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 interview schedule and were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Results revealed that majority (70.0%) of the respondents were male, married (62.5%) and aspect of agriculture they engaged with was crop farming (83.3%). The most popular source of information among the respondents was radio (72.5%) and agricultural information they have access to were market information, storage information and fertilizer application. Chi-square results at 0.05 level of significance indicated that there was significant relationship between rural farmers’ sex (X 2 = 8.265, p = 0.004), marital status (X 2 = 16.420, p = 0.003) and correlation analysis of the result revealed that there existed a correlation between income (r = 0.229, p = 0.012), sources of agricultural information (r = 0.582, p = 0.000) and access to agricultural information. Therefore, the research study recommended that rural farmers should be educated and public awareness of agricultural information should be emphasized and created by the information providers.
In an era of knowledge economy, information plays an indispensable role in every aspect of economic development process which has been described as data that have been put into a meaningful and useful context which is communicated to recipient who use it to make necessary decisions. The ability to easily access and share information which stimulates the creation of new ideas is viewed as essential to maintaining nation’s economy and enhancing the quality of life of every citizen in all nations of the world. Information is the first and most important step in the process of adoption of newly innovated ideas by farmers, to achieve a steady flow of accurate, understandable and factual agricultural development, farmers must know, and act in accordance to agricultural information Adefuye and Adedoyin [
Rural farmers in Nigeria are not known for producing enough food, which is due to some constraints that can be traced to lack of access to timely and up-date information which will enable them to make necessary decisions that will assist them to attain optimal productivity. Access to accurate, reliable and efficient agricultural information by farmers is an important factor that can inform desired improvement required in Nigeria agricultural sector, promoting access to agricultural information that will support farmers in rural areas plays an important role in social and economic development of the country.
Agricultural information consists of all innovations, ideas, published, unpublished knowledge on every aspect of agriculture and technologies of agricultural policies which creates awareness among farmers about new agricultural practices and technologies for adoption. Agbamu [
Agricultural information needed by the rural farmers could be according to their needs and is still remain largely unmet which could be attributed to neglect of rural communities of the country. Information accessibility and utilization are unequally distributed between the rural communities of Nigeria, this is because information available to them is either not reliable or is distorted in the process of transmission and this unhealthy situation constitutes a major impediment, which keeps the rural communities from the development indicators Harande [
The general objective of this study is to determine rural farmers’ access to agricultural information in the study area while the specific objectives of the study were to:
1. Describe the socio-economic characteristics of the respondents.
2. Examine the enterprise characteristics of the respondents.
3. Identify respondents’ sources of agricultural information.
4. Ascertain the respondents’ access to agricultural information.
5. Identify the respondents’ constraints in accessing agricultural information.
The following hypotheses stated in the null form were tested in this study:
Ho1: There is no significant relationship between socio-economic characteristics of the respondents and their access to agricultural information.
Ho2: There is no significant relationship between respondents’ sources of agricultural information and frequency of access.
This study was carried out in Ido Local government area of Oyo State between 12th March and 25th June 2013. The Local government happens to be the largest in the state with 14 prominent communities. It has land area of 986 km2 and a population of 104,261 as at 2006 population census NPC [
Simple random sampling technique was used for this study. The first stage involved the selection of 10 communities from the 14 communities in Ido-local government using simple random sampling technique. The second stage involved the selection of 12 rural farmers from each of the selected communities from the list of rural farmers in Ido local government area through extension workers using simple random sampling technique which gives a total sample size of 120 rural farmers for the study.
The data for this study were collected through both primary and secondary sources. The primary data were collected through interview schedule while secondary data entails the review of relevant literature to the study.
The variables for this study include rural farmers socio-economic characteristics (age, sex, marital status, level of education etc), enterprise characteristics which was elicited by asking the respondents to indicate their source of labour, source of finance from the options presented, farm size was measured by asking the respondents to estimate the farm size cultivated, aspects of farming respondents engaged with, farming experience etc.
Sources of Agricultural Information was measured by asking the respondents to state their source of Agricultural Information from a list of sources listed and frequency of use of those sources using a 3 point Likert-type scale of regularly, sometimes, never which were scored 3, 2, 1.
Access to Agricultural Information was captured by asking the respondents to indicate their access to various Agricultural Information listed using a 3 point Likert-type scale of regularly, sometimes, never with the score of 3, 2, 1 assigned to them respectively.
Constraints to access Agricultural information was measured by asking the respondents to response to the constraints they faced from the options stated which were classified as major, minor , not a constraint and score of 3, 2, 1 were assigned to them respectively.
Data collected was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Descriptive statistics involved the use of frequency and percentages and inferential statistics involved the use of Pearson product moment correlation and chi-square. Hypothesis 1 was tested with chi-square and PPMC at 0.05 level of significance while Hypothesis 2 was tested using PPMC at 0.05 level of significance.
