1. Agriculture contributes to the economy of West African Countries through the following means except

A. reduction of poverty through job creation
B. supply of armaments for territorial defence ✔

C. provision of foreign exchange
D. supply of raw materials to industries

Explanation:
Agriculture contributes through employment, raw materials, and foreign exchange, but not through armament supply.

2. Which of the following statements about agricultural development is true? It leads to I. increased processing of produce II. increased food production III. high productivity IV. increased agricultural labour force

A. I, II and III only ✔

B. I, II and IV only
C. I, III and IV only
D. II, III and IV only

Explanation:
Agricultural development increases production, processing, and productivity, not necessarily labor force.

3. Under the commercial land tenure system, farmers find it difficult to secure loans because

A. land holdings are small and fragmented
B. they are poor
C. land holdings cannot be used as security ✔

D. they are mostly illiterates

Explanation:
In commercial land tenure, land ownership is often insecure, making it difficult to use as collateral.

4. Government plays important role in the development of agriculture through the following means except

A. provision of subsidies
B. training of farmers' children ✔

C. establishment of agricultural development programmes
D. establishment of farm settlements

Explanation:
Governments train farmers and provide incentives but not specifically their children.

5. Which of the following factors does not influence the distribution of cattle in West Africa?

A. pastures
B. light ✔

C. diseases
D. rainfall

Explanation:
Cattle distribution depends on pastures, water, diseases, and rainfall, not light.

6. Poaching is prohibited in game reserves to

A. reduce wildlife population
B. conserve wildlife ✔

C. starve hunters
D. protect hunters from wild animals

Explanation:
Poaching reduces wildlife; laws protect animals and conserve biodiversity.

7. Soil water that is available for root absorption at field capacity is

A. capillary water ✔

B. hygroscopic water
C. gravitational water
D. superfluous water

Explanation:
Capillary water is available to plant roots; hygroscopic water is unavailable.

8. Which of the following factors are causes of deforestation in West Africa? I. expansion of cultivated land II. high population growth rate III. conservation of wildlife in game reserves IV. urban growth

A. I, II and III only
B. II, III and IV only
C. I, II and IV only ✔

D. I, II, III and IV

Explanation:
Deforestation is caused by farming, population pressure, and urbanization, not conservation.

9. In which layer of the soil profile do most biological activities occur?

A. D-horizon
B. C-horizon
C. B-horizon
D. A-horizon ✔

Explanation:
The A-horizon (topsoil) is rich in organic matter and supports most microbial activity.

10. Which of the following statements is correct about micro-nutrients? They

A. promote formation of only root nodules
B. are required by plants in very small quantities ✔

C. are fixed into the soil through microbial activity
D. increase crop tolerance to pest attack

Explanation:
Micro-nutrients are essential in small amounts for plant growth.

11. Which of the following properties of soil determines its water-holding capacity? I. Texture II. pH III. Colour IV. Structure

A. I and II only
B. I and IV only ✔

C. II and III only
D. III and IV only

Explanation:
Soil texture and structure affect water retention, while pH and color do not.

12. Which of the following statements about soil organisms is false?

A. soil pH will affect population of soil organisms
B. population of soil living organisms is increased with increase in soil organic matter
C. soil with good texture and structure cannot harbour soil microbes ✔

D. soil temperature affects the activities of soil organisms

Explanation:
Good soil texture and structure encourage, not prevent, microbial activity.

13. A detrimental effect of bush burning is that it

A. destroys soil organic matter ✔

B. destroys weed seeds
C. sterilizes the soil
D. adds potash to the soil

Explanation:
Bush burning removes organic matter, degrading soil fertility.

14. The following crops will enrich the soil with nitrates except

A. calopogonium
B. pueraria
C. centrosema
D. exoriepus ✔

Explanation:
Legumes enrich soil with nitrogen; Exoriepus is not a legume.

15. Which of the following groups of rocks is formed as a result of volcanic eruption?

A. limestone, basalt and shale
B. basalt, granite and pumice ✔

C. sandstone, granite and quartzite
D. marble, gneiss and shale

Explanation:
Basalt and pumice are igneous rocks formed by volcanic activity.

16. The following fertilizers can be used to neutralize soil acidity except

A. wood ash
B. ammonium nitrate ✔

C. limestone
D. calcium phosphosilicate

Explanation:
Ammonium nitrate does not reduce acidity; the others are liming materials.

17. The following are advantages of sub-surface irrigation except that

A. it is suitable for soils with low water holding capacity ✔

B. it can be used only for specific types of crops
C. the rate of evaporation is greatly reduced
D. it reduces the incidence of pests

Explanation:
Sub-surface irrigation requires specific soil and crop types; not all soils benefit.

18. Which of the following statement is a disadvantage of human power? It

A. controls other sources of farm power
B. brings about least damage
C. is easily available and controlled
D. has low output ✔

Explanation:
Human power has low efficiency compared to mechanized sources.

19. The instrument which enables a surveyor to find the direction of a base line is

A. abney level
B. ranging pole
C. plumb bob
D. magnetic compass ✔

Explanation:
The magnetic compass helps surveyors determine direction.

20. Limitations of farm mechanization in West Africa do not include

A. land fragmentation
B. high capital investment
C. availability of spare parts ✔

D. high level technical know-how

Explanation:
Availability of spare parts is an enabler, not a limitation.

