MARKET STRUCTURE AND PRICING MECHANISMS OF AGROCHEMICALS IN NASARAWA STATE, NIGERIA

The study analysed the market structure of agrochemicals in Nasarawa State, Nigeria, focusing on socio-economic characteristics of agrochemical marketers and the degree of market concentration of these marketers. Using stratified sampling technique, data were collected from 165 marketers across six Local Government Areas via structured questionnaire. The collected data were analysed by employing descriptive statistics and the Gini coefficient. The findings on the socio-economic characteristics of agrochemical marketers revealed that the agrochemical market in the study area is dominated by married males within the productive age group, possessing a substantial educational background but with minimal cooperative involvement. The finding on the concentration of agrochemical market in the area revealed a high market concentration with a Gini coefficient of 0.58, indicating significant inequality in sales distribution. This suggests a monopolistic market structure where a few marketers dominate sales. The study recommended establishing market information centers to improve communication and flow of information between agrochemical marketers throughout the marketing system in addition to encouraging cooperative formation among marketers to enhance market efficiency and equitable profit distribution