ADAMU AUGIE COLLEGE OF EDUCATION

ARGUNGU,

KEBBI STATE

DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL STUDIES

SOS 214 (FIELD WORK REPORT)

DESCRIPTIVE REPORT WRITING ON THE

fieldwork conducted in gaya town niger

republic

Topic: the PROBLEMS OF MIGRATION ON THE

SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF Gaya

town Niger republic.

BY:
GROUP TWELVE (12) SECOND BATCH
february, 2020
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 LIST OF GROUP MEMBERS

GROUP TWELVE (12)

S/NO ADMN. NO NAMES COMBINATION

1. 28962/18/KB RUKAYYA M. HARUNA ISS/SOS
2. 27784/18/KB ABUBAKAR DAHIRU ISS/SOS
3. 28696/18/KB ABDULRAHAMAN SANI ISS/SOS
4. 27787/18/KB SHAMSU ABUBAKAR ISS/SOS
5. 27862/18/KB IBRAHIM SALIHU ISS/SOS
6. 28115/18/KB IBRAHIM HARUNA ISS/SOS
7. 27893/18/KB ABDULRAHAMAN HAMZA BAWALE ISS/SOS
8. 28859/18/KB FATMA IDRIS ISS/SOS
9. 28148/18/KB SHAMSU YAKUBU ISS/SOS
10. 28925/18/KB BASHAR ABUBAKAR ISS/SOS
11. 27830/18/KB TAJUDDIN TUKUR ISS/SOS
12. 27933/17/KB ALIYU MUHAMMED LIBA HAU/SOS
13. 27718/18/KB NASIRU MANU HAU/SOS
14. 28419/18/KB AMADU JIBRIN HAU/SOS
15. 29139/18/KB BARAKA JIBRIN HAU/SOS
16. 29056/18/KB FARIDA ABDULLAHI HAU/SOS
17. 28110/18/KB SA’IDA GARBA YELDU HAU/SOS
18. 29160/18/KB DAYYABU DAHIRU HAU/SOS
19. 28943/18/KB BUHARI ABUBAKAR HAU/SOS
20.

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21.

APPROVAL PAGE

This field work report written/reported by group twelve (12) members has
been read and approved as meeting the requirement for the field work course (214)
from the department of social studies, school of arts and social sciences, Adamu
Augie College f Education Argungu.

GRADE ________________________

___________________________ _________________
(Report Supervisor) Date
Mr. Ishaya Inuwa

___________________________ _________________

(Head f Department) Date

Mr. Ishaya Inuwa

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

First of all, will like to give thank to God almighty who gave us wisdom,
knowledge and understanding to undertake a field work, we wish to acknowledge
our sincere gratitude and appreciation to our hard working and a dedicated
supervisor and the Head of Department Mr. Ishaya Inuwa for his laudable efforts,
patience, advise and encouragement in the whole work. May God almighty reward
him and his family.
Our gratitude also goes to other lecturers in the department who made
contribution in one way or the other. We also express our gratitude to our parents,
brothers, sisters and friends for their encouragement, financial and moral support
which enables us to measure up to our present standard.

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 DEDICATION

This field work is dedicated to our beloved parents, brothers, sisters and relations.
Who gave us their moral and financial support and struggle towards our life career
as well as devoted their time praying for us. May God almighty bless them Amen.

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 TABLE OF CONTENT
Title page - - - - - - - - - - - i

List of group members - - - - - - - - - ii

Approval page - - - - - - - - - - iii

Acknowledgment - - - - - - - - - - iv

Dedication - - - - - - - - - - - v

Table of content - - - - - - - - - - vi

Introduction - - - - - - - - - - - 1

Overview of the study area - - - - - - - - 2-6

Methodology - - - - - - - - - - 7

Presentation of data - - - - - - - - - -8-13

Conclusion - - - - - - - - - - - 14

Recommendations - - - - - - - - - 14

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vii
 INTRODUCTION
It has been the customs and included in the social studies curriculum and
N.C.C.E policy for all colleges of education which make the department of Social
Studies, Adamu Augie College of Education Argungu Kebbi State to engage with
the students of the department in a field trip (field work) in order to add to the
knowledge that have been passed to the students in the classroom.

