Financial Intervention (Loan, Grant, & Incentive) and Food Security in Calabar Education Zone
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Abstract
This study focused on financial interventions (loans, grants, and incentives) and their impact on food security in the Calabar Education Zone. This study’s main aims were to investigate the influence of access to financial interventions on food security and analyze the effectiveness of financial intervention programs in enhancing agricultural production and minimizing food insecurity. In the course of this research, a descriptive survey research design was employed. The total population of this study was 1,954,648 people living in the five Local Government Areas within the zone, as projected in 2025 based on a 3.5% growth rate. A total sample of 399 people was calculated using Taro Yamane’s sampling technique and selected using stratified and simple random sampling methods. Data collection instruments were structured questionnaires, which covered a ten-year period from 2015 to 2024. Descriptive statistics and independent samples t test were used for data analysis. From the first data analysis results, there was a consistent trend of increase in financial interventions, where accessibility to loans went from 21 in 2015 to 61 in 2022, grants from 18 to 67, and incentives from 17 to 64. The scores of food security outcomes also changed from 19 in 2015 to 56 in 2024. In the second analysis, it was found out that there was an increase in financial intervention score from 18 in 2015 to 58 in 2022, agricultural productivity score from 17 to 55, and food security outcomes from 19 to 56 from 2015 to 2022. However, slight changes were witnessed in 2023. The output of the independent samples t-test indicated a statistically significant difference in the means of food security score of households that had access to financial intervention and those that did not, which gave rise to t value 3.214 and significance level 0.005. The mean food security score of households with financial interventions stood at 45.10 compared to 28.70 for households that did not have access to interventions. This study therefore established that financial interventions had a outstanding impact on agricultural productivity and food security.
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