Assessment of Availability and Utilization of Relevant Information and Communication Technologies Among Farmers in Ikeduru LGA Imo State, Nigeria
Chapter One
Objective of the study
The main objective of this study is to assess the availability and utilization of relevant Information and communication technologies among farmers in ikeduru LGA imo state, Nigeria. Specifically, the study aims to;
- identify the Socio-Demographic Characteristics of the Farmers
- determine the Availability and Accessibility of ICTs and Tools to the Farmers
- Determine the level of Utilization of ICTs and Tools by the Farmers
- examine Constraint to the Availability and Accessibility and Utilization of ICTs and Tools by the Farmers
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE
Challenges faced with the use of ICT among farmers
With the rapid development of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), data and information can be effectively generated, stored, analyzed, disseminated and used to support farmers and farming communities to improve agricultural productivity and sustainability which most farmers do not have viable information about due to some likely challenges.
Armstrong, (2012) discussed the impact of information and communication technology (ICT) on the access for rural farmers from the Ratnagiri district to agricultural information. A study was undertaken in which more than one hundred randomly selected farmers completed a structured questionnaire to gather information at household level of the use of ICT. Interviews were also conducted with key stakeholders, service providers and government officials. Findings from the study indicated that farmers were most interested in obtaining market price information. Examination of the relationship between use of ICT tools and co factors such as age, qualifications and income indicated that only income was a determining factor of using ICT tools.
Inadequate power supply
In Niger State, the power state that host the three mega electricity generating station of the federation, the unwarranted inconsistent supply of electricity to Niger its state is nothing compared to other north central state like Abuja, Kaduna to mention a few, it will be discovered that the situation of electricity supply is better than what is obtains in Niger state. The power situation in Niger state generally and in most Local Government Area in where mechanized farming has gradually imminent. For example, Bida, mokwa, Lavun etc. Kainji, Jebba and Shiroro dams are situated in Niger state, these dams contribute about 30% to the national grid as at 2015 (Chenche, 2015) .
According to Nigeria Food Security Outlook of Famine Early Warning Systems Network, (2013) as a result of persistent heavy rainfall couple with the release of water from several dams. This challenge usually restricts constant Mechanized Agricultural practice in this area in Africa, Niger state was affected due to the release of water from the dam due to its proximity to the three dams, because most communities have lost all their crops and most of their homes most times which is not only affecting individuals at domestic level but the entire state in contributing to food security in Africa, Nigeria as a case study.
Burrell, (2011) stated that effective use of mobile phones depends largely on the availability of electricity, Inadequate power supply to power ICT tools i.e. mobile phone also affects farmers access to information on the internet, by search, via text messages sent by metrologist, or through weather updates from their phones for those with smart phones, so as to enable farmers on alert and plan for any occurrence of such, according to (Behnassi, 2011) that climate change phenomenon as a time bomb that is already ticking and waiting to explode. on prevention of natural occurrence.
Saha, (2010) stated that Knowledge gap among the rural poor farmers is one of the key constraints to the growth of the overall agricultural sector of Bangladesh. To overcome the above key constraint, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) can be synthesized with the Agricultural Technology directly through establishing the modern “Agro Call Center”. But in Bangladesh no such professional Call Center is available or existing that has got comprehensive understanding of the processes and neither has the expertise to run and manage this sort of operation. As such we have decided to design and deploy the total IT infrastructure and provide technical supports for developing such a Call Center on our own initiative and through it develop linkages with the agricultural scientists, research institutes and professionals. This paper focuses on the required IT infrastructure, technical design, and total admin assessment to establish an “Agro Call Center”.
Recently, the Nigeria hydrological services agency (NIHSA, 2018) sent a public notification to states along the River Niger about the likely possibilities of flood that might be experienced through various ICT media platforms e.g. SMS, newspaper etc. so as to enable this this region take necessary measures.
Poor internet connection and Poor network signal
According to (Quartz.com, 2018) research, Nigeria is ranked 82nd with an Internet speed put at 4.13Mbps, compare to South Africa with 9.93Mbps the fastest in Africa so far. Nigeria is ranked 82nd out of the 87th leading telecoms country surveyed by Open Signal, a platform, which beams search light into the coverage and performance of mobile operators worldwide.
