Gacheha, Timothy Gitau (2015) Assessment of Information and Communication Tools (ICTs) Used in the Diffusion of Agricultural Innovations: A Case Study of Cassava Production in Msambweni, Kwale County, Kenya. Masters thesis, University of Nairobi.
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Abstract
In the coastal lowlands of Kenya, cassava is the second most important staple crop after maize. However, its productivity in the region is low due to various reasons which include the use of traditional low yielding varieties by farmers. The high perishability of the roots also limits the duration of handling the unprocessed root. To mitigate against the low productivity of the crop, there has been increased promotion of cassava production by the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries through the introduction of improved high yielding and disease resistant varieties in the country. However, despite these interventions, there is lack of adequate extension services to offer timely information to farmers using information and communication tools (ICTs) available to them. Since information dissemination is crucial in enhancing and developing the adaptive capacities of all economies especially in rural areas to adopt new agricultural concepts for improved productivity, the use of ICTs can enhance the provision of extension services to farmers. This study was carried out to assess the Information and Communication Tools (ICTs) used in the diffusion of agricultural innovations and focused on cassava production in Msambweni sub-county of Kwale county. It was guided by four research objectives; to identify information sources available; to determine the ICTs available to the farmers; to establish the influence of farmers’ socio-economic characteristics on the choice of ICTs and to evaluate the influence of ICTs on adoption of cassava farming. The study targeted a population of 3800 farmers in the sub-county involved in cassava production. Multistage sampling technique was applied to select 133 respondents from three sub-locations in three wards namely Kikoneni in Pogwe ward, Lungalunga in Vanga ward and Malambe in Nzombo ward. Semistructured pre-tested questionnaires were administered to the respondents through face-to-face interviews. Data collected was entered into MS Excel sheet and analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences program and was presented using frequencies and percentage tables; and pie charts. Chi-square tests and correlation analysis were used to test the hypotheses and the association of the variables. The tests revealed that, significant relationships exist between the socio-economic characteristics of the farmers and ICTs use with a strong correlation; (r = 0.863, p-value = 0.011, r2 = 0.745). Sources of information and use of ICTs had a strong correlation; (r = 0.771, p-value = 0.021, r2 = 0.594). Availability of information and ICTs use among the farmers in the study had a strong correlation; (r = 0.926, p-value = 0.003, r2 = 0.857). Other results indicated that, radio was the most widely used ICT by the farmers studied (69.9%) followed by mobile phones (33.1%) and television (26.3%). However, internet was found to be used by a negligent number of farmers (2.3%). Radio was mainly used due to its availability to the farmers as every farmer had a radio. Internet was rarely used due to inadequate electricity connectivity and limited number of computers in the study area. In conclusion, it is clear that there is significant influence of the ICTs used in information dissemination and the adoption of innovative methods of cassava farming. It is recommended that to enhance agricultural information transmission to the farmers, there should be effective use and application of the already available channels which are the radio, mobile phones and television. There is also need for the extension agents to be equipped with skills and internet facilities to enable them source and transfer agricultural information to farmers in the appropriate form and at the right time.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Masters) |
|---|---|
| Subjects: | S Agriculture > S Agriculture (General) Z Bibliography. Library Science. Information Resources > ZA Information resources |
| Divisions: | Africana |
| Depositing User: | Mr Nahum Osman |
| Date Deposited: | 13 Jul 2016 09:14 |
| Last Modified: | 13 Jul 2016 09:14 |
| URI: | http://thesisbank.jhia.ac.ke/id/eprint/735 |
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