IER-08-01-03-pp035--2059-Mukaila 2022, Vol. 8, No. 1 10.15678/IER.2022.0801.03 Agricutural entrepreneurship among the youth: The case of youth involvement in rabbit production in Nigeria Ridwan Mukaila A B S T R A C T Objective: The objective of this study is to examine agripreneurship among youths. Specifically, the study in- vestigates the motivating factors for agripreneurship development among youths, examine the profitability of rabbit production among youth agripreneurs and identified the constraints faced in rabbit production. Research Design & Methods: One hundred and twenty youth agripreneurs involved in rabbit production were selected using the snowball sampling technique and data were collected using a questionnaire. Descriptive statistics, cost and return analysis (gross margin analysis, net profit, operating ratio and return to capital in- vested) and Likert rating scale were means of analysing the data. Findings: The study revealed that the majority of the youth agripreneurs were males (76.7%), single (85.8%) and obtained their capital from personal savings (87.5%). The important factors motivating agripreneurship development among youth were a quest to acquire personal wealth, to boost income, to achieve what one wants to have in life, to be financially independent, to be self-employed, for personal satisfaction and growth, for high self-esteem, desire to do a new thing and to contribute to their household income and needs. Fur- thermore, rabbit production among the youth agripreneur was profitable with a net profit of 339,193.56 NGN (826.21 USD), an operating ratio of 23% and a return on capital invested of 3.41. The major constraints faced by the youth agripreneur in rabbit production were lack of government support, poor extension contacts, inadequate credit facilities and diseases outbreak. Implications & Recommendations: This study calls for governments and Non-Governmental Organizations to support and encourage youths to participate more in agripreneurship through the provision of credits and production inputs for profit maximization and cheap protein availability. Contribution & Value Added: This study contributes to entrepreneurship literature by focusing on agripre- neurship by youth in a view to enhance more participation in agripreneurship. Article type: research article Keywords: agripreneurship; agricultural entrepreneurship; entrepreneurship in agriculture; moti- vating factors; profitability; rabbit farming; youth agripreneurs JEL codes: L26, Q13, L23 Received: 8 November 2021 Revised: 14 December 2021 Accepted: 16 December 2021 Suggested citation: Mukaila, R. (2022). Agricultural entrepreneurship among the youth: The case of youth involvement in rabbit pro- duction in Nigeria. International Entrepreneurship Review, 8(1), 35-46. https://doi.org/10.15678/IER.2022.0801.03 INTRODUCTION Overcoming the high malnutrition level in the world, especially in sub-Saharan Africa where the ma- jority suffer from protein deficiency leading to kwashiorkor among the children, is a global concern. In Nigeria, a major nutritional problem has been the low rate of animal-based protein especially for the low-income farmers (Akinola, 2009). Today, the human population is increasing and as such, protein demand to feed the growing population is on the high side and would not rely on poultry or piggery as a source of white meat. Rather, other white meat animals should be exploited such as rabbit meat which is low in cholesterol and safe for both children and old people. International Entrepreneurship Review RI E 36 | Ridwan Mukaila Youth participation in agripreneurship (agricultural entrepreneurship), especially small livestock rearing, such as rabbit, with little start-up capital, can play a significant role in increasing protein avail- ability at a cheaper rate. In developing countries, there has been an increase in the acknowledgement of rabbit production in recent years as a means to help reduce poverty (Baruwa, 2014). Thus, youth involvement in rabbit production will not only enhance protein availability and solve the malnutrition problem, but also serve as a tool to lower the poverty rate and enhance the employment rate. This is to a large extent attributed to the high prolificacy, early maturity, rapid growth rate, gene selection ability, feed efficiency, ample use of land space, minimal competition for foods with humans and high- quality nutritious meat from the rabbit. Rabbit production seems to be the most viable means of producing excellent quality animal protein for the ever-growing population of Nigeria (Onifade et al., 2010). The major advantages of raising rab- bits include short gestation length, low cost of production, small-bodied size, high prolificacy, rapid growth rate, high adaptability over an extensive range of eco-friendly environments and capability to utilise by-products from agriculture and forages (Abu et al., 2008). Their management requires less land space and can be kept in the backyard of a farmer’s house. Rabbits reach maturity at five months and body mass of slaughter at three months with their ability to survive in both temperate and