Access To Agricultural Information Research Articles

Innovation Characteristics in Configuring Farmers’ Digital Literacy on E-Reporting Polygon in Wukirsari Indonesia

The e-reporting polygon is an effort of the Ministry of Agriculture to maximize agricultural cultivation activities, especially on the availability of subsidized fertilizers. However, not all agricultural extension agents and farmers are familiar with this innovation. It is possible that elder farmers will experience difficulties in accessing the innovation. Therefore, this study aims to: 1) Understand the characteristics of polygon e-reporting innovation and 2) Analyze the influence of the characteristics of polygon e-reporting innovation on farmers’ digital literacy in Wukirsari. This research applied a quantitative approach and was conducted in Wukirsari Village, Cangkringan Sub-district, Sleman Regency. The 60 farmers were collected through simple random sampling The data were analyzed through simple regression. The results showed that the five categories of innovation characteristics presented good values in terms of relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, trialability and observability. The characteristics of innovation also positively and significantly influenced the digital literacy level of farmers in Wukirsari Village. Nevertheless, the digital literacy of farmers needed to be highly improved particularly on gadget operation, agricultural information access, networking, and information sharing to other farmers.

Potential of Mobile-Based Apps Online Platforms in Fast-Tracking Access of Agriculture Information

Objectives: This paper report the potential of online mobile phone-based platforms in fast-tracking access of agricultural information to farmers, with a case study of Arusha, Tanzania. Method: We used the questionnaire-based and focus group discussion methods and a total of 156 respondents were randomly selected for data collection. Findings: The results showed that 77.6% of respondents possess smartphones and 32.7% of them use internetbased platforms to search for agriculture information which usually is not applicable or specific in their local Arusha context. Such finding raised a need for developing internet-based platform for accessing agricultural information by farmers for use in their local context. Thus, the same respondents were assessed for their readiness to use a mobile-based agricultural app if developed. The results indicated that 80% of the respondents were willing and would use the app. Novelty: The paper demonstrated how mobile phonebased apps can be used to quicken accessibility of agricultural information in a local-based, context-specific location. Keywords: Mobile Apps; Agriculture Information; Online Platform; Smartphones; Information Access

AGRICULTURAL INFORMATION ACCESS OF FARMERS THROUGH RURAL RADIO AGRICULTURAL RADIO PROGRAMS

This study was entitled Agricultural Information Access of Farmers through Rural Radio Agricultural Radio Programs. This study was designed and conducted to determine the information access and utilization of rural farmers through the communication strategies employed by Radyo Natin Guimba. (RNG) It was conducted at Barangay San Andres and Barangay Guiset, Guimba, Nueva Ecija, the Philippines using descriptive research design. The samples were chosen randomly. The age range of 46-49 was the most active group of respondents and the majority were males and married. Findings also reveal that almost half of the respondents were elementary graduates with 119,392 pesos as the average annual income. The average year in farming among the respondents was 24 years while the average size of the farm, 1.84 hectares. Moreover, the average value of the production of rice per hectare of the respondents was 85.13. The media sources of agricultural information among the respondents were brochures, pamphlets, television, radio, seminar, and fellow farmers. The majority of the respondents were farmers who listened to a radio station. The communication strategies which the RNG employed in the implementation of agricultural radio programs were information generation, expert invitation, production of spots, plugs, and jingles, production of communication materials, straight talk programming, office call and farm visit, farmers’ forum, community organizing, volunteer recruitment and involvement, and resources and support generation. Despite the communication strategies described in the present study, there were also problems encountered by RNG in disseminating agricultural information and in the implementation of agricultural programs. These were high turnover of staff, limited production of spots, plugs, and jingles, the sustainability of the production of communication materials, and time availability of rural farmers in conducting farm visits and farmers’ fora. In this study, the hypotheses were rejected generally because there was no significant relationship between the selected socio-economic of the respondents, and information access and utilization through Radyo Natin Guimba.

