Farmers’ Perceptions of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Use in Extension Service Delivery in Northern Region, Ghana (original) (raw)
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2013
The study was carried out to assess the implication of the use of selected Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) for extension service delivery in Nigeria. The simple random technique was used to select fifty percent of the total extension agents which equivalent to forty-two respondents as sample size for the study. Frequency counts, percentages, mean and standard deviation were used as descriptive statistic. Also, Chi-Square test and Spearman's rho correlation were employed as inferential statistic to test for the hypotheses. Findings indicated that access to various ICTs tools especially Radio and Mobile phone and were found to be relevant to farming operations. The result of Chi square test revealed that significant relationship exist between sex, age, level of education, years of working experience of the extension agents and level of use of ICTs. Furthermore, the result of Spearman rho Correlation showed that there was no significant relationship between ICT tr...
2016
This study principally assessed the availability, accessibility and utilization of ICT facilities by Extension Agents and Farmers in the Northern Region of Ghana. A sample size of 180 respondents consisting of ninety (90) Agricultural Extension Agents (AEAs) and ninety (90) farmers were interviewed and the results analyzed. Simple random and stratified sampling techniques were used in selecting respondents. The data were analyzed using appropriate descriptive statistics. The results of the study revealed that phone and radio were the most available, accessible and commonly used ICTs by AEAs and farmers for extension service delivery in the Northern Region of Ghana. The result of the study also indicated a direct relationship between the level of education of AEAs and the use of ICTs in providing extension service to farmers. This relationship calls for the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) to put into action its existing ICT policy which includes training of AEAs in the use of...
Russian Journal of Agricultural and Socio-Economic Sciences, 2021
This study examined village extension agent's access and use of information and communication technology in extension services delivery to farmers in Plateau State, Nigeria. The population for the study consisted of all the village extension agents (VEAs) of the Plateau Agricultural Development Program (PADP) in the central agricultural zone of the state. Multistage sampling technique was employed in selecting the respondents for the study. Primary data were collected through the administration of questionnaires and interview techniques and were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Findings from the study shows that majority (77%) of the sampled village extension agents (VEAs) were males with a mean age of 43 years, Majority (87%) of the respondents were married with a mean household size of 4 persons. The study also showed that majority (80%) of the VEAs had tertiary education with a mean working experience of 13 years and average monthly income of ₦64875. The result also shows that four (4) out of the seven (7) listed ICT facilities were adjudged the ICT facilities accessible to VEAs in the study area having had mean values above the discriminating index (x ̅ =2.50). They included; GSM (phone) (x ̅ =3.94), radio (x ̅ = 2.83), television (x ̅ = 2.73) and computer (x ̅ = 2.68). Based on 2.50 discriminating index, only two out of seven listed conventional ICT facilities had mean values above the discriminating index (x ̅ 2.50) and thus were adjudged the ICT facilities used by VEAs. The GSM (phone) had the highest mean value of 3.62 followed by radio with mean value of 2.54. The logit regression result shows that coefficients of years of working experience and monthly income were significant and positively related to ICT use, while age and complexity in use of ICT were significant and negatively related to ICT use. Major constraints to use of ICT by VEAs includes; lack of administrative support in provision of ICT (87%), lack of in-service training on ICT use (66%), Poor salary/remuneration (64%), lack of awareness of ICT importance in extension (56%) among others. The study recommends intervention, serious synergy and proactive response on the part of government, non-governmental organization and extension organizations in ICT provision and training of VEAs on ICT use as well as stepping up campaigns on the importance of ICT use in agricultural extension delivery. KEY WORDS Village extension agents (VEA), access, information and communication technology (ICT), delivery, extension services. Sustainable agricultural development cannot be achieved successfully without accurate and up-to-date information and technologies to cope with globalization and its simultaneous rapid technological changes. This is because information is important for the development of any society and success for human endeavor (Sokoya et al., 2014). According to Tiwari and Sharma (2015), information is considered the fifth human need after air, water, food and shelter. Therefore, the concept of agricultural information in general and in particular, as a source of development, is of great importance in the contemporary world and cannot be overemphasized (Ogbonna and Aguvu, 2013). There is hardly an area of human activity today that has not been touched by dramatic changes in information and communication
