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12. Digital extension, price risk, and farm performance: experimental evidence from Nigeria
- Collection:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center (ACDC)
- Contributers:
- Oyinbo, Oyakhilomen (author), Chamberlain, Jordan (author), Abdoulaye, Tahirou (author), and Maertens, Miet (author)
- Format:
- Journal article
- Publication Date:
- 2021-06-21
- Published:
- United States: Wiley Online
- Location:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 205 Document Number: D12539
- Journal Title:
- American Journal fo Agricultural Economics
- Journal Title Details:
- 104 (2)
- Notes:
- 21 pages, Despite decades of investment in agricultural extension, technology adoption among farmers and agricultural productivity growth in Sub-Saharan Africa remain slow. Among other shortcomings, extension systems often make recommendations that do not account for price risk or spatial heterogeneity in farmers' growing conditions. However, little is known about the effectiveness of extension approaches for nutrient management that consider these issues. We analyze the impact of farmers' access to site-specific nutrient management recommendations and to information on expected returns, provided through a digital decision support tool, for maize production. We implement a randomized controlled trial among smallholders in the maize belt of northern Nigeria. We use three waves of annual panel data to estimate immediate and longer term effects of two different extension treatments: site-specific recommendations with and without complementary information about variability in output prices and expected returns. We find that site-specific nutrient management recommendations improve fertilizer management practices and maize yields but do not necessarily increase fertilizer use. In addition, we find that recommendations that are accompanied by additional information about variability in expected returns induce larger fertilizer investments that persist beyond the first year. However, the magnitudes of these effects are small: we find only incremental increases in investments and net revenues over two treatment years.
13. Factors influencing adoption of improved maize seed varieties among smallholder farmers in Kaduna State, Nigeria
- Collection:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center (ACDC)
- Contributers:
- Chete, Oluwatoyin Bukola (author)
- Format:
- Journal article
- Publication Date:
- 2021-06-30
- Published:
- International: Academic Journals
- Location:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 203 Document Number: D12204
- Journal Title:
- Journal of Extension and Rural Development
- Journal Title Details:
- Vol.13(2)
- Notes:
- 8 pages., This study ascertained factors influencing adoption of improved maize seed varieties in three local government areas of Kaduna State, North-central Nigeria. It collected cross-sectional data for a sample of 180 randomly selected farming households across three local government areas of the State in 2015/16. Both descriptive and inferential analyses were performed on the data. The descriptive statistics differentiated adopters from non-adopters, while the inferential analysis involved estimation of a logit model to determine factors driving adoption of improved maize seed varieties in the study areas. The results of the descriptive analysis show significant mean differences between adopters and non-adopters regarding several farm households’ characteristics. The model results reveal that adoption of improved maize seed varieties among the households was positively influenced by age, household size, level of education, farming experience, labour availability, contacts with extension agents, farm size, off-farm income and membership of associations. Thus, the study concluded that improving farmers’ education, expanding coverage and depth of extension services and strengthening farmer associations are useful policy actions for promoting adoption of improved maize varieties. It is also important to address availability, accessibility and affordability issues constraining adoption, enhance credit access and mitigate risk perceptions. The link between researchers and innovators and the farmers who are the off-takers of their outputs should be reinforced to increase maize productivity in order to satisfy national demand and promote food security.
14. Happily ever after... A systematic literature review of the use of storytelling in extending agricultural research
- Collection:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center (ACDC)
- Contributers:
- Thomson, Michael (author), Cosby, Amy (author), and Swain, Dave (author)
- Format:
- Journal article
- Publication Date:
- 2019
- Published:
- Australia
- Location:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 163 Document Number: D11653
- Journal Title:
- Rural Extension and Innovation Systems Journal
- Journal Title Details:
- 15(1) : 62-72
- Notes:
- 11 pages., Authors focus on the Australian perspective and draw on a detailed global context to better understand how research might inform the use of creative non-fiction storytelling to aid new technology development.