ROLE OF ICT IN THE DISSEMINATION AND ACCESS OF AGRICULTURAL INFORMATION BY SMALLHOLDER FARMERS IN SOUTH EASTERN KENYA

The agricultural sector has been described as the engine for economic growth and improved livelihoods in Africa. However, the sector has been in decline over many years and poor farmers have largely remained poor with 73 percent of the people living in rural areas subsisting on less than a dollar a day. The efforts to ensure global food security face an ever-expanding list of challenges such as climate change, reduced biodiversity, increasingly frequent natural disasters, food price volatility and inefficient supply chains. The inaccessibility of technological and market information has been cited as the major reason for the low productivity in African agriculture knowledge and information have become the major drivers of social and economic transformation in the world. The objective of the paper was to demonstrate the role of ICT in the dissemination and access of agricultural information by smallholder farmers in South Eastern Kenya. The researcher used mixed research method because it had the ability to explore both quantitative and qualitative research methods hence the researcher had the opportunity to use a wide variety of techniques that aided the research process. This study was carried out in Machakos, Makueni and Kitui Counties of Kenya. The local community were mostly smallholder farmers that relied on rain fed agriculture for crop farming of maize, beans, cow pea, pigeon pea and green grams. The study captured in detail the information needs of the farmers by addressing what they required in the course of normal agricultural activities. It was found out that farmers required information on soil management, pest management, use of fertilizer, weather forecast and financial management tips for mainly improving their productivity. The study concluded that there were positive outcome whenever accurate and timely information was disseminated to the farmer which led to higher quality of production and increased productivity.

Access and Use of Agricultural Information in Africa: Conceptual Review

Agricultural production and productivity is greatly determined by the amount of information available to its stakeholders . Limited Agricultural information access is a key factor that has greatly limited agricultural advancement in Africa. Agricultural Researchers centers continue to generate new agricultural information from local to global levels but most of Small scale farmers in Africa limited to access relevant, reliable and up to date Agriculture information. This could be attributed to lack of farming practice and processing agricultural technologies. Hence, this paper is intended to review access and use of agricultural information in Africa. The result indicated that access and use of agricultural information is an imperative to make rational decision, reduce uncertainty, and enhance adoption of farm innovation and production. Accordingly, dissemination of agricultural information has indispensible role for rural dweller livelihood empowerment. Based on the review, the study recommends resolving the challenges which impede provision of agricultural information using combination of information provision channels with consideration of information quality to increase accessibility of agricultural information. Keywords: Agricultural information, Access, use, Information source DOI: 10.7176/IKM/10-7-01 Publication date: October 31 st 2020

Rethinking Food Production: Nexus of Mobile Phones and Production Cost Minimization.

Information and communication technologies are a ready tool for all strata of society and are indeed redefining the way almost everything is done. Mobile phone technology, in particular, plays a vital role in expediting improvement in the efficiency of the household resource through access to information on various available technologies. Can mobile phones improve the cost efficiency of agricultural production? Comprehension of such effect is critical, especially in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals. We addressed this topic using cross-sectional data from smallholder maize producers in Zambia. The Stochastic Frontier Analysis was applied to estimate cost efficiency. The results indicate that mobile phone use improves the cost efficiency of maize production significantly and as such, adopters have made a rational decision to adopt mobile phone use for information access. Precisely, we found a 10.2% efficiency gap in favor of users. Nevertheless, if non-users were to adopt mobile phones for agricultural information access, maize production per hectare would increase by 21.38%. Eventually, food production would be increased in an environmentally friendly manner and the price of maize would be set at a competitive price within the region because agricultural inputs would be allocated cost efficiently. Therefore, in an attempt to minimize production cost in food production, this study strongly endorses the use of mobile phones for agricultural information access.

