Abstract

Nigerian Agricultural research institutes have developed series of technologies without rural farmers’ inputs. Farmers were not involved in the planning and development of innovations by researchers. Improved technologies were imposed on them in a top-down extension process. Consequently, such technologies were poorly adopted. Promoting Sustainable Agriculture in Borno State (PROSAB), a project initiated by the Federal Government in 2004 is a paradigm shift in research and extension system. Implemented by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), the project brought rural farmers in contact with researchers and other key players in agricultural sector. Extension agents, input dealers, seed buyers, and credit providers  joined farmers in regular participatory meetings to solve problems of low productivity and poor adoption of innovations. The study investigated the effect of participatory communication on farmers’ productivity. A total of 1200 of 4,800 PROSAB farmers were randomly selected from four Local Government Areas of Biu, Damboa, Hawul and Kwaya-Kusar for data collection. Yields and adoption of soybean, maize, cowpea were investigated in relation to farmers’ income before and after their involvement in participatory communication. Two hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance. Paired t-test and chi-square were used to analyze data. Findings showed  that  Participatory  Communication  enhanced  farmers’  productivity (x²=1890.64; df=55.76; p<0.05). Mean soybean yield before  and after participatory communication was 77kg/ha and 517kg/ha respecti-vely.Mean soybean farm income before and after participatory communi-cation was N8,35 and N19,313 respectively. Mean maize yield before and after participatory communication was 1,115kg/ha and 2,194kg/ha respectively, while mean maize farm income before and after participatory communication was N22, 416 and N31,202 respectively. Mean cowpea yield before and after participatory communication was 731kg/ha and 1,352kg/ha respectively, while mean cowpea farm income before and after participatory communication was N19, 117 and N30,791 respectively. If integrated into Nigerian agricultural extension system, participatory communication would enhance food production nation-wide.

Key Words: Participatory Communication, innovations, technologies, agricultural productivity

^JCMRJournal of Communication and Media Research, Vol. 5, No. 1, April 2013, 139 – 156. 

©Delmas Communications Ltd

About the author

*Dr. Samuel Oloruntobi Taye Babaleye is a Lecturer in the Department of Mass Communication, Adeleke University, Ede, Osun State, Nigeria

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