AN ASSESSMENT OF INFORMATION SERVICES PROVISION FOR ACCESS AND UTILIZATION OF AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE STUDENTS BY NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION RESEARCH AND LIAISON SERVICES
ABSTRACT
This study was carried out to investigate the Information services Provision for access and
utilization of Agricultural Science Students by National Agricultural Extension Research and
Liaison Services, (NAERLS) Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria. Six research questions
were raised to guide the study. The questions found out the types of agricultural information
services for access and use by agricultural science students from NAERLS, ABU, Zaria, the
level of awareness of agricultural science students on agricultural information services provided
by NAERLS, ABU, Zaria, the preferred channels of accessing agricultural information services
by the students, the extent to which agricultural science students utilize agricultural information
services by NAERLS, the level of satisfaction of agricultural science students with agricultural
information services by NAERLS and the attendant challenges agricultural science students face
in accessing and utilizing agricultural information services by NAERLS, ABU Zaria. The study
adopted quantitative research method and descriptive research design. The population of the
study was 995 and a sample size of 320 was drawn for the study. The instrument used for data
collection was the questionnaire, while proportionate stratified random sampling technique was
used in selecting respondents for the study. Data collected were analysed using frequency tables,
simple percentages and descriptive mean of standard deviation. Findings revealed that
agricultural science students of Ahmadu Bello University Zaria access and use services like
technical/scientific and commercial agricultural information services but others are not aware of
these services. Owing to low level of or non awareness, the students would not highly utilize
agricultural information services. And if for obvious reasons accessing and utilizing some of
these services, the preferred channels are through recommended practices, researches and
training and visits. Ratings on satisfaction were low which could not be far from the fact that the
services were not highly accessed and utilized by the students. Among the attributed challenges
to the utilization of agricultural information services are, but not limited to technophobia and
lack of proper orientation. The study concluded that agricultural science students of Ahmadu
Bello University Zaria are interested in access and use of Agricultural Extension Information
Services (AEIS) but not up to date, and not much aware of the AEIS of NAERLS. Many do not
know of the existence of such information services in NAERLS even though they are available.
It is recommended that awareness should be created on the availability of these agricultural
information services as they are of importance to the entire students of Ahmadu Bello University
Zaria and not the agricultural science students alone. Also efforts should be intensified on
creating a pact between NAERLS, their international counterparts and their immediate
environment which they are expected to serve.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
Information provision in all ramifications is a calculated and deliberate attempt made by an individual or a group to circulate generated and stored information to a particular targeted
audience and for a particular purpose (Empowerment, Self Reliance, Health, Education etc).
This Information is either provided willingly at the provider‟s accord or at the demand/request of
the user. Provision of information is central to all discipline and human endeavor. The amount of
information an individual or a group is inclined to through provision determines how they fare in
today‟s world. This is especially true when the information to be provided has to do with self
reliance or personal development. Adequate information provision and understanding of how
information impact behavioral changes have implications in many domains (youth/student,
development, reliance empowerment, health, education etc)
The importance of information provision to a group of people cannot be overemphasized
most especially when it has to do with students. These groups of individuals are expected to use
whatever information at their disposal to brace themselves for graduation in order to be self
reliant in a nation where government employment is bleak. Students generally need information
provision for one thing or the other but agricultural information provision for agricultural science
students takes the lead. This is for the fact that, the government on many occasions have
encouraged not just the students, but the entire nation to embrace agriculture with the believe that
Nigerian weather and climate is agricultural friendly.
For effective information provision, students/users need to be aware of the types of
information services available with the agencies responsible for such services. It is when
awareness is achieved that users can eventually access and utilize the services available.
2
As a result of the above, there have been intense growing interests in information provision
relating to Human Capital Development (HCD). This is mostly targeted towards students in
order to assist developing countries in Africa and Nigeria particularly to reduce poverty, create
empowerment, sustain self reliance and promote food security through agriculture and
Agricultural Information Services (AIS). Improvement on agricultural practices and embracing
agricultural produce were chosen as major means of this process of empowerment and poverty
alleviation (Adams, 2011). To this effect, different agricultural programs were initiated at
different times in different locations in Africa and Nigeria was privileged to be one of such
chosen countries for these agricultural projects. These projects are being carried out by different
bodies; such as Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (TCARC) and National
Agricultural Research Institutes (NARIs) under which National Agricultural Extension Research
and Liaison Services belongs.
