JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURE & SOCIAL SCIENCES 1813–2235/2006/02–4–242–248 http://www.fspublishers.org Modelling Water Demand and Use Behaviour of Dry Season Waterleaf (Talinum triangulare) Cultivators in Calabar, Nigeria: A Discrete Choice Approach N.M. NKANG 1 , B.T. OMONONA† AND S.E. IBANA Department of Agricultural Economics and Extension, University of Calabar, P.M.B. 1115, Calabar, Nigeria †Department of Agricultural Economics, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria 1 Corresponding author’s e-mail: nkangm@yahoo.com ABSTRACT This study analysed the determinants of choice of water source and water use by dry season waterleaf cultivators in Calabar- South Local Government Area (LGA) of Cross River State, Nigeria, using both univariate and multivariate statistical techniques on primary data collected from a survey of waterleaf farmers in two major waterleaf growing fields. The women were the principal growers of waterleaf in the study area, majority of whom were married, between 31 and 40 years of age with mostly primary-level education and family sizes of between 6 and 10 persons. Particularly, farmers’ income, number of plots owned, collection time for water and marital status were found to be significant determinants of farmers’ choice of water source. Moreover, farmers’ age and watering frequency were estimated significant predictors of quantity of water applied by the farmers per hectare per season. The relationship between the dependent variable and number of plots owned, water source and marital status conform to a priori expectations. The study recommends that policy actions directed at this sub-sector should consider proximity of water source, size of plots and reliability of water source. These can be achieved by allocating particular areas permanently to waterleaf cultivation and providing the required access (both physical & economic) on a sustainable basis to the source of water. Crop extension services should be provided to educate waterleaf farmers on optimal water application in waterleaf farms so that the time wasted in applying excess water on the plots can be put to other productive uses with higher opportunity costs of time. Key Words: Discrete choice; Logits; Source characteristics; Low external inputs; Waterleaf water. INTRODUCTION Water is very vital in agricultural production; however, wasteful, inefficient and unsustainable agricultural use might lead to reduced access and water stress which might collaborate with other factors to exacerbate the problem of poverty, hunger and disease. The United Nations (2003) reports that the world is facing a serious water crisis and that water access and service delivery in the developing world need to be improved dramatically and urgently if gains are to be made in the fight against poverty, hunger and disease, which is one of the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations for 2015. It has been observed by the International Food Policy Research Institute that inadequate growth in food production occasioned by increasingly scarce water pose serious constraints to future agricultural and economic development in sub-Saharan Africa. This is probably why the World Bank (1996) notes that in agriculture low-income producers can increase food production significantly by having reliable access to water and through improved water harvesting techniques and water and soil conservation practices. In Nigeria (one of the countries in sub-Saharan Africa characterised by low-income agricultural producers) vegetable production is a major source of income and livelihood for low external input farming population especially, vegetable producers. The production of these vegetables (particularly in the dry season) depends mostly on irrigation water, which is not mostly supplied by complex conventional government irrigation schemes. The cultivators use water from different sources including rivers, streams, wells, etc., to water their farms, often spending a lot of time in collection of water by trekking long distances and sometimes not applying the right quantities of water required by the plant. Dry season waterleaf production in Calabar is one of the major sources of income and food for low-income agricultural producers in Cross River State and it is entirely dependent on irrigation water. The dry season production, usually spanning an average of four months is the more profitable to the growers since it gives higher yields and hence, incomes. Waterleaf (Talinum triangulare) belongs to the botanical family of Portulacaceae and has a lot of economic importance, which include provision of food, income, employment and herbal medicine to the population (Opabode & Adebooye, 2005), as well as being a weed in some other instances. It is mainly used as a leafy vegetable