Access and use of agricultural market information by smallholder farmers: Measuring informational capabilities

2020 ◽  
Vol 86 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mawazo M. Magesa ◽  
Kisangiri Michael ◽  
Jesuk Ko
Keyword(s):  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Market Information ◽  
Agricultural Market

Application of Telecommunications Technologies to Agricultural Market Information Systems

2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 60-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leonard Chalemba
Keyword(s):  
Information Systems ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Information And Communications Technology ◽  
Market Information ◽  
Agricultural Market ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Telecommunications Services ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Donor Agencies

This review presents a comparison of the potential of offering agricultural market information services that incorporate information and communications technology (ICT) in Ghana and Malawi. A comprehensive analysis was done involving data on economic indicators related to telecommunications services provided by the statistics division of the United Nations, and the current initiatives on agricultural market information systems in the two countries. The review reveals that Malawi needs more work to be done to improve service delivery of its ICT-based market information system projects than Ghana. Main areas for improvement are mobile phone subscriptions by low-income smallholder farmers, Internet access by the same category of farmers, and sustainability of offering the services in question without heavy reliance on governments and international donor agencies. The recommendations drawn from this review do not only apply to Malawi and Ghana but also to other Sub-Saharan African countries.

Awareness and the Use of Mobile Phones for Market Linkage by Smallholder Farmers in Kenya

2010 ◽  
pp. 1-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julius Juma Okello ◽  
Ruth M. Okello ◽  
Edith Ofwona-Adera
Keyword(s):  
Mobile Phones ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Market Information ◽  
Farmers Market ◽  
Ict Adoption ◽  
Market Linkage ◽  
Female Farmers ◽  
High Level ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Agricultural Input

In many developing countries smallholder farmer participation in agricultural input and output markets continues to be constrained by lack of market information. Actors in most developing country markets operate under conditions of information asymmetry which increases the costs of doing business and locks out smallholder farmers. Attempts to address this problem are currently focusing on the use of ICT technologies to provide market information and link farmers to markets. This study examines the awareness and use of one such technology – mobile phones. It finds for male and female smallholder farmers in Kenya a high level of awareness and widespread use of mobile phones, mainly for social purposes. This study further finds that a low level of education, the cost of mobile phone airtime recharge vouchers and the lack of electricity for recharging phone batteries are the major impediments to the ownership and use of mobile phones, with female farmers more constrained than males. A high awareness of mobile phones among smallholder farmers presents an opportunity to strengthen smallholder farmers’ market linkage. However constraints to the usage of mobile phones will need to be addressed. The study findings indicate priorities for policymakers dealing with the specifics of ICT adoption as a tool to promote rural viability via rationalization of Kenyan agricultural markets.

Influence of performance expectancy on commercial farmers’ intention to use mobile-based communication technologies for agricultural market information dissemination in Uganda

2016 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 346-363 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benard Engotoit ◽  
Geoffrey Mayoka Kituyi ◽  
Musa Bukoma Moya
Keyword(s):  
Information Dissemination ◽  
Information Access ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Mobile Technologies ◽  
Market Information ◽  
Agricultural Market ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Behavioural Intentions ◽  
Performance Expectancy

Purpose This paper to examine the relationship between performance expectancy and behavioural intention to use mobile-based communication technologies for agricultural market information dissemination in Uganda. Design/methodology/approach A descriptive field survey method was adopted. A total of 302 commercial farmers and agribusiness traders in Eastern Uganda participated in the study from whom data were collected using self-administered questionnaires. Descriptive statistics, factor analysis, correlation and regression analyses were used in the study. Findings The findings reveal a significant positive relationship between performance expectancy and behavioural intentions to use mobile-based communication technologies for agricultural information access and dissemination. This implies that, commercial farmers’ behavioural intentions to use mobile-based communication technologies for agricultural market information dissemination and access will be influenced if they anticipate mobile-based communication technologies to offer greater performance in their daily transactions. Research limitations/implications This study was conducted in the context of resource constrained countries particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, however reflecting knowledge from other contexts. The study was conducted with a structured questionnaire being the main data collection tool, and this limited the study from collecting views outside the questions asked in the questionnaire. The variables studied could not be analysed for a long time, given that the study was cross-sectional in nature. Practical implications The study provides recommendations on how to further boost farmers’ behavioural intentions to use mobile-based communication technologies for agricultural information dissemination. Policy makers need to ensure that policies are put in place that encourage third party software developers and telecommunication companies to provide software products and solutions that are beneficial to the commercial farmers and can enable them complete their agricultural transactions in time. Social implications The study provides critical literature on the influence of performance expectancy on commercial farmers’ behavioural intentions to use mobile-based communication technologies for agricultural market information access and dissemination in resource constrained settings. Originality/value It is noted that farmers in Uganda are slowly progressing to newer mobile information and communication technology tools for market information access and dissemination; however, little is known as to why there is slow adoption of these mobile technologies for agricultural purposes; yet policy makers need to come up with proper strategies to encourage wide scale use of mobile technologies for agricultural market purposes.

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