CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Rural development is a process of planned change for which one approach or the other is adopted for improvement and transformation of the rural populace. It is a process of ensuring that the poorer section of the population has some share in the fruit of the economic activity. It is the means by which the provision of social services for the rural population is combined with the promotion of economic growth.
In order to bring about real development in the rural areas, there must exist active collaboration between government, non-governmental agencies, the private sector and the rural communities themselves. Only such collective attempts can improve the quality of life of those communities and significantly reduce the rate of rural–urban migration.
The problems of our urban centers cannot be solved unless those of the rural areas are first solved. Rural–urban migration is functional to rural development and also to the continual development of the urban areas and therefore needs to be stemmed. In order to do this, those facilities and opportunities that exist in the urban centers need to be available to the rural dwellers in the rural areas. Rural development as a concept and as a programme of action has therefore attracted so much attention and material resources that it has become enthroned as an article of faith in the development of many third countries with the conviction that rural development is the wonder formula for replacing rural poverty with rural prosperity in the third world, national government, development agencies and relevant international organizations across rural development in almost all the third world countries. Many people view, rural development to be agricultural development, to some; it is primarily concerned with welfare. These views are myopic because rural development should include the political lives of the rural dwellers and should be relevant to the alleviation of all the conditions associated with the rural sector. It is true that economic box of the rural people is agriculture, but beyond food. They also need education, employment, decent housing, medical care, electricity, good roads and other means of communication.
The rural development task environment is an inter-governmental, supra ministerial, organizational world which is important by a myriad of complex, large-scale, formal and informal organizations, public and private organizations.
Dallam (2003) therefore, conceptualizes rural development as involving four levels of functioning in organization.
– A planned programme of action through national formulated policies
– Self – help through community mobilization and participation
– Technical assistance through a large pool integration of federal recruited professionals.
– Integration of various specialists through a systematic approach to rural development. From this perspective, the motional planning process would start from the grass roots by ascertaining from the people, their needs and this will make maximum achievement of plan programmes. It will therefore relate projects to local resources base and eliminate the bare wagon effect by which communities proliferate the same projects over shorts distances without regard to their optimum utilization; rural-urban migration in Nigeria therefore is a steady flow of young school leavers from the rural areas to the urban areas. Reasons for this rural urban migration are to search for job opportunities that will improve one’s standard of living. Another reason is that people like living or residing in a suitable environment. The third point why people migrate from rural to urban areas is to escape from religions, political and social situation of knowledge and skill.
Almost all the universities and other institution of higher learning are located in urban cities. Those seeking for higher education therefore move to the urban areas in other to attend these institutions. Due to inadequate modern facilities in rural areas, life in rural areas is generally dull. There are no social amenities such as electricity, pipe born water, good and quality health centers. Also there are no social activities like luxury restaurants, hotels, social entertainment centers and good road networks etc. Many youths move to urban areas for the sole purpose of enjoying these facilities.
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
This project was meant to find out the effect of rural urban migration on agricultural production. The effect of rural-urban migration among the youths on agriculture cannot be overemphasized. The rural areas in Nigeria are endowed with both human and material resources, unfortunately, these potentials are yet to be harnessed and used for agricultural and rural development. According to Iruonage (2009), “Useful natural resources, which can be harnessed for socio-economic development, abound in Nigeria particularly in the rural areas.” Therefore, the migration of youths from rural areas to cities in search of better life, is taking away the potential youths who are capable of developing the rural areas. The inequality between the rural and urban areas in the provision of basic facilities is another major factor responsible for rural –urban migration among the youths in Nigeria. Most of the rural areas in Nigeria lack basic amenities such as electricity, water, good roads, clinics and good housing. These usually push the youths to migrate to the urban areas in order to access these amenities. Other challenges faced by the youths in rural areas are, low agriculture productivity and low standard of living. All these factors encouraged the migration of youths from rural to urban centers
1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The broad objective of this study was to determine the effects of rural-urban migration on agricultural production in Umuahia North Local Government Area. The specific objectives were to:
1. To identify the socio-economic characteristics of the people of Umuahia North Local Government Area.
2. To ascertain the causes of rural-urban migration in Umuahia North Local Government Area
3. To examine the involvement of youths in agricultural production in Umuahia North Local Government Area;
4. To find out the various activities engaged by rural youths in the study area.
5. To determine the effects of rural urban migration on agricultural production.
6. To examine the problems of rural-urban migration;
7. To make necessary recommendations based on the findings.
1.4 RESEARCH HYPOTHESES
Since research preposition are meant to test the validity of assumption, the following null and alternate hypotheses are stated for the purpose of this study.
H0: rural urban migration has no influence on the social well-being and agricultural production in the society.
H1: rural urban migration has an influence on the social well-being and agricultural production in the society.
