Patronage of farm radio as an agricultural knowledge source for farmers: Experiences from Ghana

Abstract

Numerous studies have been conducted on farm radio programmes but there is limited information on farmers' level of patronage, utilisation and satisfaction with the information obtained. This study aimed to fill this gap. The research was carried out in the Bosome Freho District of the Ashanti Region of Ghana with 400 farmers selected using the multi-stage sampling technique. Data were analysed using means, standard deviations, and the chi-square test of independence. Results show that the farmers highly patronized the farm radio programmes. Although farmers were satisfied with the farm radio programmes, their utilization of knowledge from the programmes was low. Patronage of farm radio programmes is associated with radio set ownership, educational level and age of farmer. The study recommends that farmers should be encouraged to own radio sets and continue to rely on farm radio programmes for agricultural information. The reasons behind the low utilisation of information from farm radio programmes and why patronage and satisfaction are high need to be researched further.