Economics of Livestock Marketing in Gamawa Local Government Area, Bauchi State, Nigeria

The study examined the profitability of livestock marketing in Gamawa Local Government Area, Bauchi State in the year 2012. A combination of both purposive and simple random sampling techniques was employed to collect data from one hundred and twenty marketers, using structured questionnaire. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics, farm budgeting and multiple regression analysis. The result showed that goat and cattle marketers had the mean age, marketing experience and household size of 46 and 40 years, 11 and 13 years, 9 and 13 persons, respectively. In addition, marketing margin and returns per Naira invested per goat and cattle in the study area were N 4,016.66 and N38, 816.6, and N0.14 and N0.26, respectively. The findings revealed that cost of goat acquisition, medication, and labour were significant at P ≤ 0.01, P ≤ 0.05 and P ≤ 0.1, respectively; while in the case of cattle marketing, cost of cattle acquisition, feeding, medication, and labour were significant at P ≤ 0.01, P ≤ 0.05, P ≤ 0.1 and P ≤ 0.1, respectively. The study identified inadequate credit facilities, lack of market information, high cost of transportation and inadequate housing facilities as the most pressing constraints affecting the system. It was therefore recommended that provision of adequate housing facilities, sources of market information and easing access to credits as well as lowering transportation costs in order to improve in the areas of shortcoming.