CROSS CATEGORICAL ANALYIS OF FACTORS INFLUENCING AGRICULTURAL CREDIT DELIVERY DECISIONS BY COOPERATIVE SOCIETIES IN EDO AND DELTA STATES, NIGERIA

The study examined the factors influencing farm credit delivery decisions by Cooperative Societies in Edo and Delta States. Primary data were obtained from 809 loan applications selected from 80 Cooperative Societies purposively selected from 16 LGAs with the assistance of the Ministries of Commerce and Industry. Descriptive statistics and the logit model were used to analyse the data. The results showed that all the Cooperative Societies were multipurpose, but with credit delivery as their major function. They had a male to female ration of 4:1 and a high loan approval rate of 95%. Gender, age and educational level were examined as factors influencing loan decisions. The results of the cross-categorical analysis of the 2x2x2x2 model showed that being a male above 40 years old with no formal education had the highest possible likelihood of increasing the probability of loan decision being positive. The combined effect of all the factors however showed high statistical significance with a Chi square (Χ2) value of 29.20 and a likelihood ratio (G2) of 35.01 at 1%. The study therefore concluded that the major factors influencing the loan delivery decision were gender and age as formal education did not seem to enhance the decision.