ENTREPRENEURIAL COMPETENCY NEEDS OF SECONDARY SCHOOL GRADUATES IN COMMERCIAL PLANTAIN PLANTATION MANAGEMENT PRODUCTION IN ABIA AND IMO STATES, NIGERIA.

Abstract

The study focused on identification and packaging of entrepreneurial competencies in commercial plantain plantation production for training secondary school graduates for employment in Abia and Imo States.  The study had three (3) specific purposes while one (1) null hypothesis was formulated and tested at 0.05 level of significance.  The population of the study was 1434 made up of 644 agricultural science teachers, 766 extension agents and 34 registered plantain plantation management farmers.  The sample for the study was 316 made up of 129 agricultural science teachers, 153 extension agents and 34 registered plantain plantation management farmers.  Structured questionnaire was used to obtain data from the respondents.  The questionnaire was face validated by five (5) experts.  Cronbach Alpha Method was used to determine the internal consistency of the structured questionnaire; a reliability coefficient of 0.88 was obtained.  The data collected was analyzed using Weighted Mean and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) to test the hypothesis of no significant difference at probability of less than or equal to 0.05. The study found out that: secondary school graduates needed 59 entrepreneurial competencies for employment in plantain nursery. The study also found out that there was no significant difference in the mean ratings of the responses of Agricultural Science teachers, Extension agents and plantain plantation management farmers on 57 out of 59 competencies in commercial plantain nursery needed by secondary school graduates for employment in commercial plantain nursery production.  Based on the findings, the study recommended that Abia and Imo State governments should direct the administrators of skill acquisition centres in the two states to integrate the identified competencies in commercial plantain plantation production and packaged plantain management programme into programmes of skill acquisition centres for training secondary school graduates for employment.