An Assessment of the Effects of Covid 19 Lockdown on Crop Farmers’ Anxiety Disorder in Nigeria

The study investigated on an assessment of the effects of covid 19 lockdown on crop farmers’ anxiety disorder in Nigeria. Descriptive statistics, Double difference model, average treatment effect, generalized anxiety disorder scale and Oslo social support scales were the analytical tools used. The results confirmed that the covid-19 lockdown indeed affected the anxiety level of the farmers. The lockdown had a negative effect on their production and it is in turn reduced their income drastically. Age, income, farmer's experience, land size, access to credit, extension visitation, access to technical support from agricultural organizations, access to support from families and neighbours were found to have significant effect on anxiety level. It was also found that most of the farmers received support from their families and neighbours than they did from the government. The anxiety levels of farmers engaged in maize farming were found to be higher than those in cassava farmers due to the fact that the anxiety level has somewhat reduced before the harvest of cassava. The COVID-19 pandemic lockdown also created different anxiety levels in the farmers causing them to be unable to stop or control worrying. In conclusion, farmers were seriously affected by covid 19 lockdown. The study recommended that in order to reduce the anxiety levels of maize farmers, it is necessary to provide good storage facilities and government should provide agricultural support policies, including financial resources and technical assistance can be implemented for those farmers who are heavily affected by the COVID-19 outbreak. These farmers should be supported for early recovery and resilience to anxiety Keywords: Covid-19, generalized anxiety disorder scale, Oslo social support scales