Getting the write message right: Review of guidelines for producing readable print agricultural information materials

Abstract

Print agricultural information materials (PAlMs 71 IntroductionScientific and technical information is important in both subsistence and commercial agricultural production systems (Youdeowei et al. 1995). Information is critical for farmers to maintain livelihoods or to gain a competitive edge in a rapidly changingeconomic and production environment where traditional farming methods might be insufficient to meet new demands (Morton & Matthewman 1996). Extension agencies frequently produce printed agricultural information materials (PAlMs), such as brochures, leaflets, booklets and newsletters, to disseminate information to farmers (Velasco et 01. 1996). Morris (2000) identified 138 such PAlMS produced in South Africa to provide information to communal livestock farmers or their advisors.The purpose of producing a PAlM would be to present, in an attractive and readable form, technical information that the intended user requires for his/her farming. To achievethis, scientific and technical agricultural information needs to be consolidated, rewritten and appropriately packaged. Stilwell (2000) noted the importance of such 'repackaging' of information for rural dwellers in developing countries where the 'information divide' between the information-rich (usuallyurban) and information-poor (the rural poor) (Castelis 1996) is not only wide but also deep becauseof a dearth of information in a readable and useable form. Sturges and Neill (1998:44) suggestthat repackaging should be a priority of government and other extension/information agenciesbecause"information that the extension workers are supposed to disseminate too frequently takes the form of a series of highly technical packages, which are no doubt as incomprehensible to them as they are to the barely literate farmers they are struggling to advise." Bembridge (1997) surveyed the availability of printed extension material aimed at small-scalefarmers in South Africa and found the quality of availablepublications to be variable and their distribution ad hoc. Few objective criteria have been consistently applied to evaluate the quality of information materials (Bembridge 1991). Guidelines are therefore needed to assist extension communicators working in academic, government, parastatal and non-government organizations develop effective print extension materials and to evaluate existing PAlMs for possible use in the communities they serve.This review addresses the critical gap in the knowledge concerning guidelines for the production of readable and useful print extension materials. Literature relevant to the topic is fragmented and dispersed, largely available as tips on specific aspects of repackaging rather than as an integrated set of guidelines for extension communicators. Little of the available material is aimed at repackagingagricultural or other rural development information.Our primary purpose is to review and consolidate the agricultural as well as health/nutrition and basic adult education literature on repackaging extension information in print. Befo...

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