Towards Auspicious Agricultural Informatization—Implication of Farmers’ Behavioral Intention Apropos of Mobile Phone Use in Agriculture

The success of agricultural development programs in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is subject to the extent and nature of information communication technology (ICT) usage, particularly mobile phones. In comparison to other ICTs, the mobile phone is less demanding in terms of user capabilities, infrastructure requirements, and affordability. Mobile phone technology plays a vital role in facilitating the realization of benefits for farmers through access to useful agricultural information. However, up till now farmers' behavioral intention towards mobile phone use has hardly been evaluated yet it is a critical issue that policymakers and development partners need to comprehend. Is mobile phone use in agriculture dependent upon farmers’ behavioral intention? We address this topic using cross-sectional data from Zambia obtained through a two-stage sampling procedure. Our results establish that a strong association consistent with the theory of planned behavior (TPB) exists. This suggests that positive behavioral intention has a substantial likelihood to elicit auspicious agricultural informatization and consequently, household economic development. We further find that mobile phone ownership, family size, wealth, and marital status can significantly influence smallholders’ behavioral change towards mobile phone use in agriculture. Therefore, in an effort to promote sustainable agricultural information access in rural settings, our study strongly demonstrates the relevance of farmers’ behavioral intent towards mobile phone use, and also enriches the discussion on the implementation of mobile phone use for collecting agricultural information.

Analysing Support Towards Inclusive and Integrated Rural Advisory Systems

Public Rural Advisory Services (RAS) have adapted to different socio-economic scenarios in politically diverse countries with the help of the third sector supporting dedicated RAS programmes. The Plantwise (PW) programme, led by the Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International (CABI) and designed to increase food security in over 30 countries, is a good example of a public/NGO partnership, although recent evaluations have questioned its impacts on gendered agricultural information access. This study aims to investigate Plantwise’s gender impacts from individual and institutional viewpoints, interviewing smallholder farmers and extension staff involved in and outside of, the Plantwise programme in Bahawalpur and Jhang district in the Punjab province of Pakistan. This serves to highlight the programme’s impacts on systemic processes which ultimately have the potential to contribute to gender-transformative change and a more efficient and sustainable RAS. Results show differences between extension workers in a PW district and a non-PW district and between plant doctors and non-plant doctors in a PW district, though none were significant from a gendered perspective. There were interesting findings highlighting the plant clinic’s capacity as an agent of change but the low turnout of women at clinics did not reinforce the clinics’ capacity for change from a female perspective. Information from systemic, male and female-specific analyses are important to consider for PW from a practical perspective, such as the importance of spiritual locations. This study into the Pakistani PW initiative also offers an opportunity to contribute to the growing body of academic literature on the individual and institutional impacts of international development programmes, helping to understand wider aspects of international development involvement in RAS. From a practical perspective, this study also enables PW and other international development initiatives to better understand and interpret stakeholders’ perceptions, highlighting the importance of design and investment in participatory approaches to enable longer term impacts, especially focused on gender. It will also help the PW programme assess and understand implementation challenges in order to attain impact on the ground and be a driver of positive change in the country.

Gender analysis of agricultural extension policies in Uganda: informing practice?

In Uganda, agricultural-related policies clearly commit to a Gender and Development (GAD) approach but in many cases, the praxis follows a Women in Development (WID) approach. The same approach cascades into the operations of nonstate actors like Civil Society Organizations (CSOs). Using extensive document review and a gender analysis of key policy documents in Information Communication Technology (ICT) enabled agricultural practice, the article focuses on ways CSOs take up government policies on ICT and agricultural information to improve farmers’ access to agricultural information. Findings show that the government still opts for the male-dominated traditional agricultural extension system. CSOs, in contrast, have adopted a more democratized approach that allows more women to directly access extension services using mobile phones and radios. Whereas the initial aim is a focus on women, men have been allowed to participate in CSO-enabled agricultural information access, challenging the negative gender relations surrounding agriculture, and ICTs that include threats of domestic violence and the refusal of women to use technologies. Breaking these barriers has resulted into better access to agricultural information, more benefits through increased production, access to markets, and income, and more land for women and men alike.