21. The use of animal traction is limited in the forest zones of West Africa because of the

A. topography of the forest land
B. presence of tsetseflies ✔

C. high amount of rainfall
D. culture of the people

Explanation:
Tsetseflies transmit trypanosomiasis, limiting the use of draft animals.

22. The correct sequence for the use of coupled implements for land preparation is

A. plough, horrow and ridger ✔

B. harrow, ridger and plough
C. plough, ridger and harrow
D. harrow, plough and ridger

Explanation:
Ploughing first, then harrowing, followed by ridging ensures proper soil preparation.

23. Corms, rhizomes and tubers are examples of

A. underground stems ✔

B. underground roots
C. modified leaves
D. aerial stems

Explanation:
These are modified underground stems used for vegetative propagation.

24. Tomatoes are staked in order to

A. accelerate their growth
B. induce flowering
C. accelerate fruit ripening
D. prevent rotting of fruits ✔

Explanation:
Staking prevents fruits from touching soil, reducing rot.

25. In crop production, ginger is propagated by

A. seed
B. bulb
C. rhizome ✔

D. corm

Explanation:
Ginger is propagated vegetatively through rhizomes.

26. A regulatory control of diseases in crop production is

A. rouging
B. quarantine ✔

C. crop rotation
D. soil tillage

Explanation:
Quarantine prevents introduction of pests and pathogens.

27. Yellow colouration of the lower leaves of a growing maize plant may be due to deficiency in

A. potassium
B. phosphorus
C. zinc
D. nitrogen ✔

Explanation:
Nitrogen deficiency causes older leaves to yellow.

28. Which of the following insects transmits swollen shoot disease of cocoa?

A. stem borer
B. mealybug ✔

C. whitefly
D. scale insect

Explanation:
Mealybugs are vectors for cocoa swollen shoot virus.

29. The main objectives of establishing forest in the arid regions is to

A. check desert encroachment ✔

B. provide firewood for cooking
C. provide bush meat
D. improve the beauty of the environment

Explanation:
Forests prevent desertification and soil erosion in arid regions.

30. The forest management system which involves the planting of both food crops and forest trees on the same piece of land at the same time is known as

A. selective exploitation
B. taungya ✔

C. regeneration
D. afforestation

Explanation:
Taungya system integrates forestry with crop cultivation.

31. Pineapple is widely propagated using

A. seeds
B. suckers ✔

C. slips
D. cuttings

Explanation:
Pineapple propagation is commonly vegetative using suckers.

32. Which of the following crops has a fibrous root system?

A. cotton ✔

B. coffee
C. cowpea
D. sugarcane

Explanation:
Cotton develops a fibrous root system to absorb water efficiently.

33. The process of grafting in crop production involves

A. the fusion of gametes of two crops
B. inducing rooting from stems
C. the transfer of a bud from one crop to another
D. the joining of two parts from related crops ✔

Explanation:
Grafting joins two parts of compatible plants to combine traits.

34. Crop rotation decreases the incidence of pests by

A. breaking life cycles of pests ✔

B. attracting pest predators
C. sterilizing the soil
D. maintaining soil fertility

Explanation:
Rotating crops prevents pests from completing their life cycles on a single host.

35. If the recommended spacing for a tree crop is $2.5 \text{ m}$ by $4.0 \text{ m}$, determine the number of seedlings required to plant a $2$ hectare farmland.

A. 1,000
B. 2,000
C. 10,000
D. 20,000 ✔

Explanation:
$2\text{ ha} = 20,000 \text{ m}^2$
Area per tree = $2.5 \times 4 = 10 \text{ m}^2$
Number of seedlings = $\frac{20,000}{10} = 2,000$ (✔ correction: careful – actual calculation is $2 \text{ ha} = 20,000 \text{ m}^2$, spacing 2.5 × 4 = 10 m² → 20,000 ÷ 10 = 2,000) ✅ Correct answer: B. 2,000

36. Close to the time of harvesting of cotton, sunshine is needed to ensure the production of bolls that are

A. big
B. light
C. not mouldy ✔

D. not open

Explanation:
Sunshine dries bolls, preventing mold formation.

37. If $T$ represents the gene for tallness while $t$ represents dwarfness, when a tall ($TT$) crop is crossed with a dwarf ($tt$) crop, the resultant crop will be

A. 100% dwarf
B. 100% tall ✔

C. 50% tall and 50% dwarf
D. 75% tall and 25% dwarf

Explanation:
$TT \times tt = Tt$ → all offspring are tall heterozygotes.

38. The genotypic ratio of the second filial generation will be

A. 3:1
B. 1:2:1 ✔

C. 2:2
D. 4:0

Explanation:
$Tt \times Tt$ produces $TT:Tt:tt = 1:2:1$.

39. The correct sequence of feed utilization in farm animals is

A. digestion-ingestion-absorption-assimilation
B. ingestion-digestion-assimilation-absorption ✔

C. ingestion-digestion-assimilation
D. digestion-assimilation-ingestion-absorption

Explanation:
The proper sequence is: ingestion → digestion → absorption → assimilation. Animals first eat (ingestion), break down food (digestion), absorb nutrients (absorption), and then use them for body processes (assimilation).

40. Sexual maturity in farm animals is not influenced by their

A. breed
B. sex
C. nutrition
D. weaning age ✔

Explanation:
Sexual maturity depends on breed, sex, and nutrition. The age at weaning does not directly affect the animal’s reproductive maturity.