The Interface between Guinea-Worm Disease Eradication Intervention and Farming Challenges among the Ibarapa People of Oyo State, Nigeria
Patrick Ifechukwude Okonji

Abstract
This Study investigated the interface between the poverty condition of the farmers of Ibarapa and the acclaimed success of external intervention for the eradication of guinea-worm disease to improve the welfare of the local people and to promote economic development. The general objective of the study is to determine the lacuna between the activities of the external agents, the local operators of the programme and the welfare of the recipients. To execute the study a qualitative research approach was adopted with Focus group discussions administered on a total of 6 groups of palace chiefs and hamlet farmers, with an average of 5 of the participants purposively chosen to represent both the Chiefs and Farmers categories respectively from the three local government areas that make up the Ibarapa. The findings reveal a massive intervention in the provision of potable water that is not culturally situated and hence a potential lag for guinea-worm disease. It also reveals that the seeming elimination of the disease is related to the absence of full farming activities.

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