This question was popular among the candidates. In 1(a), majority of the candidates were able to mention the roles of government in the development of agriculture in their country but in 1b(i– ii), majority of them could not enumerate the roles of science and technology in animals breeding and soil science.  However in 1(c-d), most of the candidates were able to state the reasons why farm mechanization is not widely practiced in West Africa and give the advantages of manual  labour over the use of machines in farm operations.
The expected answers include:

1(b)     Roles of science and technology in agricultural development
  (i)    Animal Breeding
         -     Development of new breeds of animals
         -     Production of animals which are tolerant to pests
         -     Production of animals which are resistant to diseases
               -     Improvement of the quality of animal products e.g. eggs, milk
               -     Production of animals with high feed conversion ratio
          -     Use of artificial insemination technology to increase animal stocks
          -     Application of genetic engineering and biotechnology to solve animal
                health problems
          -     Production of animals that are adapted to unfavourable weather
                conditions

  (ii)     Soil Science
           -      Determination of soils that are suitable for particular crops
           -      Determination of soil physical and chemical properties for better
                  land management
                  -      Soil testing helps to determine nutrients status of the soil
                  -      Development of fertilizers helps to increase crop yields
                  -      Soil mapping to determine efficient use of land
                  -      Irrigation system helps to improve moisture content of the soil
                  -      Drainage system helps in the reclamation of soil/land
                  -      Development of appropriate tillage practices