Aggarwal (2003) describe that the educational field trips help the teacher to
clarify, establish, coordinate co-relate accurate concepts interpretations and
appreciations and also enable him to make learning more concrete, effective,
interesting, inspirational, meaningful and vivid. Thus educational field trips are
helpful in complementing the triangular processes of learning. That is motivation,
clarification and stimulation.

When educational field trips are undertaking, the main aim is not only
recreation and pleasure but also gain additional knowledge through direct
experience. The purpose is to further educational purposes of the regular classroom
activities. The main reason is to give students first-hand experience that cannot be
had in the classroom.

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 OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY AREA
The Meaning of Migration

The study of migration is of vital importance because the birth rate, death
rate and migration determine the size of population, the population growth rate
and thus the structure of population. In addition, migration plays an important
role in determining the distribution of population and supply of labor in the
country. Thus, the study of migration is also useful for formulating economic
and other policies by the government, economists, sociologists, politicians, and
planners along with demographers

Migration shows the trends of social changes. From the historical

viewpoint during the process of industrialization and economic development,
people migrate from farms to industries, from villages to cities, from one city to
another and from one country to another. In modern times, technological
changes are taking place in Asia, Africa and Latin America due to which these
regions are witnessing large-scale migration from rural to urban areas.

In the course to expose the students to the extent of the nature of social
studies regarding to the physical and social environment, the students were
undertaken to visit various places in Gaya town where lectures were given. These
places include River Niger, a Hill where the rock types were discussed and the
international bridge that was constructed by the ECOWAS. These will be
discussed in a sequential order.

River Niger

River Niger is one of the two major rivers in Nigeria hence Nigeria has two
major rivers namely; River Niger and river Benue. Nigeria got its name from this
river thus “Niger Area”. This river is an international river because it flows
through many countries, it started at Futajalon in Senegal flowing through Mali
and Niger Republic into Nigeria and that is the reason why it’s called an
international river.

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 Most of the rivers in Nigeria contribute water to this particular river (River
Niger) and the river is also the sources of electricity for about 80% of Nigeria. As
noted through the lecture given by the resource person (Mal. Babangida Malik),
there are many good raining years that this mighty water will flow to a large extent
different from the level it was when the students visited the place because the river
contains a lot of water. Sometimes as noted, it will be flooded to reach the villages
that are settled and houses that are built close to the water.

River Niger like many other rivers is very important to man despite the fact
the river is a physical feature as far as the environment of man is concerned. It also
serves many social functions; one of it is the provision of electricity which is very
important to human life. This river serves as a means of transportation as it links
many West African countries, through the use of canoes and ships, people, goods
and services are transported both nationally and internationally. This river also
enhances trading activities because all the goods transporting and smuggling
around or across the river are done particularly for trading purpose.

Domestically, this river is also very important. As man cannot live without
water, man drinks water, we use water to cook our food, wash our clothes and
dishes. As part of its domestic purpose, many average men enter this river and
catch fishes for domestic purpose. It also serves as source of income because many
people get their daily means from the water; some catch fish to sell which also
serves s employment opportunities for many people in the country and other
distributory countries.

Another importance of the river to man is construction purpose. Sand are

dredged from the depth of the water to build houses, construct roads and other
infrastructural capacities. This river also serves as the sources of water for

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irrigation. Irrigation is an agricultural practice which engages the farmers in the
artificial supply of water to their farmland for nourishing plants. To this river
(River Niger), the farmers will connect their pipe from the water to the farmland so
to supply water directly to their farm in order to help to fasten grow of the plants
and crops. Many people leave their places to move close to this river so to enjoy
the irrigation service from the river.

Lastly, the river also serves as the sources of mineral resources. When the
water goes down a little, the miners enter the water to differentiate between the
sand and gold, the mine the gold and when gold is refined many things are made
through it.

The Hill (Rock Types)

As part of the physical features relating to man and his environment, the
students were taken to climb a particular hill in SEKINBERI village of Gaya town
Niger Republic purposely to get the students more exposed to the different types of
rocks. Rock is defined as the solid mineral material forming part of the earth
surface and other similar planets, exposed on the surface or underlying the soil.

