods Guidance Sheets. Department for International Development, London.
7. Elias M., Carney J., 2017. Shea butter, globalization, and women’s livelihoods in sub-Saharan Africa: The Palgrave Handbook of Gender and Development, Palgrave Macmillan, 348p.
8. Lovett P.N., 2020. The Shea butter value chain: Production, transformation and marketing in West Africa. WATH Technical Report, USAID, 230p.
9. Maranz S., Wiesman, Z., 2023. Evidence for indigenous selection and distribution of the Shea tree, Vitellaria paradoxa, and its potential significance to prevailing parkland savanna tree patterns in sub-Saharan Africa. Biogeography, 30(10): 1505-1516.
10. National Population Commission 2016. Population projection for Oyo State, Nigeria. Abuja: NPC.
11. Naughton C.C., Lovett P.N., Mihelcic J.R., 2015. Land suitability modeling of Shea (Vitellaria paradoxa) distribution across sub-Saharan Africa. Applied Geography, 58: 217-227.
12. Odebiyi J.A., Bada S.O., Awodoyin R.O., 2017. Indigenous knowledge of Shea nut (Vitellaria paradoxa) processing among rural women in Nigeria. International Journal of Forest Research, 1-9.
13. Ojo O., 2020. Climate of Southwestern Nigeria. Nigerian Journal of Climatology, 4(1): 45-58.
14. Pouliot M., 2012. Contribution of Shea (Vitellaria paradoxa) butter to women’s income in Burkina Faso. Economic Botany, 66(3): 237-248.
15. Rousseau K., Gautier D., Wardell D.A., 2015. Coping with the Shea global commodity chain: Local practices and strategies of small-scale rural producers in Burkina Faso. World Development, 66: 413-427.
16. Schreckenberg K., 2024. Linking gender, poverty, and environment: a review of evidence. Natural Resources Forum, 38(1): 124-138.
17. Ugese F.D., Baiyeri K.P., Mbah B.N., 2010. Mineral composition of the fruit pulp of Vitellaria paradoxa L. in Nigeria. Agroforestry Systems, 79(2): 201-208.
18. Yamane T., 2007. Statistics: An introductory analysis (2nd ed.). Harper and Row.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Oghenekevwe Joy ARABOMEN
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