tropical environments (Iheukwumere, et al., 2018). A well-fed doe can breed four times a year with an average of seven kits per kindling (Onifade, et al., 2010). By feeding on greens alone, rabbits can get their entire feed requirement. Their feed conversion ratio of 4:1 is one of the highest feed conversion ratios among animals (Aduku & Olukosi, 1990). The meat of the rabbit is lustrously white, fine-grained, appetizing and nutritious and is a convenient source of excellent quality animal protein (Hernández & Dalle Zotte, 2010). Rabbit meat is high in protein and low in sodium, cholesterol and fat unlike some other animal protein such as pork, lamb and beef. Rabbits appear to be a low-cost solution to the problems of un- dernutrition and hunger of the poor rural dwellers in developing countries (FAO, 2000). It is one of the principal ways of alleviating animal-based protein deficiency in Nigeria via its advantageous qualities when compared to other animals (Marcus & Onyeonoro, 2018). They are known as animals of great economic significance (Ogbonna, 2015). Rabbit production is a beneficial business with quick returns and also a high probability of re- couping original investment (Oseni &Lukefahr, 2014). Thus, rabbit occupies economic niches not readily available to larger species and particularly useful on the margin of cash economy because it cost less to buy, represents a less financial risk, produces a faster return on investment, allows flexibility of operation, is easily transportable, provides a steady source of income or food and is often a very efficient feed converter (Wilson, 2011). Rabbits are primarily and above all regarded for poverty alleviation programs because of their little financing and early advantages, inherency on housing, general management and renewable resources for feeding. Thus, small-scale rabbit farming could be used as a great medium for the sustenance of livelihood and good nutrition among the youths. Taking into account the number of characteristics that are of great advantage to small- holder rabbit farmers, especially the youths, as well as a greater acknowledgement that rabbit pro- duction has a high level of indispensable potential to improve food security, lower the malnutrition problems and reduce unemployment, a concise study of the economic system is required to ascer- tain the maximum production and profitability of rabbit production. Previous studies on entrepreneurship among youth focused on university students and were not on agripreneurship (e.g., Ben Moussa & Kerkeni, 2021; Fauzi et al., 2021; Gubik & Bartha, 2018; Hassan et al., 2021; Karyaningsih et al., 2020; Wardana et al., 2021; Zamrudi & Yulianti, 2020). There is thus a need to concentrate on youth involvement in agripreneurship. The aim of this study is, therefore, to explore youth involvement in agripreneurship. Specifically, the study described the socio-cultural and economic characteristics of youth rabbit producers; examined the motivating factors for agripreneurship develop- ment among youths; evaluated the profitability of rabbit production and identified the constraints faced in rabbit production among youth agripreneurs. These would enable the understanding of the profitabil- ity level of rabbit production to encourage and motivate more participation of youth, who always seek a white-collar job, in agripreneurship activities. This would, in turn, lower the high level of malnutrition through the availability of protein and consequently lower food insecurity, unemployment and poverty Agricutural entrepreneurship among the youth: The case of youth involvement in rabbit… | 37 rate. Good knowledge of factors responsible for the profitability of rabbit production would enable the youths to know where to channel their resources towards profit maximisation. LITERATURE REVIEW Entrepreneurship has received researchers’ extensive attention due to its significant contribution to national prosperity, economics and social development (Khan, 2013; Reissova et al., 2020). It is recog- nised globally as an important economic development strategy for creating jobs and wealth (Sołek- Borowska & Numprasertchai, 2018). Entrepreneurship is defined as the identification of new business opportunities, mobilization of economic resources to start a new business or funding the existing ones under risk and uncertain conditions to make profits (Adenutsi, 2009). The creation of business oppor- tunities can take place in any field such as agriculture, industry, social work and education. The creation of business in agricultural-related activities is agripreneurship. Agripreneurship simply means entrepreneurship in agriculture. Agricultural entrepreneurship is defined as a value creation process composed of a unique set of resources to exploit and take ad- vantage of opportunities in rural areas (Estahbanaty, 2013). It is the process of adopting new methods, processes, techniques in agriculture or the allied sectors of agriculture for better output and economic earnings. Agripreneurship converts agricultural activity into an entrepreneurial activity and take the risk to develop agricultural ventures to