Accessing Marketing Information Services And Strategies Adopted By Akwa Ibom State Agricultural Development Programme

Abstract

This study was conducted to determine market information services and strategies adopted by Akwa Ibom State Agricultural Development Programme (AKADEP) to farmers in the state.The specific objectives of the study were to, i) identify the relationship between the extension approach adopted by extension agents and the marketing information strategies; ii) to find out the relationship between the information system and marketing of agricultural produce in the state; iii) to determine the period of disseminating information to farmers and iv) to identify the constraints to marketing information dissemination in the state.
Structured pretested face and content validated questionnaire was  administered and data collected from 300 farmers randomly selected from four of the six agricultural zones in Akwa Ibom State. Similarly, 100 extension agents (EAS) randomly selected from the four agricultural zones, took part in the study. Data collected were analyzed using appropriate descriptive and inferential statistics. Marketing of agricultural produce was found to be influenced by lack of awareness, over dependency on production information, non-availability of subject matter specialists, and tools to aid extension agents in the dissemination of market information.