Abstract

Failure of the market to fully quantify the value of the social and environmental forest resources has led to giving priority to other land uses against forestry development. Thus it is important to estimate the total economic value of Agodi gardens and park, so as encourage and hence justify its conservation.  Primary data needed for the study were collected through the administration of questionnaires to residents in Ibadan metropolis. Respondents were randomly selected from local government areas and wards in Ibadan metropolis. They were distributed into 440 non-visitor and 80 visitors in the park making a total of 520 respondents.  Contingent valuation, multiple regression analysis (travel cost model), logistic regression and analysis, were used to analyze the data. Contingent valuation was used to get the non-use value while travel cost model was used to derive the consumer surplus for the use value. The result showed the amount individuals were most willing to pay (WTP) for the conservation of the park to be ₦500 and its total annual non- use value to be ₦1.6 billion. The result also revealed the per trip consumer surplus to be ₦15729.89k and the use value to be ₦511,221,483 hence the total economic value was ₦2,111,221,483 (Two billion one hundred and eleven million two hundred and twenty-one thousand four hundred and eighty-three naira). The study revealed great support for the Nature Park. Hence the social valuation of project should be of utmost importance.

Key Words: Total Economic Valuation, Contingent valuation, Travel cost, Consumer surplus, Garden and park