Journal of the Ghana Science Association, 2010
Ghana's agricultural extension has not experienced substantial change in its mode of information dissemination. This study seeks to examine the extent of access and use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) by Agricultural Extension Agents (AEAs) and farmers and how they harness their potentials in their agricultural activities. Dangme East District in Southeast Ghana was purposively selected for this study. A multi-stage cluster sampling procedure was used to randomly select 120 small scale farmers and 21 AEAs from three villages in the three agricultural zones in the district. Data was collected using structured questionnaires and focus group discussions. Results showed that apart from computer and internet which were not available, all AEAs and most farmers have personal access to mobile phone, television and radio which they use to source and communicate agricultural information. However, for decisions with regard to production, input acquisition up to marketing of farm produce, farmers to a large extent depend more on non-ICT sources. On the other hand, for meteorological information, farmers depend more on radio, television and mobile phone. There was significant relationship p=(0.00 and 0.042) between farmers extent of access to mobile phone and radio and its use in agricultural activities. Also, there was a significant difference p=(0.03) between extents of access to T.V and how often farmers used it in their agricultural activities. There is a great scope and potential for agricultural extension service to explore the use of television, radio and mobile phones to enhance farmers' access to timely agricultural information. Ho: there is no relationship between extent of access to ICT by AEAs in the Dangme East district and their extent of ICT use. Ho: there is no relationship between extent of access to ICT by farmers in the Dangme East district and their extent of ICT use. Ho: AEAs and farmers in the Dangme East district are not harnessing the potential of modern ICT in their agricultural activities.
The study used qualitative and quantitative procedures to collect the data from 291 extension agents and ICTs service providers such as internet cafes, computer training and business centers, computer firms, and information centers in the selected districts capitals in Ghana. Means, percentages, frequencies, and standard deviation were generated to describe the general trend of the data. The study revealed that extension agents have high and positive demand for ICTs for extension. There is a prospect for involving private and public institutional sources in extension delivery. The respondents have high knowledge about the advantages of using ICTs which will probably enhance their application of the technologies in extension. However, extension agents need ICT training opportunities, infrastructure, financial resources and technical backstopping to enhance the use of ICTs in extension. The study recommends a systems approach involving major stakeholders such as training institutions, Internet service providers, research institutions, farmers, policy makers to collaborate in the use of ICTs for extension. (1988), extension workers are often ineffective in their communication with farmer because they lack training in the scientific principles and methods of communication. They often have technical, but not communication orientation .
Journal of Agripreneurship and Sustainable Development (JASD) , 2021
The study assessed farmers’ perception of the effectiveness of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in dissemination of Agricultural information to rural farmers in Bosso Local Government Area of Niger State, Nigeria. A multi-stage simple random sampling procedure was used to select 100 farmers from the study area. Data generated were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results showed that 62% of the farmers were aware of the ICTs, 63% had access to ICTs, 41% owned radio, television, and mobile phone while 27% owned radio and mobile phone. The results further revealed that all ((100%) the farmers perceived ICTs as effective tools in extension service delivery. Also, 63% of the respondents considered access to mobile phone to be timely and relevant in accessing agricultural information. Mobile phone (40%) was ranked first as an effective means of accessing agricultural information by the farmers. It was also disclosed that television (32%) and mobile phone (40%) were the major factors leading to ICTs effectiveness. Erratic power supply (32.0%) and inadequate extension services (25%) were the major problems that militated against the use of ICTs among farmers in the study area. The study concluded that ICTs are effective tools in dissemination of agricultural information in the study area, and mobile phone was the most effective means of accessing agricultural information by the respondents due to its dual purpose. The study also concluded that erratic power supply and inadequate extension services are the major problems militating against the use of ICTs among farmers. It was recommended that in order for farmers to understand and appreciate the benefits of ICT to improved agricultural production, extension agents should educate farmers particularly on the use of mobile phone which is considered more accessible and convenient.
