Farmers' Perceptions Regarding the Use of Botswana's Tsa Temo Thuo
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Asian Journal of Agriculture and Rural Development journal homepage: http://aessweb.com/journal-detail.php?id=5005 Farmers’ Perceptions Regarding the use of Botswana’s Tsa Temo Thuo Television Programme Gababolokwe, K. and Hulela, K. Department of Agricultural Economics, Education and Extension, Botswana College of Agriculture, Gaborone, Botswana Abstract The purpose of the study was to examine farmers’ perceptions about the usefulness of the Tsa Temo Thuo agricultural programmes broadcasted every Monday of the week on the Botswana Television between 7:30 and 8:00 pm for farmers. A questionnaire was used to gather data from 36 farmers with different agricultural backgrounds in the Boteti sub-district regarding the effectiveness of the programme in disseminating information. A simple random sampling technique was used to get the 36 farmers from the list of 40 farmers. The results showed that the farmers saw the programme as relevant for their farming services but voiced that the programme be frequently reviewed to ensure emerging issues were integrated. The results also revealed that factors such as farming environment (Mean = 4.36; SD = .49); access to television programme (Mean = 4.22; SD = .59) and ignorance about farming issues (Mean = 3.36; SD = 1.05) were perceived as useful. However, this being a case study, a similar study should be conducted nationwide to ascertain and compare the perceived effectiveness of the television programme. Keywords: Television, mass media, dissemination, Tsa Temo Thuo, farmers’ perceptions Introduction1 the Sunday Times, The Voice, Mmegi, The Mid Week Sun etc. also published sparingly Several mass media programmes have agricultural oriented news and adver- emerged in the past fifteen years in tisements (Oladele and Boago, 2011). With Botswana as a way to address the needs of the advent of the Botswana Television farmers’ knowledge systems. Previously, (BTv) in the early years of the 21st century, there were programmes such as Molemi several new programmes addressing ithuthe and Pitso ya balemi broadcasted agricultural issues have emerged, giving through Radio Botswana. In addition, there farmers a broader perspective to watch, was also the Agri News Magazine published listen, read and acquire a diverse knowledge by the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) since (education) about farming system. The Tsa in the early 1970s for disseminating Temo Thuo is the new programme currently agriculture related information to farmers broadcasted on the Botswana Television coupled with the Botswana Daily News, a with the goals of facilitating the efforts government supported newspaper. Other made by ISPAAD in (i) disseminating print media such as the Gazette Newspaper, information and research findings to the farming community, (ii) sensitizing (educating) farmers on different agriculture Corresponding author’s issues, (iii) educating on support services Name: Hulela, K. available for the field production agriculture Email address: [email protected] 381 Asian Journal of Agriculture and Rural Development, 4(7)2014: 381-391 promoting food security at different levels of significant. Farmers are targeted in the Tsa the economy, and (v) promoting Temo Thuo television programme and how commercialization of the agriculture they perceived the intervention is crucial in activities through adoption of the development of the education of farmers. mechanization, different farm inputs, credits and extension outreach programmes According to Nazari and Hassam (2011), (http://www.gov.bw). educational interventions transferred through a TV program end up in a The Tsa Temo Thuo television programme, significant knowledge enhancement to which was initiated by the government in farmers. As mentioned by Mahmood and 2007 through the Ministry of Agriculture, Sheikh (2005) and Nazari and Hasbullah seems to have gained popularity as farmers (2010), television and radio programmes tend to watch it and further discuss its (mass media) have become popular in outcomes during their formal and informal agriculture. The use of mass media such as meetings, reflecting on what has been television and radio has several advantages broadcasted. The programme is aired in the in farming. First, it enables one to reach out local television in both English and to a larger group of farmers, disseminating Setswana languages to draw the attention of information about weather forecasts, natural farmers and extension educators (Oladele, disaster, and agricultural markets and Boago, 2011; Mosime, 2007). opportunities available and new technologies for the improvement of The perception of people about such a new farming (ibid). Second, mass media innovation in the community therefore plays (television) programmes have edge over a significant role in understanding its other programmes as they penetrate the relevance and effectiveness. Farmers’ illiterate people, who watch TV without perceptions about television programmes as being bothered about the unfriendly a new tool and intervention in disseminating environment; thus ensuring more information can bring about a shift among information gets to farmers (Badodiya and small scale farmers who are socio- Chaudhary, 2011). Third, ICT in the form of economically challenged. It is for this reason television helps in changing the socio- a study of this nature was set to assess the economic and cultural aspects of many perceptions of small-scale farmers on the people particularly farmers in rural areas and adoption of Tsa Temo Thuo television adds to knowledge regarding technology programme in disseminating information in integration in agriculture (Nazari and the Boteti agricultural sub district. Hasbullah, 2008). Fourth, television programmes educate the farmer about any Perception is a psychological concept implied new change, discoveries and essential in social sciences to examine knowledge in farming (Chhachhar et al., people’s beliefs, opinions, values and 2012). awareness of new innovations. As indicated by Huff man et al. (1987), cited in According to Irfan et al. (2006), and Mohamed and Mukhiar (2007), psychology Chhachhar et al. (2012), television is one of is a scientific study of behavior that has four the forms of mass media capable of goals of describing, explaining, predicting disseminating agriculture information very and the changing behavior of people. Thus, fast to the farming community. Even though farmers thinking in their business of farming a research study by Chhachhar et al. (2012) is important. Currently, there is no research has shown that a small proportion of farmers that has been conducted to evaluate the (20%) received information through impact of television programmes in television as compared to more than half disseminating knowledge information to who indicated that television was not their Botswana farmers; hence this study is source of information, the television still 382 Asian Journal of Agriculture and Rural Development, 4(7)2014: 381-391 played an important role in disseminating competition from other programmes, ‘such information to a larger audience. Positively, as news, entertainment and sport’ as well as the study also showed that 87.7% of the lack of interest from the young generation. people surveyed owned television sets, Therefore, the questions are: how useful and which means people perceived television as effective is the Tsa Temo Thuo television important tool for learning. In Nigeria, Ango programme in disseminating the required et al. (2011) examined the role of mass technology to farmers? What factors are media towards developments in agriculture likely to hinder television information and found that majority were males, well dissemination to farmers? To answer these experienced in farming with over twenty questions, farmers in the Boteti sub-region years of experience and accessed were surveyed with the intent to understand information through television and radio their perceptions regarding the use of programmes. The study also revealed that television to disseminate information. The the strategies for disseminating agricultural purpose of this study is to investigate the programs were highly accessible, perceptions of farmers about the convenient, effective and highly beneficial effectiveness of the Tsa Temo Thuo to farmers (p.305). Abubakar et al. (2009) television (Btv) programmes. Specifically, reported that the hypotheses tested in their the study is designed to, study showed a significant relationship between farmer’s sources of agricultural 1) Describe the demographic characteristics information and relevance of information of farmers surveyed in the Boteti sub- received in solving agricultural problems (r district. = 0.544, p = 0.290) (p. 42 ). In this regard, 2) Determine the farmers’ perceptions about scholars tend to imply that television and the usefulness of the Tsa Temo Thuo. radio programmes have been observed to 3) Describe challenges associated with the play a major role in conveying the latest programme faced by farmers. agricultural technology in many countries, thus facilitating the advancement in farming. Materials and methods Important also in this was the competency of leaders, location, infrastructures and quality This is a descriptive survey design where of services as they have significant influence data were collected through the use of a on the success of telecommunication centres questionnaire to describe the status of Tsa (Bashir et al., 2011). Temo Thuo television programme as perceived by Boteti agricultural sub-region The challenge