make a profit from the agricultural investment. It is also defined as the profitable marriage of entrepreneurship and agriculture (Bairwa et al., 2014). Rao and Kumar (2016) define agripreneurship as the entrepreneurial process taken up in agriculture or allied sectors. Kaur et al. (2018) defined agripreneurship as directly marketed agriculture that is community-oriented and generally sustainable. Agriculture is an important sector and has many areas with many available commodities in each area which requires improvement in their production through value addition (Kaur et al., 2018; Mukaila, 2021). Thus, the need to train the unemployed youths in agricultural en- trepreneurship management and enlighten them on its importance. Agripreneurship training will sup- port youth, especially rural youths, to create employment to be agripreneurs and consequently en- hance their economic status in society. An agripreneur is described as a person who invests in and manages an agricultural enterprise for profit-making. An agripreneur managed and use all factors of agricultural production for economic and social benefits. They are independent, risk-takers, daring, rational and have the quality of leadership, competitiveness and achievementorientation. Researchers have investigated entrepreneurship generally. Previous studies on entrepreneurship among youth focused on university students and the entrepreneurial investigated was not on agripre- neurship. Gubik and Bartha (2018) identified the entrepreneurship motivating factors of students and checked the nexus between the factors and entrepreneurship education. The authors defined five fac- tors of entrepreneurial motivation (market focus/Competition, Individual goals, community/collective goals, social mission and customer focus). Their findings revealed a weak correlation between the mo- tivating factors and entrepreneurship education characteristics. Zamrudi and Yulianti (2020) investi- gate the driving factors of students’ intention to do business in Indonesia using partial least square structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). The study revealed that the supporting condition factors were structural support, university support and relational support. Meanwhile, entrepreneurial self- efficacy has no significant effect on students’ entrepreneurial intention. Karyaningsih et al. (2020) in- vestigated entrepreneurship education and students’ intention to be entrepreneurs using structural equation modelling (SEM), factor analysis (CFA) and exploratory factor analysis (EFA). The results re- vealed that entrepreneurship education had an impact on entrepreneurial intention, knowledge and mindset. Students’ entrepreneurial knowledge influenced their intention to be entrepreneurs but has no significant effect on the entrepreneurial mindset. Hassan et al. (2021) investigate driving factors of entrepreneurship cultivation among higher insti- tutions in Malaysia using structural equation modelling. The study revealed that the only significant factor that influenced entrepreneurial culture in the higher institution was empowerment. Wardana et al. (2021) examined the impact of entrepreneurship education, attitude and cultural influence on 38 | Ridwan Mukaila economic students’ entrepreneurship intension in Indonesia. The study revealed that entrepreneur- ship attitudes and culture influenced entrepreneurship intention among the students. Fauzi et al. (2021) examined students’ entrepreneurial abilities in Malaysian using PLS-SEM. The study revealed that inspirational motivation was the strongest predictor of both entrepreneurial behaviour and knowledge sharing. An individualised consideration, knowledge sharing and psychological empower- ment had a significant impact on entrepreneurial behaviour while intellectual stimulation and idealised influence show no effect. Ben Moussa and Kerkeni (2021) examined the importance and role of the family environment (family support for entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial role model and parental support for autonomy) in determining the entrepreneurial intention of young Tunisian students. Their result revealed that exposure to an entrepreneurial role model and parental support for autonomy were the most important factors that stimulate students’ entrepreneurial intention. Meanwhile, family support for entrepreneurship (social and financial capital) does not affect the entrepreneurial inten- tion of young students. Baharuddin and Ab Rahman (2021) investigate the dominant characteristic (antecedent) for becoming entrepreneurs among Muslim youths in Indonesia using the theory of planned behaviour model and PLS-SEM. The study shows that personal attitude (0.011), perceived be- havioural control (0.040) and subjective norms (0.152) were the three exogenous driver constructs that have an effect on entrepreneurship intention among the students. The current study defers from the previous studies by focusing on youth involvement in agripre- neurship. The profitability of rabbit production among youths was also investigated which little in- formation on it existed. The methodology employed in this study also defers from other studies. Therefore, there is the need to carry out an empirical study on youths’ involvement in agripreneur- ship and profitability of rabbit production among the youth agripreneurs to promote youth involve- ment in agricultural entrepreneurship. