Sustainable supply chain towards managing food security of rice in the north central Nigeria.

Abstract

In a developing nation such as Nigeria, food security which is global agenda that must be achieved by 2030 based on the Sustainable Development Goals is yet to be accomplished. Hence, adoption of sustainable practices across the supply chain of food is fundamental for ensuring food security could be considered. To this end, this study investigates food security in the North central region of Nigeria by examining the strategic role of adoption of sustainable supply chain practices for activities of stakeholders of the rice value chain for availability, affordability, accessibility and competitiveness of rice in the region. The study employed a convergent mixed methods design to provide relevant insights into the stakeholders across the rice value chain. For the qualitative research, 24 rice value chain stakeholders were interviewed (six government representatives, six large-scale rice farmers, and 12 small-scale rice farmers). Quantitative data was collected with questionnaires, which were administered using a stratified sampling technique to 360 small scale Rice farmers association of Nigeria (RIFAN) members. The study from the qualitative data revealed how the available resources of one stakeholder influenced the activity and productivity of another. The regression model revealed that adoption of sustainable practice would impact food security and competitive performance of rice produced from that region. This would improve the profitability and standard of living of rice farmers. The outcome of the quantitative data using Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchical Process-Multi Criteria Decision Making (F-AHP MCDM) weighed the decision-making of stakeholders in line with Triple Bottom Line and the adoption of sustainable practices in activities. The significant implication of the study is that towards food security, adoption of sustainable practices across the rice value chain must be driven by government as a stakeholder. The study recommends the adoption of sustainable practices driven by technology across supply chain of rice and the activities of stakeholders, will improve food security in the region. The study is limited because it could only explore rice stakeholders in the Edu-Patigi local government area of Kwara state, North-central region Nigeria, however, it serves as a foundation for further studies for wider scope or ask specific questions.