Gender differences in use and preferences of agricultural information sources in Pakistan

ABSTRACTPurpose: Rural advisory services ensure agricultural information is disseminated to rural populations, yet they are less accessible to women. This research provides insight on gender differences in information access by investigating frequency of use and preference of agricultural information sources by gender in a rural setting, differentiated according to literacy and age. Design/Methodology/approach: This study interviewed 401 male/female individuals in farm households in Jhang and Bahawalpur district of Punjab, Pakistan in 2016. Findings: Men and women farmers’ use and preferences in accessing information sources are extremely different. Women hardly use sources for agricultural information, and value interpersonal communication from informal sources. In contrast, men use and value official agencies more. Radio, surprisingly, was very rarely used, contradicting previous findings of research elsewhere. Age and literacy affect differences between women more than it does between men, particularly for convenient locations to access information. Practical implications The study identified and refined major gender differences regarding use and preference for agricultural information in relation to age and literacy, and helps to articulate options to improve gender equality of access to agricultural information in Pakistan. Theoretical implications: The focus and outcomes regarding gender intersecting with age and literacy in agricultural information access imply the need for more refined socio-economic models, discerning and interrelating gender and other social dimensions beyond the standard of male-headed households. Originality/value: This paper adds to the growing body of evidence on information access according to gender, highlighting the need to investigate deeper socio-cultural issues around age and literacy.

TANTANGAN LITERASI INFORMASI PETANI DI ERA INFORMASI: Studi Kasus Petani di Lahan Pasir Pantai Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta

Information literacy of farmers is especially significant for the growth of farmer, increasing farmers’ income, promoting efficiency of agriculture and rural development. The aims of this research are getting to know 1) the challenge of farmers to understand the needs, source, access of agricultural information and 2) the challenge of farmers information literacy: possess, syntesize, analyze, diseminate and adoption of agricultural information. Participatory action research was choosen as a tool for enacting farmer-driven research. This result showed that the challenge of understanding the needs of agricultural information are slightly on the low level because farmers have understood the needs of information variety to enhance better farming. They can mention the basic needs of agricultural information on farming in the coastal sandy land which are resistant seed, watering and mulch system, biochemical of fertilizer and pesticide, and market product information. The challenge of farmers information literacy on how the farmers possess, synthesize, analyze, diseminate and adoption of information are demanding. Majority of farmers who called as members of farmer group have merely depended on the information which is provided by the group. They mostly conduct and access agricultural information by using interpersonal approach.

Influence of performance expectancy on commercial farmers’ intention to use mobile-based communication technologies for agricultural market information dissemination in Uganda

Purpose This paper to examine the relationship between performance expectancy and behavioural intention to use mobile-based communication technologies for agricultural market information dissemination in Uganda. Design/methodology/approach A descriptive field survey method was adopted. A total of 302 commercial farmers and agribusiness traders in Eastern Uganda participated in the study from whom data were collected using self-administered questionnaires. Descriptive statistics, factor analysis, correlation and regression analyses were used in the study. Findings The findings reveal a significant positive relationship between performance expectancy and behavioural intentions to use mobile-based communication technologies for agricultural information access and dissemination. This implies that, commercial farmers’ behavioural intentions to use mobile-based communication technologies for agricultural market information dissemination and access will be influenced if they anticipate mobile-based communication technologies to offer greater performance in their daily transactions. Research limitations/implications This study was conducted in the context of resource constrained countries particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, however reflecting knowledge from other contexts. The study was conducted with a structured questionnaire being the main data collection tool, and this limited the study from collecting views outside the questions asked in the questionnaire. The variables studied could not be analysed for a long time, given that the study was cross-sectional in nature. Practical implications The study provides recommendations on how to further boost farmers’ behavioural intentions to use mobile-based communication technologies for agricultural information dissemination. Policy makers need to ensure that policies are put in place that encourage third party software developers and telecommunication companies to provide software products and solutions that are beneficial to the commercial farmers and can enable them complete their agricultural transactions in time. Social implications The study provides critical literature on the influence of performance expectancy on commercial farmers’ behavioural intentions to use mobile-based communication technologies for agricultural market information access and dissemination in resource constrained settings. Originality/value It is noted that farmers in Uganda are slowly progressing to newer mobile information and communication technology tools for market information access and dissemination; however, little is known as to why there is slow adoption of these mobile technologies for agricultural purposes; yet policy makers need to come up with proper strategies to encourage wide scale use of mobile technologies for agricultural market purposes.