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Study Area This study was conducted in Enugu state Nigeria which is one of the 36 states in the country. Enugu state was created in the year 1991 from the eastern two-thirds of Anambra state and is regarded as the coal city state but has a lot of agricultural practices ongoing. The inhabitants of the state are ma- jorly farmers and traders, especially the rural dwellers. They rear animals like rabbits, goats, sheep, and poultry. They also grow food crops like yams, maize, beans, cassava, cocoyam and some cash crops like kola nuts, palm trees, oil bean trees, breadfruit, coconut and cashews. Sampling Procedure A multistage sampling technique was used in this study. In the first stage, four local government areas were randomly selected in the state. Three autonomous communities were randomly selected from each of the four local government areas making a total of twelve communities. At the last stage, the Snowball sampling technique was used to select ten youth agripreneurs who were involved in rabbit farming. Thus, a total of 120 youth agripreneurs served as respondents for this study. Data Collection Data were obtained from a primary source. It was collected via a structured questionnaire that con- tained a set of open and close-ended questions for the youths involved in rabbit production agribusi- ness as respondents. Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development (2019) defined youths in Ni- geria as people within the age group of 15 to 29 years. Thus, the targeted population of this study were people between the age group of 15 to 29 years involved in rabbit production. The questionnaire gath- ered important data on the socio-economic and cultural characteristics of rabbit farmers, the costs and returns from the rabbit production system, the constraints associated with rabbit production, and the management process employed. Agricutural entrepreneurship among the youth: The case of youth involvement in rabbit… | 39 Data Analysis Descriptive statistics such as means, frequency distribution and percentages were used to describe the socio-cultural and socio-economic characteristics of the youth agripreneurs. Costs and returns analysis (such as gross margin analysis, net profit, operating ratio and return to capital invested) and Likert rating scale were also used to analyse the data obtained from the respondents. Costs and Returns Analysis The profitability and returns were determined using gross margin analysis and net profit. The gross mar- gin is a profitability analysis that shows the gross profit of an enterprise after deducting the variable costs. The difference between the total revenue (TR) accrued from rabbit production and the total variable cost (TVC) incurred in rabbit production is the gross margin (GM). ����� ���� = ���� ���� �� − ���� ��� �� � ���� Net profit takes care of the limitation of gross margin analysis since gross margin did not account for the fixed cost incurred in an enterprise. This study, therefore, further calculated the net profit of the enter- prise. Net profit is the difference between the gross margin and the total fixed cost in rabbit production. ��� ���� � = ����� ���� − ���� � ��� ���� The operating ratio is directly related to the farm variable input usage and measures the portion of total revenue used as a variable cost. The lower the ratio, the higher the profitability of the farm business. Operating ratio = #��� ��� �� � ���� ���� ���� �� Return on capital invested is defined as gross margin divided by total variable cost. It measures the return from a unit of currency invested in an enterprise. Return on capital invested = ����� ���� ���� ��� �� � ���� Likert Scale Likert scale is a scaling method used in research to measure individual’s attitude, perception and opin- ions including the degree of agreement and disagreement to a statement. It is commonly used in re- search that requires questionnaires. A four-point Likert rating scale was used in this study to identify the constraints associated with rabbit production. The cut-point used was a mean score of 2.50. Any constraint with a mean score of 2.50 and above was considered severe while those with a mean score lower than 2.50 were considered not severe. A four-point Likert rating scale was also employed to identify the motivating factors promoting agripreneurship development among the youths. