Accessibility and constraints of broadcast media platforms among maize farmers in Ovia North-East Local Government Area, Edo State, Nigeria

Abstract

The productivity and overall success of smallholder maize farmers depend not only on access to farm inputs and improved cultivation practices but also on their ability to obtain reliable and timely agricultural information. Against this backdrop, the study was conducted to examine the accessibility of broadcast media among maize farmers in Ovia North-East Local Government Area of Edo State, Nigeria. A multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select 150 respondents, using a questionnaire. Data collected were described with the use of frequency counts, mean, and percentages while binary logistic regression was used to identify determinants of broadcasting media platforms accessibility and made some inferences. Findings of the study showed that maize farming in the study area was mainly carried out by middle-aged (48 years) with tertiary education (58%), many of whom combine farming with other occupations, especially civil service employment (46%). The findings further showed that radio (x̄= 3.52), television (x̄= 3.36), newspapers (x̄= 3.3), and magazines (x̄= 3.20) constituted the most accessible broadcast media platform among the farmers. Although, broadcast media such as podcasts (x̄ = 1.33 and x̄=1.13) and satellite (x̄= 1.31 and x̄=2.33) were neither available nor accessible respectively.  However, major constraints faced were poor network signal coverage (x̄ = 3.75), high cost of broadcasting devices (x̄ = 3.72) and poor power supply (x̄ = 3.56). It was established that only the information sources like ADP (t = 2.427; p≤0.05), Cooperative (t = 9.993; p≤0.001) and other farmers (t = 7.728; p≤0.000) had significant relationship with access to broadcasting media platforms. The findings concluded that despite the growing prominence of broadcasting media in information dissemination, maize farmers continue to underutilize them to access information and the fact that intrapersonal methods such as cooperative and other farmers positively influenced accessibility, it should be utilized to increase usage.