15. Influence of public agricultural extension on technology adoption by small-scale farmers in Zimbabwe
- Collection:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center (ACDC)
- Contributers:
- Worth, S. (author) and Masere, T.P. (author)
- Format:
- Journal article
- Publication Date:
- 2021-11
- Published:
- South Africa: SciELO
- Location:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 204 Document Number: D12446
- Journal Title:
- South African Journal of Extension
- Journal Title Details:
- Vol. 49 No. 1 (2021)
- Notes:
- 18 pages, This paper presents the findings of challenges facing Zimbabwe’s extension services and how these have affected the adoption of technologies they render to small-scale farmers. This study uses a critical review of relevant literature on Zimbabwe’s primary public extension agency (AGRITEX). Additionally, 21 key informant interviews (KIIs) were conducted to corroborate data collected in secondary research on extension approaches currently in use, the key factors affecting technology adoption, and the technology adoption process of small-scale farmers. The study found AGRITEX’s major challenges to be poor funding, poor remuneration and incentives for extension personnel, lack of in-service training, lack of appropriate technology, as well as poor operational resources like transport to reach all farmers. Consequently, services offered to small-scale farmers were compromised, which led to poor adoption of recommended technologies. Furthermore, the study determined that key factors influencing technology adoption are related to the farmers’ circumstances, the operating environment, and the attributes of technology itself. As a lasting solution to poor technology adoption, an adaptive extension system that promotes building the capacity of extension workers and researchers, as well as embracing farmers and their indigenous knowledge, is proposed
16. Perspectives on communicating 21st-Century agricultural innovations to Nigerian rural farmers
- Collection:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center (ACDC)
- Contributers:
- Ejem, Agwu Agwu (author), Aremu, Charity (author), Ajakaiye, Olanrewaju O.P (author), Ben-Enukora, Charity (author), Akerele-Popoola, Oluwakemi E. (author), Ibiwoye, Tope Israel (author), and Olaniran, Abiola Folakemi (author)
- Format:
- Journal article
- Publication Date:
- 2023-01-19
- Published:
- Netherlands: Elsevier B.V.
- Location:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 206 Document Number: D12819
- Journal Title:
- Journal of Agriculture and Food Research
- Journal Title Details:
- Vol. 11
- Notes:
- 8 pages, This perspective paper reviews the existing research directions on agricultural extension programmes in Nigeria and highlights how they are incapable of diffusing enough knowledge to facilitate the adoption of 21st-century agricultural innovations and enhance sustainable practices among rural farmers. A key idea of this paper is to suggest a new direction of research that is oriented towards the quality, skills, and strategies of effective and efficient communication that the extension agents possess, and a two-way communication delivery, and accentuate how it is a panacea for effective diffusion of knowledge and adoption of agricultural innovations among rural farmers. The methodology was to review and compare bodies of literature from countries with the best agricultural extension and rural advisory services, particularly some countries in Asia, and show how insights from those countries can inform a new research direction in effectively communicating agricultural innovations to Nigerian rural farmers. Drawing on experiences from those countries, it was confirmed that Nigeria's extension system is not effective and efficient in communicating innovations in global agricultural practices to farmers in the rural areas, and research efforts in extension services in the country are still fixated on the role of extension agents as teachers to farmer-pupils and one-way communication delivery from research through extension to farmers, and the availability and ability to use communication channels. Based on the current challenges in farming and agriculture at large, there is a need to rethink the concept of extension in Nigeria, emphasize training of agents, acquisition of communication skills and adoption of a two-way communication delivery that recognises farmers as autonomous agents and co-designers of agricultural innovations and not just passive receivers. The value of this paper is that it is arguably the first attempt to chart a new perspective and communication delivery methods for research and practice in agricultural extension programmes in Nigeria.