Based on the lecture delivered, the three major types of rock were discussed
on the hill namely: Igneous, Sedimentary and Metamorphic rocks.

Igneous rocks are rocks that are formed from the solidification of molten magma
from the core of the earth surface. The earth is in concentric layers, the first layer is
the core which believes to be in liquid stage, the rocks that are in the first layer are
in liquid form because of the great heat that is in the core. When a crack develops
inside the earth, the molten rock flows within the cracks, some of it usually gets to
the top layer of the earth surface. Therefore, the magma that solidifies on the earth
and result in the formation of rocks is called extrusive igneous rock while those
4
that solidify under the ground are called intrusive igneous rock. Those solidify on
the earth surface are usually very small particles and they are spin as straw, those
that solidify inside have large particles are not as strong as the one that solidifies
on the earth surface because they are exposed to air during the solidification
process. Lastly, igneous rock contains iron and other rock minerals.

Another type of rock discussed is sedimentary rock which is formed as a result of

deposition either by water, wind or by ice. Eroded and deposited material can form
rocks and because they are formed by deposit of sediments they are called
sedimentary rocks. Especially when erosion breaks igneous rock into smaller
particles, the water will deposit it somewhere and then solidify, it becomes
sedimentary rock, and the type of sedimentary rock founded on the hill is sound
stone because sound and stone are deposited to form sediments of rocks.

The last rock type that was discussed there was metamorphic rock. It is a type of
rock that had been acted upon by weather and climate such that their characteristics
are continuing changing, metamorphic rocks are strong unlike sedimentary rock
because of the climate factor. The students were exposed to the samples of
different types of rocks including igneous and sedimentary rocks. But due to the
time factor and the fact that metamorphic rocks are very hard to see adding to the
state that there were more places to visit, the students could not wait to sample the
metamorphic rocks.

ECOWAS Bridge

In Gaya town Niger Republic is also a bridge constructed by the economic

community of West African States (ECOWAS) in order to aide and improve the
trading and economic relationship amongst the countries of West Africa. This
bridge is very symbolic and very important to ECOWAS, the bridge links countries

5
like Togo, Mali, Benin Republic, and Niger Republic to Nigeria (through Kebbi,
Sokoto, and Kastina Borders). There is an old abandoned bridge, it was constructed
with the help of other countries of the sub-region, very small and lacking the
capacity of taking heavy loads. Because of this, the new bridge was constructed by
the ECOWAS and since then it has been serving the purpose.

Looking into many buildings in Gaya town, they are very big and majorly
meant for warehouses where goods that are transported from Kotonu, Benin
Republic to Gaya are stored so that people from Nigeria can come and imported
them to Nigeria. Goods that are imported into Nigeria include rice, clothes, shoes
and Tokunbo cars among others. Therefore, this bridge is symbolic and very
significant to all countries that are linked to it.

As one of the symbolic importance of the bridge, it also serves as source of

revenue for both Benin Republic and Niger Republic. This is possible because
every goods, trucks or individual who is going in and coming out of the two
countries must pay to the revenue collector at the check point at the edge of the
bridge to both countries. This collection of revenue at the other hand will help the
two countries in the administration of their government and to make the
availability of social provision for the good living of their people.

6
 METHODOLOGY

Instrumentation

In the effort to collect necessary and essential information and data with
regards to the Problems of Migration on the Socio-Economic Development of
Gaya Town Niger Republic, both questionnaire and interview type of instrument
were employed. Questions were distributed for the purpose of the fieldwork.

Procedure for data collection

In the process of treating the data collected the various methods existed, the
researchers choose to use statistical technique presentation and understanding of
the research work, the data collected from the respondents were analyzed brought
to the used of the table percentage.

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 PRESENTATION OF DATA

The aim of this study was to investigate on the problems of migration on the
socio-economic development of Gaya town Niger republic. The purpose of this
section is to present and discuss data collected. The results of the analysis are
presented to the research questions used in the collection of data. The information
obtained has been arranged and put into a tabular form and each Colum containing
row score with the information of the table with analysis explaining each table data
result.