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Socio-economic characteristics of youth entrepreneur involved in rabbit production The socio-economic characteristics of the youth involved in rabbit farming were presented in Table 1. As shown in Table 1, youth rabbit farmers were predominantly male (76.7%) while a few proportions were females. Thus, the enterprise was male-dominated. Women involvement in activities such as caring for the home and other household chores which consumed most of their time may have been the reason for low female participation in rabbit farming (Baruwa, 2014). Regarding the age of the respondents, the majority (57.5%) were within 21 and 25 years, 21.7 per cent were within 26 and 29 years and 20.8 per cent were between 15 and 20 years of age. The average age of the rabbit farmers was 23 years. This implies that the study targeted the appropriate population who were in their eco- nomic active age to practised rabbit production (engage in agripreneurship). Most of the youth rabbit farmers were single (85.8%) while 14.2% of the respondents were married. The higher level of single- person involvement in rabbit farming was due to their youthful age. Results of educational level show that most youth agripreneurs had completed secondary education (68.3%), 26.7% had completed ter- tiary education, 3.3% had completed primary education, while 1.7% had no formal educational back- 40 | Ridwan Mukaila ground. Education is important in livestock production because it helps to increase the farmer’s knowledge on better management practices. Akanbi et al. (2020), and Mukaila et al. (2021) opined that education has an important influence on decision making and managerial ability. This will there- fore enhance the producer’s ability to embrace new technologies. Regarding youth agripreneurs experience in rabbit rearing, 65 per cent of the youths had between one and five years of rabbit rearing experience, while 35 per cent had between six and ten years. They had an average of five years of experience in rabbit rearing. This shows that rabbit farming was not new to the youth and they can be said to be experienced in rabbit farming. Seventy per cent of the youth did not belong to any association while only 30 per cent of them were members of an association. This implies the low participation of youth rabbit farmers in social organization activities. The majority (80.0%) of the youths can easily access the market for their products while only 20 per cent find it difficult to access the market due to distance cover. These results imply that there is an availability of market for rabbit products. The result of access to extension services shows that 82.5% of the youthshad no meeting with an extension agent while only 17.5% of them had meetings with extension agents. Access to extension services trans- lates to access to information that will, in turn, improve the productivity of rabbit production. The majority of the youth (87.5%) had their main source of capital from the personal funds or own pockets, while 7.5% and 5% of youths sourced their main capital from friends or relatives and associ- ations, respectively. Personal fund is not always enough in agriculture and limits farmers production level to a small scale. Thus, the majority of youths finance their businesses from personal funds which limit their activities to a small-scale level. The majority (76.7%) of youths had no access to credit or loans while only 23.3% had access to credit or loans. This implies that they did not have access to credit facilities from commercial and microfinance banks. This could also limit their production to a small scale. Regarding their annual income, 32.5 per cent of the youths had 400,001 NGN (974.33 USD) to 500,000 NGN (1,217.91 USD), 9.2% had 300,001NGN (730.75 USD) to 400,000NGN (974.33 USD), 21.6 per cent had 200,000 NGN (487.16 USD) to 300,000 NGN (730.75 USD), 26.7 per cents had less than 200,000NGN (487.16 USD) and 10 per cent had more than 500,001 NGN (1,217.91 USD) per annum. The youth rabbit farmers had an average annual income of 341,312.6NGN (831.37 USD). This suggests that rabbit production contributed to the youths’ economic status. Factors motivating youths agripreneurial development The factors motivating agripreneurship development among youths were presented in Table 2. The results show that the most important motivational factor for youth involvement in agripreneurship was to acquire personal wealth. This was closely followed by the quest to boost income. Engaging in agripreneurship such as rabbit production serves as means of generating income and improving youths’ economic status in society. The third-ranked motivating factor was to achieve what one wants to have in life. The youths were able to achieve some of their wants and needs from the income generated from the agricultural enter- prise. The quest of youths to be financially independent was also a motivational factor for their agripre- neurship development. Youth agripreneurs were able to get things done independently without depend- ing on their families. Youths were also motivated to involve in agripreneurship to be a boss and to be self- employed. Youths engaged in agripreneurship to meet responsibility through being self-employed. For personal satisfaction and growth was also an important motivating factor for youths agripreneurship de- velopment. Youths were motivated to engage in agripreneurship for high self-esteemin society. Youth agripreneurs were respected in society for being independent and self-employed. Youths were also moti- vated to