ISAR Journal of Agriculture and Biology, 2024
This study aimed to assess how field extension agents in Kaduna State access and use information and communication technology (ICT) for delivering extension services. A multi-stage sampling approach, combining purposive and simple random sampling techniques, was employed to select 200 extension agents for the research. Primary data were gathered using descriptive and inferential statistics to achieve the study's specific objectives. The findings indicated that 62% of the extension agents were male, with 43.5% aged between 41-50 years, and a majority (78%) being married. Furthermore, 85% had tertiary education, 45% had a household size of 1-3 persons, and 51.5% had a monthly income of ₦21,000-₦40,000. The analysis also revealed that the most commonly owned, accessed, and used ICT tools by the extension agents were radio, television, and phones, which were personally sourced from the open market. Consequently, the overall level of access to and use of these tools was then looked on to be low generally, with mean response scores of x = 1.7 for both. The extension agents' views on the usage of ICTs in agricultural activities revealed the following: gathering information from research institutions and farmers (x = 2.7), obtaining information on new seed varieties and seedlings (x = 2.6), best techniques for planting (x = 2.6), and methods of livestock management (x = 2.6), among others. Regression analysis indicated that gender, age, education level, and work experience did not impact greatly on ICT utilization. However, marital status, income, occupation, organization, awareness, and accessibility were key factors influencing the use of ICTs in extension service delivery. Based on these insights, suggestions were discussed to enhance the utilization of modern ICTs and provide adequate training for extension agents on ICT usage, among other suggestions.
Journal of Agricultural Extension
The study identified the levels of ICT use, awareness, accessibility, perceived organizational support, assessed the perception of the respondents on problems in using ICTs for agriculture extension work and, clarifies the relationships between awareness, accessibility, perceived organizational support, and use of ICTs. Data were collected through the use of a questionnaire distributed to 254 respondents using a multi-stage sampling and stratified sampling procedures. Mean, frequency, standard deviation and structural equation modelling in analysis of morement structure (AMOS) was used. Findings revealed that levels of ICT use (x̄ = 3.43), awareness (x̄ =3.40) accessibility (x̄ 3.66), and perceived organizational support (x̄ 3.574) were moderates. The high cost of ICT garget (x̄ =4.71), poor electricity supply (x̄ =4.69), lack of training (x̄ =4.63), ICT illiteracy (x̄ =4.61), outdated contents (x̄ =4.61), inability to use ICT (x̄ =4.55) and network issue (x̄ =4.34) were the critica...
Universal Journal of Agricultural Research, 2019
The use of mobile phones as means of communication between the extension agents and local farmers in Edo South was examined to determine the perception of the extension agents on its effectiveness. Fifty-one (51) respondents were obtained through random sampling using questionnaires to obtain relevant information in the two local government areas; Ovia North East and Ovia South West selected for the study. The result obtained indicated that male extension agents were in majority (72.5%), 54.9% of the sampled population above 45 years of age and 58.8% possessed 16-20 years working experience. Phone calls and short message service (SMS) were found appropriate for agricultural information dissemination. Significant and positive relationships were established between the working experience of extension agents and their perception of mobile phone usage. The recommendation is that formal integration of mobile phone into extension activities be done to enhance wider coverage, reduce cost and risks associated with movement. Extension agents and farmers need more training on effective usage of SMS and phone calls for interaction on farm related issues. Enforcement of existing telecommunication laws could reduce network failure and also enhance effective usage.
Application of ICTs in agricultural extension delivery services in Benue State, Nigeria
This study examined the application of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in agricultural extension delivery services in Benue State, Nigeria. Forty respondents were selected. Primary data were used, and collected using a structured questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Research findings revealed that respondents had low level of access to ICT facilities, as the mean value of their access level for most of the ICT facilities was below the medium scale (2.00). The ICTs with high access were radio ( ̅ = 2.50), television ( ̅ = 2.35) and Mobile phones ( ̅ = 2.78). The respondents had a high usage of mobile phones ( ̅ = 4.00), radio ( ̅ = 4.00), television ( ̅ = 3.83), internet connected computers ( ̅ = 3.00) and printers ( ̅ = 2.08). The constraints to the application of ICTs by the respondents were infrastructural, financial and technical in nature. Based on these findings, it was recommended that ICT facilities be provided in the work places of extension agents, provision of infrastructure required for the operation of ICTs, and provision of financial assistance to extension agents with respect to procurement and maintenance of ICTs.