Table 1: Sex
Variable No. of Respondents Percentage %
Male 10 100%
Female 0 00%
Total 10 100%
Source: Field Work survey 2020.

The above table shows that all the respondents are male.

Table 2: Age range

Variable
No. of respondents Percentage %
20-30 years 5 50%
31-40 years 2 20%
41-50 years 2 20%
51 and above 1 10%
Total 10 100%
Source: Field work survey 2020.

The table above shows that 5 out of 10 representing 50% are between the ages
of 20-30 years, 2 out of 10 representing 20% are between the ages of 31-40 years,
2 out of 10 representing 20% are between the age of 41-50 years while 1 out of 10
representing 10% are between the age of 51 and above. This indicates that the
majority of the respondents are between the ages of 20-30 years.

Table 3: Marital status

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 Respondents Frequency Percentage %
Married 8 80%
Single 2 20%
Total 10 100%
Source: Field work survey 2020.

The table above shows that 8 out of 10 respondents representing 80% are
married while 2 out of 10 respondents representing 20% are single. This indicates
that majority of the respondents are married.

Table 4: Occupation
Respondents Frequency Percentage %
Civil servant 3 30%
Student 2 20%
Other 5 50
Total 10 100%
Source: Field work survey 2020.

The table above shows that 3 out of 10 respondents representing 30% are civil
servants, 2 out of 10 respondents representing 20% are students while 5 out of 10
respondents representing 50% are engage in other occupations .This indicates that
majority of the respondents engage in other occupations.

Table 5: Are you a Migrant?

Respondents Frequency Percentage %
Yes 7 70%
No 3 30%
Total 10 100%
Source: Field work survey 2020.

The above table shows that 7 out of 10 respondents representing 70% are
migrants while 3 out of 10 respondents representing 30% are not migrants. This
indicates that the majority of the respondents are migrants.

Table 6: If yes, how long have you been in this town?

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 Respondents Frequency Percentage %
Very long 7 70%
Long 2 20%
Not long 1 10%
Total 10 100%
Source: Field work survey 2020.

The table above shows that 7 out of 10 respondents representing 70% have
been in the town for a very long time, while 2 out of 10 respondents representing
20% have been in the town for a long time, and 1 respondent representing 10%
have been in the town not a long time. This indicates that the majority of the
respondents have been in the town for a very long time.

Table 7: Why have you decided to leave your town/village and live here in Gaya?
Respondents Frequency Percentage %
Educational purpose 3 20%
Economic purpose 7 80%
Exiled 0 0%
Total 10 100%
Source: Field survey 2020.

The table above shows that none of the respondents live in Gaya on exile
while 3 out of 10 respondents representing 30% have decided to leave their
town/village and live in Gaya for educational purpose and 7 out of 10 respondents
representing 70% have decided to leave their town/village and live in Gaya for
economic purpose. This indicates that the majority of the respondents have decided
to leave their town/village and live in Gaya for economic purpose.

Table 8: Being a migrant here, how have you contributed to the development of
the town?
Respondents Frequency Percentage %
Socially 2 20%
Economically 3 50%
All of the above 5 30
Total 10 100%
The table above shows that 2 out of 10 of the respondents representing 20%
have contributed to the development of the town socially while 3 out of 10
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respondents representing 30% have contributed to the development of the town
economically while 5 out of 10 respondents representing 50% have contributed to
the development of the town both socially and economically. This indicates that
the majority of the respondents have contributed to the development of the town in
both.

Table 9: Does migration affect the population growth of the town?

Respondents Frequency Percentage %
Yes 7 60%
No 3 40%
Total 10 100%
Source: Field work survey 2020.

The table above shows that 7 out of 10 respondents representing 70% said that
migration affects the population growth of the town while 4 out of 10 respondents
representing 30% state that migration does not affect the population growth of the
town. This indicates that the majority of the respondents said that migration affect
the population growth of the town.
Table 10: If yes, how does it affect the population growth?
Respondents Frequency Percentage %
increase 10 50%
decrease 0 50%
Dense 0
Total 10 100%
Source: Field work survey 2020.