be agripreneur due to the quest desire to do new things such as rabbit production. For reputation and recognition as an agricultural entrepreneur was also a motivational factor for youths agripreneurship development. To achieve the needs of life such as foods and clothes was also motivating factor for youths agripreneurship development. The youths also engaged in agripreneurship to contribute to their house- hold income and needs. They engaged in income-generating activities to contribute to their household’s welfare. This suggests that rabbit production among the youths plays a vital role in their households’ wel- fare and livelihoods. The least ranked motivating factor to engage in agripreneurship among youthswas for a bright future. Due to low education levels among some of the youths which may deprive them of getting white-collar jobs, they engaged in agripreneurship. Agricutural entrepreneurship among the youth: The case of youth involvement in rabbit… | 41 Table 1. Socio-cultural and economic characteristics of rabbit producers Variables Categories Frequency Percentage Mean Sex Male 92 76.7 Female 28 23.3. Age 15-20 25 20.8 22.8 21-25 69 57.5 26-29 26 21.7 Marital Status Married 17 14.2 Single 103 85.8 Educational Qualification Primary 4 3.3 Secondary 82 68.3 Tertiary 32 26.7 No formal education 2 1.7 Farm Experience (years) 1-5 78 90.0 4.75 6-10 42 10.0 Member of Association No 84 70.0 Yes 36 30.0 Access to Market No 24 20.0 Yes 96 80.0 Access to Extension Services No 99 82.5 Yes 21 17.5 Main Source of Capital for Rabbit Owned funds 105 87.5 Friends/relatives 9 7.5 Association 6 5.0 Access to credit No 92 76.7 Yes 28 23.3 Annual Income (NGN) <200,000 32 26.7 341,312.6 200,001-300,000 26 21.6 300,001-400,000 11 9.2 400,001-500,000 39 32.5 >500,001 12 10.0 Source: own study. Table 2. Motivating factors that promote agripreneurship among youths Motivational Factors Very important Important Less important Not important Weighted score Mean score To acquire personal wealth 90(75) 20(16.7) 10(8.3) 0(0) 440 3.67 To boost income 63(52.5) 38(31.7) 19(15.8) 0(0) 404 3.37 Achieve what one wants to have in life 79(65.8) 20(16.7) 7(5.8) 14(11.7) 404 3.37 To be financially independent 75(62.5) 13(10.8) 32(26.7) 0(0) 403 3.36 To be my own boss 53(44.4) 36(30) 31(25.8) 0(0) 382 3.18 To be self employed 41(34.2) 50(41.7) 29(24.2) 0(0) 372 3.10 For personal satisfaction and growth 47(39.2) 31(25.8) 42(35) 0(0) 365 3.04 For high self esteem 42(35) 44(3.67) 29(24.2) 5(4.2) 363 3.03 Desire to do new thing 42(35) 34(28.3) 35(36.7) 9(7.5) 349 2.91 Reputation and recognition 36(30) 39(32.5) 29(24.2) 16(13.3) 335 2.79 To achieve the needs of life 34(28.3) 35(29.2) 37(30.8) 14(11.7) 329 2.74 To contribute to the household 27(22.5) 41(34.2) 41(34.2) 11(9.2) 324 2.70 For a bright future 21(17.5) 56(46.7) 27(22.5) 16(13.3) 322 2.68 Note: Figures in parenthesis are in percentage (%). Source: own study. 42 | Ridwan Mukaila Profitability of rabbit production among the youth agripreneurs Table 3 presents the results of the cost and return analysis (profitability) of rabbit production among youth agripreneurs. To understand the rabbit production profitability among the youth agripreneurs, there is the need to find out the cost and returns of the investments in the production. The total vari- able cost of input was 100,542.88 NGN (244.90 USD) while that of the total fixed cost was 4060.44 NGN (9.89 USD). The cost of getting the parent stocks had the highest share of total variable cost fol- lowed by the cost of feeding. Cost of housing had the highest share of total fixed cost. The revenue from the sales of rabbits produced in a year (average of 68 rabbits) was 443,796.87 NGN (1,081.01 USD). Rabbit production had a gross margin of 343,254 NGN (836.10 USD) and a net profit of 339,193.56 NGN (826.21 USD). The return on capital invested was 3.41. This implies that for every one unit of a currency (1 NGNor 1 USD) spent or invested on rabbit farming, there is a return of 3.41 NGN or 3.41 USD to the farm enterprise (depending on the currency). The operating ratio was 0.23, which implies that rabbit production uses a lower portion (23%) of the gross revenue as a variable cost. These results imply that rabbit production among the youth agripreneur was a profitable agribusiness enter- prise. These findings were in line with Akanni and Odubena (2003) who found out that the rearing of rabbits was profitable with an operating ratio of 43%. Adanguidi (2020) and Baruwa (2014) also re- ported that rabbit production was a profitable venture. Table 3. Profitability of rabbit production among youth agripreneurs Variables Values (NGN) Values (USD) Total revenue (A) 443,796.87 1,081.01 Variable cost Cost of stocks 69,525.62 169.35 Cost of labour 8,278.13 20.16 Cost of feeding 13,436.25 32.73 Cost of water 2,056 5.01 Cost of drugs 2,772.5 6.75 Cost of transportation 4,474.38 10.90 Total variable cost (B) 100,542.88 244.90 Fixed cost Cost of housing/cage 3,477.68 8.47 Cost of feeders 288.76 0.70 Cost of drinkers 294 0.72 Total fixed cost (C) 4060.44 9.89 Gross margin (D) = A-B 343,254 836.10 Net profit = D-C 339,193.56 826.21 