Effect of Information Communication Technology (ICT) on agricultural information access among extension officers in North West Province South Africa

This study determined the effect of Information Communication Technology (ICT) on agricultural information access among extension officers in North West Province South Africa. A simple random sampling technique was used to select 169 officers from which data were collected with structured and face validated questionnaire. Fourteen statements were perceived by officers as having an effect on improving information access. Significant determinants of the effect of ICT on information access were education (t= 2.61, p = 0.11); constraints to ICT tools (t= 2.60, p = .010), use of ICT tools (t = 4.67, p = .000) and e-readiness (t= -3.01, p =.003). Keywords: Information Communication Technology, information access, extension officers, agricultural information

Rural Farmers Access to Agricultural Information in Ido Local Government Areas of Oyo State

This research was conducted to determine rural farmers’ access to agricultural information in ido local government area of Oyo state. A multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select 120 respondents for the study. Primary data were collected using an in...

Application of Intelligence Control in Agriculture Greenhouses

Agriculture is the foundation of the national economy, and the guarantee of national industry. Greenhouse can grow counter-season production of crops and bring higher profits to farmers. But in our country the informatization level of agricultural is low. By using data acquisition technology, wireless communication technique and computer technology, this project can make intelligent monitoring, management and control of the large-scale plastic greenhouse come true and make agricultural information access and remote data transmission and exchange automated. The project is of simple circuit, low cost, good maintainability, and the expected results (the management of the greenhouse control) is operating conveniently and hommization, which can reduce a lot of manual work. It is expected to be widely popularized in agricultural plastic greenhouses in China. Key words:Intelligent Agriculture; Automation; Data acquisition; Sensors;

Effect of Information Communication Technology on Agricultural Information Access Among Researchers, Extension Agents, and Farmers in South Western Nigeria

This study compared researchers, extension agents, and farmers’ perceptions of the effect of Information Communication Technology (ICT) on agricultural information access. A simple random sampling technique was used to select 88 researchers, 115 extension agents, and 271 farmers. Data collected through a structured questionnaire were analyzed using means, standard deviation, and one-way analysis of variance. The results showed that, of the 29 statements on the rating scale, researchers, extension agents, and farmers agreed with and were positively disposed to 25, 23, and 19, respectively. A significant difference in the effect of ICT on agricultural information access among researchers, extension agents, and farmers (F = 6.49, p < .05) was observed. Access to agricultural information through ICT will continue to improve, since perceptions are overtly positive among researchers, extension agents, and farmers.

Assessing impact of soil management technologies on smallholder farmers' livelihoods in North Western Kenya

Soil nutrient depletion is a major constraint to agricultural production on smallholder farms in Kenya. Intervention in the depletion through soil management project (SMP) was initiated in 1994 through 2004. Phase one involved development of low cost technologies while phase two was designed to upscale the technologies. An impact assessment of the SMP project on the livelihoods of target beneficiaries was carried out in 2006 to determine the effects of the project of target community. A semi structured questionnaire jointly developed by stakeholders after identifying progress indicators was administered to 192 respondents who were randomly selected using simple random sampling technique. The farmers were stratified into participating and control or counterfactuals. The results showed that there was significant impact on target communities and other stakeholders who were involved in the project. The crop yields food supply and household earnings increased. A number of farmers, extension agents and researchers were trained on integrated soil fertility management technologies and extension methodologies. Long term impact indicated that there were increased crop and livestock yields, enhanced food availability and improved access to agricultural information. However, there is demand to sustain the interaction between change agents and farmers.