The table above shows that all the respondents state that the population growth
of the town do increase because of the migration.
Table 11: As a migrant, have you been able to adapt to their culture?
Respondents Frequency Percentage %
Yes 8 70%
No 2 30%
Total 10 100%
Source: Field work survey 2020.

The table above shows that 8 out of 10 respondents representing 80% said that
have been able to adapt to their culture while 2 out of 10 respondents representing
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20% said that have not been able to adapt to their culture. This indicates that the
majority of the respondents have been able to adapt to their culture.

Table 12: Have you ever experience language barrier as a migrant here?
Respondents Frequency Percentage %
Yes 6 80%
No 4 20%
Total 10 100%
Source: Field work survey 2020.

The table above shows that 6 out of 10 respondents representing 60% are of the
opinion that they have experienced language barrier as a migrant while 4 out of 10
respondents said that they have never experienced language barrier as a migrant.
This indicates that majority of the respondents have experienced language barrier
as a migrant.
Table 13: How do migrants contribute to problems in Gaya town?
Respondents Frequency Percentage %
Crime 2 30%
High cost of rent 7 60%
Introduction of new 1 10%
diseases
Total 10 100%
Source: Field work survey 2020.

The table above shows that 2 out of 10 respondents representing 20% are of the
opinion that, the migrants contribute to the problems in Gaya town in terms of
crime while 7 out of 10 respondents representing 70% are of the view that, the
migrants contribute to the problems in Gaya town in terms of high cost of living
and 1 out of 10 respondents representing 10% are of the view that, the migrants
contribute to the problems in Gaya town in terms of introduction of new diseases.
This indicates that majority of the respondents concluded that the migrants
contribute to the problems in Gaya town in terms of high cost of rent.

Table 14: Can you encourage people from other town/villages to come to stay in
Gaya town?
Respondents Frequency Percentage %
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Yes 7 40%
No 3 60%
Total 10 100%
Source: Field work survey 2020.

The table above shows that 7 out of 10 respondents representing 70% said, they
can encourage people from other town/villages to come to stay in Gaya town while
3 out of 10 respondents said they cannot encourage people from other
town/villages to come to stay in Gaya town. This indicates that the majority of the
respondents can encourage people from other town/villages to come to stay in
Gaya town.
Table 15: What problems do migrant face in Gaya town?
Respondents Frequency Percentage %
Employment 2 20%
Accommodation 2 20%
Transportation 2 20%
School for children 4 40%
Total 10 100%
Source: Field work survey 2020.

The table above shows that 2 out of 10 respondents representing 20% are of the
opinion that the migrants face the problem of employment while out of 10
respondents view that the migrants face the problem of accommodation and 2 out
of 10 respondents representing 20% state that the migrants face the problem of
transportation and 4 out of 10 respondents representing 40% state that the migrants
face the problem of school for their children. This indicates that the major
problems the migrants face is school for their children.

Conclusion
In conclusion, the field trip covers Gaya town in Niger republic where we
observed and lectured and carried out a research on a cover studies on the topic
“the impact of domesticated animal rearing practice on the economy of individual
13
in Gaya town”. It is a fortunate incidence for the students to visit the River Niger
and a particular hill in Sekinberi village where the students were exposed more to
the importance of the river to the man and also on the hill where the three major
types of rocks were discussed. The cover studies conducted made the students to
understand that there are many migrants and majority of them have been able to
contribute economically to the development of the town. The students also
discovered that the major problems faced by the migrants in Gaya town are
enrolment of their children into school.
Recommendations
Based on the research conducted on the fieldwork exercise, the students
recommend the following:
1. Since the migrant process into Gaya town has led to the increase in
population growth and at the same time affects the cost of rent, the
government should take a considerable measure at the borders and
boundaries of Gaya town to regulate the level of migration into the town.
2. The government should establish more schools with adequate provision of
teaching and learning materials so to encourage the migrants in enrolling
their children into schools.
3. A public awareness should be made by the government in both regions and
commune of Niger republic about their culture and traditions to engage the
migrants in the part of some practice of their culture in turn for the migrants
to be able to contribute positively and fully adapted to the cultures and
traditions of Niger republic particularly Gaya commune.

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