H0: there is no significant relationship between rural urban migration and agricultural production in the society.
H2: there is a significant relationship between rural urban migration and agricultural production in the society.
1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
It is expected that at the end of the study the findings will provide fresh and much needed inputs on the possible effects of rural-urban migration on agricultural production to the ministry of agricultural, farmers, policy makers, planners and institutions of learning too. Specifically; the study will help to educate the mind of the individual, policy makers and the government to see the need to formulate policies for integrated rural development to check rural-urban drift in our society.
It will tackles the problems that force people to leave their rural origin, by bridging the development gap between urban and rural areas through the introduction of sound rural development strategies and effective urban management. It will also help to provide information for planners and policy makers to formulate and implement population redistribution or migration policy. The significance of the study would help the youth and entire society to know the negative and positive effects on rural-urban migration on agricultural production and how to found a solution to the problems. The findings will be of importance to researchers/students intending to work on related topics.
1.6 SCOPE AND LIMITATION OF THE STUDY
The scope of this study centers on the effect of rural urban migration on agricultural production, particularly the kind of migration that we are principally interested in in this study is rural to urban migration, which is the movement of people from country side to city areas. The researcher encountered some constraint in the course of the study which include:
Time factor: The time allocated to the researcher during the period of the study was limited coupled with lectures and exams.
Financial constraint: the finance at the disposal of the researcher during the course of the study wasn’t sufficient enough to run the expenses of the research work.
1.7 DEFINITION OF TERMS
Rural-urban migration: Some migrations are forced, voluntary, permanent and temporary, International and regional. The type of migration that we are principally interested in in this unit is Rural to urban migration, which is the movement of people from countryside to city areas.
Migration: This means the movement of people from one place to another. Teriba (1982) sees migration as the movement of people from one civil division to another.
Settlement: This is a place where people live.
Emigration: It is the movement of people out of a country.
Immigration: This is the movement of people into country.
Net migration: The difference between the number of immigration and emigrants.
Immigrant: These are people that move into a country.
Emigrants: These are people that engage in the movement out of a country.
Agricultural productivity: Agricultural productivity is measured as the ratio of agricultural outputs to agricultural inputs. While individual products are usually measured by weight, their varying densities make measuring overall agricultural output difficult. Therefore, output is usually measured as the market value of final output, which excludes intermediate products such as corn feed used in the meat industry. This output value may be compared to many different types of inputs such as labour and land (yield).
Social environment: The social environment, social context, sociocultural context or milieu refers to the immediate physical and social setting in which people live or in which something happens or develops. It includes the culture that the individual was educated or lives in, and the people and institutions with whom they interact.
1.8 HISTORY OF UMUAHIA NORTH LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA
Umuahia north local government area was established shortly after independence formally in 1961-1964, the local government was under district council headed by District Officer (DO). Umuahia generally was under Bende district until 7th August 1976 when local government system came into being in Nigeria. By 1976, Ikwuano Umuahia became one separated local government with the headquarter in umuahia in 1991when umuahia was carved out from old Imo state when new state were created. Ikwuano now became a separated local government from the entire Umuahia. In 1996, they now divided Umuahia into two parts namely Umuahia north housing the capital territory and its environs.The headquarter of umuahia north is umuahia.Another one is the umuahia south which was also carved out from umuahia.
In Umuahia north local government of Abia state, there exist Eight (8) departments which include thus:
i. Administration Department
ii. Environment Health Department
iii. Health Department
iv. Finance Department
v. Planning and Statistics Department
vi. Social development and Adult Education Department
vii. Agric Department
viii. Works Department
These eight departments that exist in Umuahia North local government area have their different Head of Department (HOD) that heads each department.
The first chairman that headed Umuahia North local government was Mr. Echeghika Akpunku Iheuwa under the governorship of Ike Nwosu. The previous executive chairman by name Royal High Chief Princewill Ikechukwu Ukaegbu left the seat on 21st January 2010 after completing his tenor. Presently, Umuahia North Local government has no executive chairman rather they have the Head of service (HOS) whose name is J.O.C Kalu.
J.O.C Kalu is the one heading Umuahia North Local government until another executive chairman is elected.
Umuahia North Local government area is made up of twenty (20) political wards and 48 Autonomous communities.
1.9 ORGANIZATION OF THE STUDY
This research work is organized in five chapters, for easy understanding, as follows Chapter one is concern with the introduction, which consist of the (overview, of the study), statement of problem, objectives of the study, research question, significance or the study, research methodology, definition of terms and historical background of the study. Chapter two highlight the theoretical framework on which the study is based, thus the review of related literature. Chapter three deals on the research design and methodology adopted in the study. Chapter four concentrate on the data collection and analysis and presentation of finding. Chapter five gives summary, conclusion, and recommendations made of the study.

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