Variables | Frequency | Percentage |
---|---|---|
Age Less or equal 30 31 - 35 36 - 40 41 - 45 Above 45 | 38 26 26 13 17 | 31.7 21.7 21.7 10.8 14.1 |
Sex Male Female | 84 36 | 70.0 30.0 |
Marital statu Single Married Divorced Widow Widower | 32 75 4 2 7 | 26.7 62.5 3.3 1.7 5.8 |
Religion Islam Christianity Traditional | 50 67 3 | 41.7 55.8 2. |
Household size 1 - 3 4 - 6 7 - 9 10 - 12 | 16 88 11 5 | 13.3 73.3 9.2 4.2 |
Level of education Adult education Primary education Secondary education Tertiary education | 55 42 15 8 | 45.8 35.0 12.5 6.7 |
Primary occupation Teaching Farming Trading Civil service Artisan | 10 72 9 8 21 | 8.3 60.0 7.5 6.7 17.5 |
Secondary occupation Farming Trading Artisan None | 110 5 1 4 | 91.7 4.2 0.8 3.3 |
Income Less or equal 10000 N10,001 - N20,000 N20,001 - N30,000 N30,001 - N40,000 | 55 49 5 11 | 45.8 40.8 4.2 9.2 |
Result of the findings presented in
Variables | Frequency | Percentage |
---|---|---|
Sources of labour Family members Paid labour Friends Association members Self | 30 51 5 _ 34 | 25.0 42.5 4.2 _ 28.3 |
Sources of finance Self Family members Friends Association members Banks | 35 5 3 57 20 | 29.2 4.2 2.5 47.5 16.1 |
Aspect of farming Crop farming Livestock farming Fishery | 100 11 9 | 83.3 9.2 7.5 |
Farm size(hectares) Not indicated 1 - 5 6 - 10 11 - 15 16 - 20 Pond size Less 100 square meters 100 - 500 square meters 101 - 1000 square meters | 8 35 52 15 10 15 75 30 | 6.7 29.2 43.3 12.5 8.3 12.5 62.5 25.0 |
the respondents (83.3%) were involved in crop farming which determined the aspect of agricultural information rural farmers have access with. Findings also show that rural farmers (43.3%) of them had between 6 - 10 hectares of farmland, 62.5% of them had pond size of 100 - 500 meters square and 58.4% of them had between 6 - 10 years of farming experience which could have influenced rural farmers accessibility to agricultural information.
Respondents available sources of agricultural information and their frequency of use.
The sources of agricultural information available to farmers in the study area and the frequency of use is shown in
The result of the study in
Sources of agricultural information | Regularly F (%) | Sometimes F (%) | Never F (%) | Weighted score | Mean | Rank |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Radio | 87 (72.5) | 32 (26.7) | 1 (0.8) | 326 | 2.7 | 1st |
Television | 39 (32.5) | 78 (65.0) | 3 (2.5) | 276 | 2.3 | 3rd |
Extension agent | 2 (1.7) | 72 (60.0) | 46 (38.3) | 196 | 1.6 | 6th |
Farmers association | 54 (45.0) | 53 (44.2) | 13 (10.8) | 281 | 2.3 | 2nd |
Newspaper | _______ | 20 (16.7) | 100 (83.3) | 140 | 1.2 | 9th |
Friends | 3 (2.5) | 87 (72.5) | 30 (25.0) | 210 | 1.8 | 4th |
Neighbours | _______ | 86 (71.7) | 34 (28.3) | 206 | 1.7 | 5th |
Bulletins | 1 (0.8) | 26 (21.7) | 93 (77.5) | 148 | 1.2 | 8th |
Seminars | 10 (8.3) | 15 (12.5) | 95 (79.2) | 155 | 1.2 | 7th |
Agricultural information. | Regularly F (%) | Sometimes F (%) | Never F (%) | Weighted Score | Mean | Rank |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Improved method of weed control | 61 (50.8) | 46 (38.3) | 13 (10.8) | 288 | 2.40 | 6th |
Improved seed varieties | 61 (50.8) | 46 (38.3) | 13 (10.8) | 288 | 2.40 | 6th |
Introduction of new animal vaccines and drugs | 27 (22.5) | 23 (19.2) | 70 (58.3) | 197 | 1.64 | 15th |
Soil test | 32 (26.7) | 65 (54.2) | 23 (19.2) | 249 | 2.08 | 12th |
Fertilizer application | 92 (76.7) | 15 (12.5) | 13 (10.8) | 319 | 2.66 | 3rd |
Mechanized system of farming | 4 (3.3) | 10 (8.3) | 106 (88.3) | 138 | 1.15 | 17th |
Spacing and planting dates | 83 (69.2) | 25 (20.8) | 12 (10.0) | 311 | 2.59 | 4th |
Introduction of new herbicides | 37 (30.8) | 78 (65.0) | 5 (4.2) | 272 | 2.27 | 8th |
New method of crop preservation | 26 (21.7) | 82 (68.3) | 12 (10.0) | 254 | 2.12 | 11th |
Hygienic standard | 40 (33.3) | 37 (30.8) | 43 (35.8) | 237 | 1.98 | 14th |
Improved method of controlling pest and diseases Weather information Information on irrigation Market information Storage information Information on new feeds and feeding techniques Information on improved drying techniques Information on modern cultivation system | 36 (30.0) 2 (1.6) - 95 (79.2) 93 (77.5) 29 (24.2) 82 (68.3) 27 (22.5) | 77 (64.2) 26 (21.7) 5 (4.2) 25 (20.8) 22 (18.3) 78 (65.0) 26 (21.7) 70 (58.3) | 7 (5.8) 92 (76.7) 115 (95.8) - 5 (4.2) 13 (10.8) 12 (10.0) 23 (19.2) | 269 150 125 335 328 256 310 244 | 2.24 1.25 1.04 2.79 2.73 2.13 2.58 2.03 | 9th 16th 18th 1st 2nd 10th 5th 13th |
proved drying techniques, 50.8% indicated their regular access on improved method of weed control and seed varieties respectively.