More than 35 mobile network operators in Africa busily extending their base station across Africa, that’s according to (Muoneke, 2016). In Nigeria, less than10 mobile network operators are available and which most of have their base stations with coverage in some top Nigeria cities like Lagos and Abuja, but a few, like Airtel, MTN, Smile, Glo NG were able to cover 60% of the urban area of its country excluding the rural communities where Mechanized farming is being practiced.
Most states where Agricultural practice is imminent have inadequate access to this network coverage thereby making this a big problem in the Areas where ICT tools such as internet and use of GSM should have been utilized for getting vital information Mechanized Agricultural good practices which the farmers can inculcate in order to promote Agribusiness and increase their productivity (Mundi, 2015).
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research Design
The survey research design was adopted for the study. According to Nworgu (2006) survey research design enables one to obtain information from respondents who are considered to be representative of the entire population. In the same vein, Gall et al. (2007) also stated that survey research method uses questionnaire or interview to collect data from a sample that has been selected to represent a population to which the findings of the data analyzed can be generalized.
Area of the Study
The study was conducted in Imo State of Nigeria. Imo State is one of the five states in the South-east geo-political zones of Nigeria. This area was chosen due to the number of farms in the state and concentration of poultry production which could be used for eliciting responses on the instrument for this study.
Population of the study
According to Udoyen (2019), a study population is a group of elements or individuals as the case may be, who share similar characteristics. These similar features can include location, gender, age, sex or specific interest. The emphasis on study population is that it constitute of individuals or elements that are homogeneous in description.
The population of the study comprised of all the farmers in Ikeduru LGA of Imo state.
CHAPTER FOUR
DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS
This chapter presents the analysis of data derived through the questionnaire and key informant interview administered on the respondents in the study area. The analysis and interpretation were derived from the findings of the study. The data analysis depicts the simple frequency and percentage of the respondents as well as interpretation of the information gathered. A total of hundred and ten (110) questionnaires were administered to respondents of which 90 were returned. The analysis of this study is based on the number returned.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS:
Introduction
This chapter summarizes the findings on the Assessment of availability and utilization of relevant Information and communication technologies among farmers in ikeduru LGA imo state, Nigeria. The chapter consists of summary of the study, conclusions, and recommendations.
Summary of the Study
In this study, our focus was on the Assessment of availability and utilization of relevant Information and communication technologies among farmers in ikeduru LGA imo state, Nigeria.. The study is was specifically focused on examining the the Socio-Demographic Characteristics of the Farmers; determining the Availability and Accessibility of ICTs and Tools to the Farmers; Determining the level of Utilization of ICTs and Tools by the Farmers and investigating the Constraint to the Availability and Accessibility and Utilization of ICTs and Tools by the Farmers.
The study adopted the survey research design and randomly enrolled participants in the study. A total of 90 responses were validated from the enrolled participants where all respondent are farmers in ikeduru LGA imo state.
Conclusions
With respect to the analysis and the findings of this study, the following conclusions emerged;
This study has specified some level of availability, accessibility and utilization of ICTs and tools by farmers in Ikeduru LGA of Imo state, Nigeria. The use of these facilities is aimed at improving their poultry production systems. Mobile phone, radio, PCs and laptops and television were reported to be the most frequently utilized ICTs and tools by poultry farmers in Ikeduru LGA of Imo state. However, the serious constraints to the availability/access and use of these facilities as expressed by the poultry farmers were inconsistent electricity supply, poor network reception, lack of technical experience in manipulating ICT tools and high cost of ICT tools. However, lack of physical access was reported as a mild constraint by the farmers.
Recommendation
Based on the findings of this study the following recommendations are proffered:
- extension agents should educate poultry farmers on the benefits ICTs and tools,
- the access and use of the more sophisticated ICTs and tools, for instance, the CCTV cameras should be encouraged to be used in poultry farms, as it can play a key role in surveillance to monitor livestock behaviour, poultry attendants on poor management operations and theft that can result to huge financial losses,
- Ministry of Agriculture and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) should establish Agro-ICT centers for training of farmers to gain knowledge in manipulative skills in ICTs and tools and
- the provision of constant electricity power supply to ensure effective utilization of ICT tools.
Suggestions For Further Studies
This study suggests that further research should be done on why there is low level awareness ICT as a driving tool to improve agricultural productivity in Imo State and further establish a suitable feedback mechanism to be adopted. Also, come up with a multimodal solution which can assist to interface various ICT devices seamlessly irrespective of geographical location, literacy and language.
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