ASSESSING THE IMPACT OF VOCATIONAL AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION ON YOUTH ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT IN RIVERS STATE

The study examined the influence of Vocational Agricultural Education on Poverty reduction among youth in Rivers State. The objectives were to identify how youth can earn a living through vocational agricultural education in Rivers State, determine the extent to which vocational agricultural education has achieved its objectives, among others. The study employed a descriptive survey design. Four (4) higher institutions that offer vocational agricultural education as a course were used. All vocational agricultural education lecturers and students totaling 31 and 285 respectively make up the population for the study and were used as the sample size. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire designed in Likert-5 point rating scale of agreement. The reliability of the instrument was tested using Crombach alpha and was found to be reliable at 0.82 reliability coefficient. Data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) with acceptance mean value of 3.00, while z-test was used for hypothesis testing at 0.05% level of significances. The study found that majority of the respondents agreed that vocational agricultural education can earn youth a living in Rivers State which brings about employment opportunities; provides means of livelihood, increases income generating opportunities, among others. It also revealed that most of the objectives of VAE were not achieved such as; increase involvement in fishery production, increase enrollment into vocational agricultural education, competitive act in production, increase involvement in crop production, among others. Furthermore, the study revealed that factors such as lack of demonstration farm, insufficient land, lack of practical orientation, poor funding, poor staffing, poor policy implementation among others affects the implementation of vocational agricultural education in Rivers State. The study therefore recommend that, vocationa l agricultural education should be taught practically to allow students acquire  requisite skills needed to take up agriculture as an occupation after school, higher institutions should establish demonstration farms to allow  students be involved or participate fully in practical agriculture during their study time in the institution.