12 pages, Development in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is adversely affected by climate variability and change due to the dependence of its economies and livelihoods primarily on rain-fed agriculture. Agro-advisories boost informed decision-making as well as planning of farm activities. The purpose of this study was to characterize the pathways through which farmers receive usable location-specific agro-advisories as well as to evaluate the effect of the socio-economic environment in the access to such information. Data was collected from 400 randomly selected households in lower eastern Kenya in a cross-sectional survey. Multivariate probit regression was used to determine the factors influencing the choice of pathways used in accessing climate change adaptation information. Household socio-economic characteristics that were found to be significant in explaining access to disseminated agro-advisories include phone and radio ownership, level of education, marital status, and farm size among others. Based on these findings a conclusion is made that the socio-economic environment within which information is disseminated is vital in determining those who access information and probably act on it. Additionally, pathways found to be complementary or substitutable give information providers new insights on the channels to use in information dissemination. The study recommends that these factors be considered in efforts geared towards promoting agro-advisory preparation and dissemination to improve adaptation to climate variability and change in dryland areas.
Ainembabzi, John Herbert (author), van Asten, Piet (author), Vanlauwe, Bernard (author), Ouma, Emily (author), Blomme, Guy (author), Birachi, Eliud Abucheli (author), Nguezet, Paul Martin Dontsop (author), Mignouna, Djana Babatima (author), and Manyong, Victor M. (author)
Format:
Journal article
Publication Date:
2017
Published:
USA: International Association of Agricultural Economists
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 164 Document Number: D08258
7 pages., The study highlighted the information needs and information sources used by the farmers of Kurukshetra district. Data were elicited through the questionnaire. All the farmers needed information on availability and use of pesticides, fertilizers for the crop, disease, pest, weed control, knowing and selling market prices of crops followed by government schemes/policies (98.1%), variety and new cropping system, availability of seeds (96.2%), Agricultural loan (73.1%), weather/weather forecast (73.1%), etc. The majority of the respondents (59.6%) were using newspapers in which Dainik Bhaskar (46.2%) was the first choice of farmers and (30.8%) banners and wall paintings were also assisted. Mobile phones (69.2%) and Television (67.3%) were major electronic sources among them. All the respondents were using these sources to increase agricultural production, availability and know the current market prices. While (90.4%) were using proper use of fertilizers/medicines/pesticides and curing diseases followed by (82.7%) know about new agricultural technology, weather (76.9%). Insufficient information literacy, information communication technology (ICT) skills (87.7%), and inadequate training opportunities (61.5%) were the main constraints faced by farmers. Satisfaction was high in electronic sources (53.8%) than print information (23.1%) sources for their agricultural information among the farmers of Kurukshetra.
21 pages, The transformation of smallholder farming is poised to be one of the key drivers of achieving the dual objectives of food security and poverty reduction in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Smallholder farmers account for between 60–80% of the food produced in the region but face many challenges that impede their productivity. Such challenges include a lack of timely access to appropriate agricultural information and services, which results in poor decision-making, particularly in addressing challenges and responding effectively to opportunities. In that context, the effective use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in improving accessibility to appropriate agricultural information and services presents substantial prospects for transforming the productivity and livelihoods of the farmers. Currently, the region experiences massive penetration and propagation of mobile and web-based applications. However, there is a dearth of compelling, comprehensive reviews evaluating their importance in enhancing agricultural information and services dissemination to smallholder farmers. Therefore, the current review explores the potential of enhancing agricultural information and services dissemination to smallholder farmers through ICTs and highlights gaps in their development and deployment in SSA. Five existing mobile applications used to disseminate agricultural information and services to smallholder farmers were identified, and their advantages, limitations, and opportunities were discussed. These were Esoko, iCow, Community Knowledge Workers, WeFarm and DigiFarm. The development and deployment of user-driven mobile applications that provide curated skill-sharing platforms, encourage farmers to give feedback to extension systems in real-time and promote the participation of women and youth in agriculture are recommended.
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