RURAL-URBAN INTERDEPENDENCE ON FUEL WOOD IN ANAMBRA STATE, NIGERIA

Thesis Abstract

This study examined the rural-urban interdependence on fuel wood in Anambra State,Nigeria using cross-sectional data. The study used purposive and random samplingtechniques for the selection of 120 gatherers that constituted respondents for thestudy. The study employed descriptive and relevant inferential statistics for dataanalysis. The findings of the study revealed that out of the 14 indicators of theimportance of forest examined in the study, the respondents were aware of 11 asimportance of forest to people in the study area. The linear regression analysis withan R2 of 0.702 showed that about 70% of the total variations in the income from fuelwood were caused by the specified independent variables in the model. On ruralurbaninterdependence on forest, (79%) of money and income related benefits flowfrom urban to rural areas; (88%) of benefits relating to innovative ideas on forestrymanagement and conservation flow from urban to rural areas, about (68%) of forestrelated market information spread from urban areas to the people in rural areas whileabout (55%) of awareness of the importance of forest and its related products flowfrom the urban to rural.About (78%) of benefits in the form of forest related jobopportunities spread from rural to urban areas. Using a factor loading of 0.30, thefactors that constrain rural-urban flow of fuel wood in the area were sociofinancial;infrastructural/institutional; and distributive factors. The result of theprobit model with an R2 of 0.892 indicated that about (89%) of the total variations inthe decision of the respondents to either invest in forest development or not werecaused by the specified independent variables in the model. Based on the abovefindings, it was recommended that government should ensure the provision of goodfeeder and major road network between rural and urban areas in the state, that forsmooth flow of fuel wood, marketing channels should be encouraged in order tohasten distribution of the fuel wood among others.