Agricultural Innovation and Social Capital Networking for Community Resilience and Food Security in Urban Oyo State, Nigeria

This study examined agricultural innovation and social capital networking for community resilience and food security in urban Oyo State, Nigeria. The study was guided by 3 objectives and one hypothesis to assess the level of adoption of agricultural innovation, to examine the influence of social capital networking on community empowerment, to determine the effect of agricultural innovations on food security initiatives and to analyze the relationship between social capital networking and community resilience, A descriptive, cross-sectional survey design was adopted across four Local Government Areas of Oyo State (Afijio, Atiba, Oyo East and Oyo West). The study population comprised farming households in the selected communities, from which a sample size of 200 was determined. 180 validly completed questionnaires were retrieved through systematic random sampling. Data were analyzed using Means and standard deviation while regression analysis were applied to analysis the hypothesis. Findings showed a moderate-to-high level of adoption of agricultural innovation, with respondents rating access to improved farm inputs and modern farming techniques most favorably (grand mean = 3.68). Social capital networking showed a moderately positive influence on community empowerment (r = 0.52, p < 0.01) and on community resilience (r = 0.47, p < 0.01), while agricultural innovation was moderately associated with food security initiatives (r = 0.48, p < 0.01). Agricultural innovation and social capital networking jointly and significantly predicted food security initiatives, accounting for 48% of the variance (R² = 0.48, p < 0.01). The study concludes that strengthening social capital networks alongside the adoption of agricultural innovation is central to building resilient, food-secure urban communities in Oyo State. The study recommends that government agencies and community-based associations expand structured, community-driven support for agricultural innovation and social capital networking as a joint strategy for sustainable urban food security.