Abstract

Improving smallholder farmers’ participation in agricultural programmes remains essential for enhancing productivity, food security, and rural livelihoods in Nigeria. Rice farmers, in particular, continue to face constraints such as limited access to inputs, credit, and extension services, which affect their ability to benefit fully from intervention programmes. In response, the Agricultural Transformation Agenda Support Programme Phase One (ATASP-1) was introduced to strengthen value chains and improve farmers’ access to production and market support. This study examined the level of participation of rice farmers in ATASP-1 in Anambra State, Nigeria. Using a sample size of 180 rice farmers, the study employed descriptive statistics to analyse farmers’ socio-economic characteristics, participation levels, and the types of support received. The results showed that the farmers were predominantly within their active age group, with a mean age of 46 years, and had considerable farming experience averaging 15 years. Most participants operated on small farm sizes with a mean of 1.02 hectares, reflecting the smallholder nature of rice production in the study area. Awareness of ATASP-1 was high at 85.0%, while 76.7% of farmers participated in training activities. Overall, 63.3% of respondents demonstrated a high level of participation, indicating strong engagement with programme activities. The study further revealed that the most common forms of support provided were fertilizer (78.9%), improved seeds (76.7%), and market linkage (75.6%), while access to credit (36.7%) and storage facilities (28.9%) remained limited. The findings suggest that although ATASP-1 achieved considerable reach and participation, gaps in financial and post-harvest support constrained the full realisation of its benefits. Strengthening these components is essential for improving the effectiveness of future agricultural interventions.