Agricultural Communication

A B S T R A C T This study is a qualitative survey of the effectiveness of communication between agricultural extension personnel and smallholder farmers in the Gweru district of Zimbabwe. Extension communication, particularly, has a large bearing on the sustainability of agricultural developments projects. The apparent lack of information, education and training during the Fast Track Land Reform Programme (FTLRP) of Zimbabwe contributed to low agricultural production and productivity which could consequently lead to continuing food insecurity in the country. The findings indicate a discrepancy between work experience and qualifications of the extension workers which could imply a lack in the quality of knowledge, information and skills imparted to the resettled farmers. Further findings indicate a lack of stakeholder analysis in designing agricultural communication projects and an absence of a multi-media communication approach to enhance adoption of agricultural innovations. The study concludes that agricultural extension is not adequate due to multiple resource constraints. The findings imply that agricultural communication should be integrative. A model of smallholder agriculture sta-keholder mobilization has been developed to encourage effective agricultural communication and productivity therein.

This study evaluated the effect of animal temperament measured using flight speed (FS) on plasma lactate, muscle glycogen and lactate concentrations at slaughter plus ultimate pH in 648 lot finished cattle of mixed breed and sex. Muscle samples were collected at slaughter from the m. semimembranosus, m. semitendinosus and m. longissimus thoracis (LT) for analysis of glycogen and lactate concentration. Blood was collected after exsanguination and analysed for plasma lactate concentration and ultimate pH of the LT was measured. FS had no effect on muscle glycogen concentration in any muscle or ultimate pH of the LT (P N 0.05). As FS increased from 1 to 5 m/s, plasma and muscle lactate concentration increased by 54% and 11.4% (P b 0.01). The mechanisms through which temperament contributes to variation in glycogen metabolism remain unclear. The risk of dark cutting was not impacted by temperament, indicating that other production and genetic factors have a greater impact on the incidence of dark cutting.

This study investigated information needs and challenges of agricultural researchers and extension workers in Edo State, Nigeria. Proportionate sampling technique was used to select 106 respondents. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse the data. The majority (71.6 %) of respondents indicated their need for information with respect to climate change and adaptation measures (71.6 %). Extension workers communicated more with agricultural researchers monthly (77.5 %). Lack of office-wide internet connectivity (2.06±1.08), unstable power supply (2.05±1.07), and non-subscription to relevant online resources by employer (2.05±1.07) inhibited respondents from meeting their information needs. The study recommends that Edo State ministry of agriculture and the management of the research institutes, should improve ICT infrastructure in their establishments in order to enhance access to e-resources by staff.

The study ascertained ICTs and online resources used for meeting information needs by agricultural researchers and extension workers in Edo State, Nigeria. Survey design was used in the study. ICTs /online resources used by respondents to meet their information needs were: computers (95.1%), internet (90.2%), mobile/cell phones (86.3%), dictionaries (79.4%), electronic books (e-books) (78.4%), and electronic journals (e-journals) (77.5%). The majority (82.4%) indicated their purpose of using ICTS/online resources was for research purposes. Researchers acquired their e-resources majorly from the internet (83.9%) and extension workers acquired their e-resources through subscriptions made through the consortium for university and research libraries (87.5%). The study recommends that Edo State ministry of agriculture and agricultural research institutes in the state, should subscribe for online resources for the benefit of respondents who desire to use relevant online resources but are hindered by cost and technical issues.

The acceptance and usage in Information Communication Technology (ICT) is crucial for the advancement of agricultural industry in Malaysia. Agriculture has been the backbone of our economy and government is constantly promoting the concept of k-farmers through various efforts. Therefore, this research aims to see the perception and attitude of agricultural community towards internet usage. in all, only 148 out of 406 respondents involved in this study, have experienced in using internet. It can be considered low especially among older generation. However, most of the respondents are positive towards internet. Almost 60% own a computer set and have internet connection or might have internet connection in the future. Problems like cost, lack of knowledge and time constraint are several factors that affected internet usage. The skill is good for those who using internet especially in using online application such as web search. A lot of information regarding new agricultural development and other related agricultural information can be easily access. Some suggestion has been propose for this research. For instance, local agricultural office can provides internet class for the farmers as well as their family. The knowledge is transferred not only to the farmers but the family as well so that they also aware how internet can be use for agriculture. The result of this study can give the overview of internet usage among agricultural community and serve as additional information for agricultural organization and government to further promoting the concept of 'k-farmer'.

Communication does not only promote the benefits of good agricultural practices but it also keeps the policy makers informed about the imminent hardship and compels them to take strong measures and initiatives to support agriculture in these area. With the growth and development of agricultural communication, there has been a shift from traditional method of communication to technology led communication or ICT. The government of India has also given special emphasis to ICT and agriculture through various schemes and programmes. Apart from govt.’s initiatives thousands of civil society organizations have also contributed to strengthen the ICT and agricultural development in the form of community radio centres, e-suchana kendra (e- information centres) etc. However, there is a felt need to understand how these ICT initiatives performing at different levels of society and contributing for the development of agriculture. The major objective of this paper is to understand the performance of ICTs at different parts of the country and come out with strategic analysis to strengthen these initiatives. In this paper, 26 ICTC initiatives viz. mobile phone, telephone, call centre, kiosk, Internet, and community radio from different part of the country were studied. The primary data was collected with extensive field visits and by interacting with different stakeholders of ICT initiatives. The views of the beneficiary farmers were taken using qualitative and quantitative methods. Thus, it is based on a pan India study of the agriculture communication innovations. It also recommends the steps to strengthen different facets of agriculture communication – technology, content, process, and the communication utilization support. Problems like lack of feedback and understanding of language are prominently highlighted.