Farmers’ use of Global System for Mobile for Communication in the Fadama III Project in Northern Senatorial Zone of Taraba State, Nigeria
Journal Title: International Journal of Agriculture Innovations and Research - Year 2018, Vol 7, Issue 2
Abstract
The study examined the farmers’ use of Global System for Mobile (GSM) for communication among farmers/beneficiaries in the Fadama III project in Northern Senatorial Zone Taraba State, Nigeria. The population for the study included all beneficiaries/farmers under the Fadama III project. A purposive sampling was adopted because of the accessibility of the selected three Local Government Areas (LGAs), (Ardo-Kola, Jalingo & Lau) throughout the year. Five Fadama User Groups (FUGs) were randomly selected from each LGA to constitute fifteen FUGs for the study. From each FUG, ten respondents were drawn randomly to give a sample size for the study. Primary data were used for the study through the use of questionnaire. Data collected for this research were analysed using descriptive statistics such as frequency (f), percentage (%) and mean score (M). The study revealed that majority (68%) of the respondents has farm sizes of between 1-2 hectares. The study further showed that the average years of farming experience among the respondents were 10.5 years with the majority (65.3%) of the respondents had between 1-10 years farming experience. Greater proportion (34%) of the respondents had annual income of between N200, 001 – N 250, 000 with the mean (M) annual income of the respondents calculated to be N142, 203.80. Results of the study also revealed that majority (95.3%) of the fadama III respondents owned GSM phone and about (90%) of the respondents reported that they utilize GSM for communicating information on fadama III activities with the officials/personnel of the project. In Fadama III project also, respondents’ key areas of communications with personnel of the project included: group formation (88%), mobilization of members for participation in Fadama III programmes and activities (87.3%), awareness creation of Fadama III intervention (82.7%), capacity building activities (81.3%), convening of Fadama User Group (FUG)/FCA meetings (81.3%), sub-project preparation and management (80.7%), advisory services and input support services (80%) and environmental/social friendly practices (72.7%). The study showed that the mean scores of information needs by the respondents on the fadama III activities as follow: adoption of environmental friendly practices (M = 1.55), operation and maintenance of infrastructure such as agricultural production assets (M = 1.21), fisheries equipment, agro-processing equipment and community social assets (M = 1.15), operation and maintenance of irrigation facilities (M = 1.15), preparation of local development plans following participatory and socially inclusive processes, (M = 1.28), techniques for participatory planning and conflict management (M = 1.31), awareness raising strategy (M = 1.13) and capacity building for environmental screening, review and enforcement (M = 1.36) respectively. The study recommended that information and communication unit of fadama III project should collaborate with other media outfits and extension unit to disseminate agro-information to the benefits of not only fadama III beneficiaries, but the generality of the farming families in the study LGAs and State as a whole. This can serve as a method of improving farmers’ level of awareness and education.
Authors and Affiliations
Mr. BABA, et al.
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP511031
- DOI -
- Views 117
- Downloads 0
Functional Properties and Volatile Compounds of Baishouwu Flowers (Cynanchum Auriculatum)
The well-known Chinese medical herb, namely Baishouwu owns an increasing interest, since its root extracts as well as fractions have considerable range of important pharmacological values. This work aims at studying the...
Feeding Resources for Goat Farming Practices in Southern Tamil Nadu
Goat farming is an important occupation in rural poor and landless labourers of India. The research work was carried out in southern agro-climatic regions viz., Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi and Virudhunagar districts of Tami...
Efficiency of Entomophages Against Winter Moth (Operophtera Brumata) in Georgia
The article describes efficacy of entomophages on population dynamics of winter moth in Georgia. Were found 5 species of entomophages Apanteles ater Ratz., Pholodromus histrio Latr., Pimpla instigator F. Copsilura concin...
Effect of Dry Cropping Season of Sorghum on Selected Physico-Chemical Properties in West Africa
Nowadays, the rainfed agriculture is at a high risk of being severely affected by climate change because of its strong dependence on natural resources and the climate itself. This study was therefore undertaken in order...
Farmer Field School of Beef Cattle Breeding and Fattening in East Nusa Tenggara
The total population of cattle in East Nusa Tenggara in 2013 is 814,450 thousand heads where East Nusa Tenggara contributes 2.28% of national meat needs. This paper reviews how technology support can speed up the product...