Operating ratio (B/A) 0.23 0.23 Return on capital invested (D/B) 3.41 3.41 Source: own study. Constraints faced in rabbit production among youth agripreneurs The constraints faced in rabbit production among the youth agripreneurs were presented in Table 4. The major constraints faced were lack of support or interest by government and research institutes (3.65), inadequate extension programs or contacts (3.36), poor access to credit (3.16), pest and dis- eases infestation (2.90), high cost of housing (2.71), termite attack (2.65) and high cost of feeds (2.5). Lack of support or interest by government and research institutes was a very severe constraint and ranked first among the constraints. The youth involved in rabbit production did not receive govern- ment support to enhance their production activities, especially during the recent covid-19 pandemic. Inadequate extension programs or contacts in rabbit production was also a very severe constraint and ranked second among the constraints. Most rabbit farmers did not get access to extension pro- grammes where they can get relevant information on modern rabbit farming. Agricutural entrepreneurship among the youth: The case of youth involvement in rabbit… | 43 Poor access to credit was also a very severe constraint in rabbit production among the youth agripreneurs and ranked third among the youth agripreneurs. The majority of the youths could not access credit, the few that could access credit got it from family and friends where they got little finan- cial assistance. This could limit their production to a micro-scale level. The poor access to credit could be linked to a lack of collateral and the high rate of interest that is attached to the said amount of loan from commercial banks. The severity of pest and diseases infestation in rabbit production was per- ceived as a severe constraint to rabbit production and ranked fourth among the youths. Disease out- breaks inhibit the productivity and profitability of rabbit production among the youth. Taiwo et al. (1999) reported that one of the major causes of poor rabbit production in sub-Saharan Africa is pests and diseases such as Mange. It is quite a limiting factor to rabbit profitability. The high cost of housing was perceived as a severe constraint in rabbit production and ranked fifth among the youth agripreneurs. Because most of the youth involved in rabbit production used personal funds to start the business, some perceived construction of cages and hutches as a chal- lenge to engage in rabbit farming. Termite attack at the rabbit house was also perceived as a severe constraint and ranked sixth among the youth agripreneur. The rabbit houses (cages and hutches) were constructed with wood which is easily affected by termites. This led to spending money to control termites and/or constructing a new cage. This result is in line with Baruwa (2014) who re- ported that soldier ants was a challenge to rabbit production. The high cost of concentrated feeds was perceived as a severe constraint and ranked last among the severe constraints in rabbit pro- duction. Due to the inflation in the country coupled with low agricultural productivity as a result of the pandemic that affected the 2020 planting season. This increased the price of concentrated feed given to the rabbit to enhance their growth. Cherwon et al. (2020) reported a similar finding that the high cost of feeds is a major challenge in rabbit production in Kenya. High risk of theft (2.13), marketing problems (2.06) and high cost of labour were not severe prob- lems to rabbit production among the youth agripreneur. This could be because the youth had their rabbits’ cages and hutches at the backyard of their compound which preserve their rabbits from theft and enabled the household members to assist the youths in rabbit production. Table 4. Constraints faced in rabbit production among youths agripreneur Constraints ES Freq (%) VS Freq (%) MS Freq (%) NS Freq (%) M D Rank Lack of support by government and research institutions 93(77.5) 18(15.0) 3(2.5) 6(5.0) 3.65 VS 1st Inadequate extension program or contacts 66(55.0) 36(30.0) 14(11.6) 4(3.3) 3.36 VS 2nd Poor access to credit 71(59.2) 19(15.8) 6(7.5) 14(17.5) 3.16 VS 3rd Pest and diseases infestation 42(35.0) 38(31.6) 27(22.5) 13(10.8) 2.90 S 4th High cost of housing 24(20.0) 54(45.0) 26(21.6) 16(13.3) 2.71 S 5th Termite attack 26(21.6) 40(33.3) 40(33.3) 14(11.6) 2.65 S 6th High cost of feeds 16(13.3) 56(46.7) 28(23.3) 20(16.7) 2.57 S 7th High risk of theft 13(10.8) 33(27.5) 29(24.2) 30(37.5) 2.13 NS 8th Marketing problem 15(12.5) 24(20.0) 34(28.3) 47(39.2) 2.06 NS 9th High cost of labour 1(0.8) 12(10.0) 38(31.7) 69(57.5) 1.55 NS 10th Note: freq. = Frequency, VS = Very severe, S = severe, MS = moderately severe, NS = not severe, M = Likert mean, D = decision. Source: own study. CONCLUSIONS This study investigated agripreneurship among youths viz-a-viz the profitability of rabbit production among youth agripreneurs to increase youths’ participation in agripreneurship. The study revealed that the majority of the youth engaged in rabbit production were males, single, had access to the