Also, illiteracy was among the constraints the respondents were facing in accessing agricultural information
Constraints | Major constraint F (%) | Minor constraint F (%) | Not a constraint F (%) | Weighted score | Mean | Rank |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Illiteracy | 65 (54.2) | 18 (15.0) | 37 (30.8) | 268 | 2.23 | 4th |
Poor public relation of the extension workers | 13 (10.8) | 64 (53.3) | 43 (35.8) | 210 | 1.80 | 7th |
Improper awareness | 49 (40.8) | 59 (49.2) | 12 (10.0) | 277 | 2.31 | 3rd |
Language barrier | 7 (5.8) | 28 (23.3) | 85 (70.8) | 162 | 1.40 | 9th |
Lack of rural electrification | 41 (34.2) | 44 (36.7) | 35 (29.2) | 246 | 2.10 | 5th |
Lack of access road for easy community visit of extension workers | 14 (11.7) | 75 (62.5) | 31 (25.8) | 223 | 1.90 | 6th |
Lack of money to purchase newsletters, leaflets on agricultural information | 6 (5.0) | 49 (40.8) | 65 (54.2) | 181 | 1.51 | 8th |
Feedback problem | 105 (87.5) | 9 (7.5) | 6 (5.0) | 339 | 2.83 | 1st |
Inconsistency of agricultural information | 58 (48.3) | 49 (40.8) | 13 (10.8) | 285 | 2.40 | 2nd |
with 54.2% as major constraint which could be as a result of low level of education the rural farmers attained. Further result revealed that inconsistent in agricultural information was among the constraints the respondents were facing in accessing agricultural information with 48.3% as major constraint which could be attributed to poor extension services among the extension workers.
The result of the chi-square analysis in
Further result of socio-economic characteristics of the respondents using PPMC revealed that age, household size were not significant (r = 0.113, p = 0.221; r = 0.023, p = 0.800 respectively) but the income of the rural farmers was significant (r = 0.229, p = 0.012) which implies that rural farmers with higher level of income will have better access to agricultural information when compared with farmers with low level of income.
Further result in
The implication of this is that rural farmers with various sources of agricultural information will have more access to agricultural information when compared it with respondents that were restricted with different sources of agricultural information.
Based on the empirical evidence of the study, it could be concluded that majority of the rural farmers in the study area were male, married and aspect of agriculture they were engaged with was crop farming with radio as the most used source of agricultural information. The prevalent agricultural information they have access to was market information, storage information, fertilizer application, spacing and planting dates; however, the major constraints in accessing agricultural information among the rural farmers include illiteracy of the respondents, feedback problem and inconsistency of agricultural information. Significant relationship exist between sex,
Variables | r-value | p-value | Decision |
---|---|---|---|
Age | 0.113 | 0.221 | NS |
Household size | 0.023 | 0.800 | NS |
Income | 0.229 | 0.012 | S |
Variable | X2-value | DF | p-value | Decision |
---|---|---|---|---|
Sex | 8.265 | 1 | 0.004 | S |
Marital status | 16.420 | 4 | 0.003 | S |
Religion | 0.657 | 2 | 0.720 | NS |
Level of education | 0.564 | 3 | 0.605 | NS |
Variables | r-value | p-value | Decision |
---|---|---|---|
Sources of agricultural information. | 0.582 | 0.000 | Significant |
marital status, income, sources of agricultural information and access to agricultural information.
Based on the result of the study, it was recommended that:
・ Public awareness should be created on agricultural information.
・ Consistency of agricultural information should be planned for by the government and information providers.
・ Rural farmers should be educated in order to have access to agricultural information.
Gbadebo Lukman Adebisi,Gafar Abiodun Akinosho,Esther Olufunmilayo Owolade,Seun Patrick Ayobioloja,Bolanle Olufunmilayo Jatto, (2015) Rural Farmers Access to Agricultural Information in Ido Local Government Areas of Oyo State. Open Access Library Journal,02,1-8. doi: 10.4236/oalib.1101983