informal Survey stationed in TRD3. The main purpose was to find out tile extent of thle
labor problems revealed in the informal survey. The survey was also exThe informal survey was conducted 12-21 October 1982. The purpose of pected to provide a better understanding of the gender roles. Thle number
thle informal survey was twofold. One objective was to make a sample of workers and areas planted to different crops for each of thle nine finisurvey of the areas to check the characterization of the TRD established in lies are given in Table 9-4. Three of the families owned trained and Uinthe zoning survey. The second objective was to gather information to de- trained oxen and one family owned two cows.
termine the farming systems in use and to help formulate on-farm research trials to overcome production problems. A total of twenty-four randomly selected farmers were interviewed by the ARPT staff in selected FINDINGS FROM THE DIAGNOSTIC ACTIVITIES
areas within TRD3. The survey work was aided by the close cooperation of the extension personnel in the areas surveyed. The informal survey in- Resources for Production
volved group meetings with the selected farmers who were informally asked a variety of questions ranging from agricultural production to social As mentioned earlier, access to land is unlimited. Land is either slashed
organization, including how information was transmitted within an area. and burned (cbitirnene)2 or stumped (completely cleared). The latter is
According to thle informal survey, the characteristics of the small-scale preferred for hybrid maize cultivation. However, cleared and Stumped
commercial farmer are as follows:
Main starch Laple Maize, millets, sorghum, and Table 9-2
cassava 1981/1982 Crop Production (N=24)
Main inputs purchased Fertilizer, seed, and pesticides
Main source of cash Deliberate production of cash- Number of Average hla Av'erage yield/ha
crop surplus for sale, and sale Farmers Cultivated (bags) (kg)
of livestock; some production Maize 21 2.2 11.6 1,044
of new cash crops (cotton, Sunflowers 5 1.2 4.3 215
sunflowers, etc.) Cotton 3 1.2 218
Power source I land and one or two pairs of Sorghum 2 1.2 11.0 990
oxen and oxen hire; possible Groundnuts 2 0.4 13.4 1,072
tractor hire Beans 1 0.8 7.3 657
Labor hired Family, communal, and casual Source: Informal Survey (1982).
Farm size 0.25-5 hectares
Table 9-2 summarizes the crop Production of farmers interviewed Table 9-3
during the informal survey; Table 9-3, sources of cash income in addition Sources of Income Other Than Crop Sales (N=24)
to crop sales. Farmers were reluctant to state how much of their production was sold or stored. Figure 9-3 shows thle pattern of food shortages re- Number of Number of
pomied by these farmers. Source Farmers Source Farmers
Selling beer 11 Selling groceries
Family remittances 7 Hiring out oxen
]Labor Use Survey Selling vegetables 3 Selling bananas
Selling chicken and eggs 2 Working as a blacksmith 1
A supplementary labor survey was undertaken from November 1982 to Selling fish 2 Working as a painter 1
October 1983. A detailed questionnaire was administered to ten house- Baking buns 2 Selling rnunkolu
Working on other farms 2 Operating a grinding mill I
holds in TRI)3 on a daily basis. Thle analysis of the nine completed stir- Selling livestock I Making bricks
veys was finished in 1984. Thle survey was supervised by an ARPT Selling charcoal I _______________economist, while the questionnaires were administered by an enumerator Source: Informal survey (1982). -