mar- ket, and sourced their capital through personal savings. The important factors motivating agripreneur- ship development among youths were to acquire personal wealth, to boost income, to achieve what one wants to have in life, to be financially independent, to be self-employed, for personal satisfaction 44 | Ridwan Mukaila and growth, for high self-esteem, desire to do a new thing, reputation and recognition, and to contrib- ute to their household income and needs. The study has shown that rabbit production among the youth agripreneurs was profitable. Rabbit production had a net profit of 339,193.56 NGN (826.21 USD), an operating ratio of 23%, and a return on capital invested of 3.41. Numerous constraints were limiting the effectiveness of rabbit production among the youth agripreneurs. These constraints were pest and diseases infestation, poor access to credit, inadequate extension programs or contacts, high cost of housing, high cost of feeds, termite attack and lack of support or interest by government and research institutes. Despite the numerous challenges faced by the youths, the rabbit production industry will do well when these constraints are reduced drastically. Based on the findings of this study, with a view to promoting rabbit production among the youth as a profitable venture, the study recommends that there should be an awareness creation among the youth about the importance of rabbit production to encourage more participation and improved standard of living. There should also be an information program to the public on the nutritive benefits of rabbit meat to enhance its consumption to solve the malnutrition problem. This would also enhance the marketability of rabbit meats. There is also a need for the government’s active support in disease control through vaccination and training for rabbit farmers to enhance adequate technical know-how. Government can also support the youth agripreneurs through the provision of rabbit farm clusters where there will be stronger and safer housing, biosecurity, security, availability of veterinary centres and adequate provision of drugs. There is a need for adequate visits and contacts from extension agents to the youth rabbit farmers. These change agents should be well equipped with knowledge, techniques and skills in rabbit rearing to be diffused to the youth agripreneurs. This could bring about an increase in animal production and a higher protein intake. Government should support and encour- age youth rabbit farmers through the provision of farm inputs (such as subsidized quality feeds and high-quality breeds of rabbits) for maximum productivity and profitability. Provision of adequate fund- ing inform of loans and grants by the government to the youth will also encourage more participation in agripreneurship among the youths and increase the profitability of rabbit production. Microfinance banks, commercial banks and other lending agencies should increase youths’ access to credit. This would go a long way to provide business opportunities to the unemployed youths and reduce the fi- nancial constraints faced by rabbit producers. Youth agripreneurs on their part should form coopera- tive societies to help them in the acquisition of loans at very low-interest rates to finance their busi- nesses, training and a subsidized cost of production inputs to the members. 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Drivers of entrepre- neurial attitude among economics students in Indonesia. Entrepreneurial Business and Economics Review, 9(1), 61-74. https://doi.org/10.15678/EBER.2021.090104. Wilson, R. T. (2011). Small Animals for Small Farms. (Second edition). FAO. Zamrudi, Z., & Yulianti, F. (2020). Sculpting Factor of Entrepreneurship Among University Students in Indonesia. Entrepreneurial Business and Economics Review, 8(1), 33-49. https://doi.org/10.15678/EBER.2020.080102. Author Ridwan Mukaila M.Sc. in Agricultural Marketing and Agribusiness (University of Nigeria, Nsukka), PhD Candidate (in view at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka). Lecturer at the Department of Agricultural Economics, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria. His research interests include entrepreneurship, agribusiness, agricultural marketing, food security, poverty study and international trade. Correspondence to: Ridwan Mukaila, Department of Agricultural Economics, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, 410001,Nigeria, e-mail: ridwan.mukaila@unn.edu.ng ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8584-0858 Acknowledgements and Financial Disclosure The authors would like to thank the anonymous referees for their useful comments, which allowed to increase the value of this article. Conflict of Interest The author declares that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relation- ships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. Copyright and License This article is published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution – NoDerivs (CC BY-ND 4.0) License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/ Published by Cracow University of Economics – Krakow, Poland