17. Pest Management in Indiana Soybean Production Systems
- Collection:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center (ACDC)
- Contributers:
- Conley, Shawn P. (author), Krupke, Christian (author), Santini, Judy (author), and Shaner, Gregory (author)
- Format:
- unknown
- Publication Date:
- unknown
- Published:
- USA
- Location:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 161 Document Number: C26409
18. Talking Plants: Examining the Role of Podcasts in Communicating Plant Pathology Knowledge
- Collection:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center (ACDC)
- Contributers:
- Lim, Melissa (author) and Swenson, Rebecca (author)
- Format:
- Journal article
- Publication Date:
- 2021-05
- Published:
- United States: New Prairie Press
- Location:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 203 Document Number: D12198
- Journal Title:
- Journal of Applied Communications
- Journal Title Details:
- Volume 105 - Issue 2
- Notes:
- 27 pages, Extension programs must constantly evaluate communication plans and platforms to determine if they are worth the investment of time, money, and resources. Podcasts are growing in popularity as a communication platform for education and entertainment. With the VARK model of learning styles and core plant pathology concepts as a guide, researchers evaluated the prevalence and type of plant pathology information in podcasts to better understand how podcasts could benefit Extension plant pathology programs. Using keywords related to plant pathology, researchers searched popular mobile podcast listening applications and evaluated relevant podcast episodes using content analysis methods. Results indicated few podcast shows discuss plant pathology topics. The podcast shows identified, however, covered eight fundamental units of plant pathology knowledge: basics of plant pathology, plant pathology techniques, biology of plant diseases, biology of plant pathogens, management of plant diseases, influence of the environment, other causes of plant disease symptoms, and importance of fungi. Results suggested that podcasts can effectively communicate different types of plant pathology information to audiences. Plant pathology Extension programs can utilize the findings of this study to create new plant pathology podcasts that meet the changing needs of plant pathology Extension clientele. It is worthwhile to further explore the use of podcasts in plant pathology Extension programs.
19. Tapping the full potential of the digital revolution for agricultural extension: an emerging innovation agenda
- Collection:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center (ACDC)
- Contributers:
- Steinke, Jonathan (author), van Etten, Jacob (author), Muller, Anna (author), Ortiz-Crespo, Berta (author), van de Gevel, Jeske (author), Silvestri, Silvia (author), and Priebe, Jan (author)
- Format:
- Journal article
- Publication Date:
- 2020-03-27
- Published:
- International: Taylor and Francis
- Location:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 204 Document Number: D12480
- Journal Title:
- International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability
- Journal Title Details:
- 5-6
- Notes:
- 26 pages, Agricultural extension in the Global South can benefit greatly from the use of modern information and communication technologies (ICT). Yet, despite two decades of promising experiences, this potential is not fully realized. Here, we review the relevant research literature to inform future investments into agricultural information services that harness the full potential of digital media. We describe a recently emerging innovation agenda that is, in part, a response to the eventual failure of many new agro-advisory initiatives. One important cause of failure has been a focus on pushing certain technologies, rather than responding to the particular communication challenges of potential users. To avoid such bias in designing new services, the new innovation agenda rests on two major foundations: strong user-centredness and problem-orientation. In our review, we first describe how user-centred design methods help in specifying both problems and (digital) solutions in agricultural extension. To inform responses to the communication challenges defined by that analysis, we then describe eight emerging aspects of using ICT for development, and how they can address common deficiencies of agricultural extension. Practical examples from the literature highlight the possibilities and limitations of these innovation directions. Beyond digital design, however, technological innovation requires enabling institutions.
20. The Military Families Learning Network: A Model for Extension-Based Virtual Learning Communities
- Collection:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center (ACDC)
- Contributers:
- Plein, Christopher (author), Cassels, Alicia (author), and West Virginia University Auburn University
- Format:
- Online journal article
- Publication Date:
- 2019-12
- Published:
- United States: Extension Journal, Inc.
- Location:
- Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 124 Document Number: D11229
- Journal Title:
- Journal of Extension
- Journal Title Details:
- 57(6)
- Notes:
- 9 pages, via online journal, This article provides an overview of Extension's Military Families Learning Network. The network is an example of Extension's commitment to building virtual learning networks in the support of targeted professional and lay audiences. The network uses well-established and emergent pedagogical approaches focusing on adult-centered learning while employing state-of-the-art online learning technologies. We present a four-dimensional model of learning activities to illustrate how the network offers different options for and approaches to adult-centered learning and training. The Military Families Learning Network can serve as a model for broader adoption of such entities across the Extension community.
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