Effect of information sources on farmers’ adoption of Sawah eco-technology in Nigeria

Abstract

This study examined the effect of information sources on farmers’ adoption of Sawah eco-technology in Nigeria. Purposive sampling technique was used to select 166 sawah farmers from Delta, Ebonyi, Kebbi, Kwara, Niger and Ondo states. Interview guide was used to elicit information on the farmers’ personal and production characteristics, sources of information and the sawah eco-technologies. Frequency counts, percentages, means, and chi-square were used to analyse the data. The results of the study revealed that average years of rice production and sawah rice production of the respondents were 34.0 years and 6.9 years respectively. The average farm size and yield of sawah rice of the respondents were 0.46 ha and 3.25 tonnes/ha, respectively. Commonly adopted sawah eco-technologies by the farmers were nursery bed preparations (100.0%), bund construction (92.9%), canal construction (84.9%), flooding (78.3%), puddling (73.4%) and use of power tiller (65.2%). The main sources of information on sawah by the respondents were contact farmers (92.4%), farmers’ association (87.3%), extension agents (87.3%), researchers (79.3%) and friends/relations (77.9%). There was significant (p<0.05) association between respondents’ use of contact farmers (χ² = 31.28), extension agents (χ² = 22.19), farmers association (χ² = 23.06), researchers (χ² = 19.62) and friends / relations (χ² = 31.09) and adoption of sawah eco-technology. This study concluded that information sources are important in dissemination of sawah technologies in Nigeria. Therefore, improving the use of information sources that significantly affect adoption of sawah technology should be encouraged among farmers.

Keywords: Information sources, Sawah eco-technology, technology adoption