ASSESSING THE EFFECTS OF FINANCIAL INCLUSION ON LIVELIHOOD SUSTAINABILITY OF SMALLHOLDER FARMERS IN ADAMAWA STATE, NIGERIA

This study assesses the effects of financial inclusion on the livelihood sustainability of smallholder farmers in Adamawa State, Nigeria, using a sample of 1,728,800 smallholder farmers purposively selected from nine (9) LGAs across the state's three senatorial zones. A multi-stage sampling approach was used to select respondents. The data was collected through a structured questionnaire administered to 400 farmers; 377 completed and returned questionnaires were used for analysis. The structural equation modelling tool was employed in the study, and the findings demonstrate that market access and price and income streams exert a significant positive effect on the livelihoods of smallholder farmers, as indicated by coefficients of 0.66 and 0.21, respectively, thus indicating a strong positive relationship. Furthermore, the findings revealed a non-statistically significant negative relationship between digital financial literacy and the livelihoods of smallholder farmers, as indicated by a -0.02 coefficient. The study recommends that regulatory authorities and financial institutions should prioritise the development of infrastructure (roads, storage facilities, and market facilities), especially in rural areas, to improve smallholder farmers' market access. Farmers should be encouraged to strengthen their groups/cooperatives to boost their bargaining power and secure better prices. The government should design initiatives to support smallholder farmers in accessing new income streams, such as grants for agro-processing and skills training for off-farm work, and expand access to financial services for farmers, such as mobile money and microcredit, to support farmers' livelihoods in Adamawa State. Additionally, authorities should integrate digital financial literacy programs into broader agricultural development strategies, such as linking digital skills to access to finance and to digital markets, rather than focusing solely on digital financial literacy.