ANALYSIS OF MULTIDIMENSIONAL POVERTY AMONG FARM HOUSEHOLDS IN SELECTED LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREAS OF OSUN STATE.

This study investigates the prevalence of multidimensional poverty among farm households in Osun State, Nigeria. Two local governments consisting of Osogbo and Ife Central with two communities each were assessed. The study was to; describe the socio-economic characteristics of the farm households in the study area, estimate the multidimensional poverty indices of the farm households, determine the gender most vulnerable to multidimensional poverty among the respondents, determine the contribution of the different dimensions to poverty intensity and describe the constraints faced by farm households in fighting multidimensional poverty in the study area. Employing the multidimensional poverty index (MPI) to analyzed the data obtained from a survey of 122 farm households across two local government area in the state. The results reveal a multidimensional poverty index (MPI) of 0.45, indicating that approximately 55.20% of farm households experience deprivation in at least one dimension. The multidimensional poverty of gender showed that 78 males comprising of 86.66% were vulnerable to poverty than the female with 12 (13.33%). The most prevalent deprivations were found in the social security (41.68%), living standard (24.49%), employment and income (15.71%), health (11.59%), and education (6.52%). These findings underscore the need for targeted interventions addressing the specific deprivations faced by farm households in selected local government areas of Osun State, to foster inclusive agricultural development and poverty reduction.