Their mandates are towards providing Agricultural Extension Information and Services
(AEIS) that will improve access to information on agricultural development and to strengthen the
capacity of continents like Africa and countries like Nigeria, to produce, acquire, exchange and
utilise agricultural information for self reliance among students (Bokor, 2011). Similarly and in
line with the above, there were also foundations and research institutes such as the International
Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) established to carry out researches to find sustainable
solutions to ending hunger and poverty alleviation while promoting empowerment and self
reliance in developing world through agricultural extension information provision and services.
In Nigeria particularly, the National Agricultural Extension Research and Liaison
Services (NAERLS) is one of such organizations primarily saddled with the responsibility of
making known to the public new agricultural innovations and information services for improved
production. NAERLS is one of the 18 agro based research institutes under the Federal Ministry
of Agriculture (FMA) for these purposes (Idachaba, 2010). For the effective coverage of the
3
country, NAERLS has five zones (North East Zone, North Central Zone, North Western Zone,
South Eastern Zone and South Western Zone). According to Shaib, Aliyu, & Bakshi (1997),
NAERLS‟ specific mandate includes the development, collation, and dissemination of
appropriate agricultural information technologies including monitoring and evaluation of general
agricultural information and providing such to the public. NAERLS goes further offering special
agricultural services to individuals and organizations on training in any aspect of agriculture,
extension information publications, research based agricultural publications, documentaries on
livestock production, mechanization, agricultural youth clubs, irrigation, publicity, campaigns,
agricultural development and professional advice (NAERLS, 1993). All these are to make
available to the public essential farming and agricultural information for better practices aimed at
empowerment of the populace especially in agricultural activities thereby discouraging mono
economy and overdependence on oil as it is the case in Nigeria.
According to Adams (2011) agriculture and farming in Nigeria is incomparable to
petroleum and the most important contributor to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in terms of
employment, empowerment, self reliance and development. Before the oil boom, Nigeria was
almost self-sufficient and reliant in agricultural production from which most foreign exchanges
were earned through cash crop export (FAO, 2011). But due to complacency towards essential
agricultural knowledge, practices and acquisition of farming information on the part of the
Nigerian masses, the country supplements its agricultural production for imports of food and
agricultural materials from countries whose Agricultural Extension Information Programs proves
vibrant (Anderson, 2010). The place of agricultural information services and utilization pointing
to its relevance in the area of self reliance cannot be overemphasized. Therefore if agricultural
information has to be made available for self reliance, there is the necessity for adequate
knowledge and awareness on agricultural information services from places like NAERLS. In the
light of serving the interest of the Nigerian populace by disseminating agricultural information
4
on various innovations, the NAERLS services are therefore geared towards meeting needed
public services. In this regard therefore, it can be conclusively put that NAERLS engages in
agricultural information provision, services and dissemination to the general public. But what is
the extent of public and agricultural science students‟ knowledge about NAERLS services
bearing in mind that Nigeria is blessed with arable land to support agriculture practices in all
ramifications?
The knowledge of Agricultural Information Services and its provision has a great
importance for intended practitioners. Agriculture Extension information, Agricultural
Development Projects and researches keeps emerging with new and improved agricultural
information communication processes, but many have not still seen the place of agriculture in the
society. More specifically, in the study area (Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria), agricultural
research institutes abounds in avalanche (Institute for Agricultural Researches, Division of
Agricultural Colleges, National Animal Production Research Institute). Therefore, Agriculture
Extension Information knowledge which involves the conceptualization, design, generation,
development, evaluation and application of innovative ways to apply agricultural information for
empowerment by the public needs to gain wide coverage and acceptability to adequately meet
public/students demand for national development.
A central issue worthy of note is that AEIS is one of the action lines identified for
national development in the declaration and plan of action of the World Summit on Information
Society (WSIS). It is mainly on the applications of Agriculture Extension knowledge and
information services for self reliance. Agriculture Extension Information Service (AEIS) as an
integration and utilization of information technology in farming related operations could be
rewarding if the services are well tailored (Scott, 2013). Its acceptability has to do with the
integration of much diverse technologies beyond just the storage of agricultural information but
extending such information to the public. This is against the notion that general location of farms
5
and agricultural practices are in rural areas where technology cannot thrive and that agricultural
production are limited to land tillage alone. Agreeably, access to extension information and
communication technology like computers, wireless network and the internet might be generally
low in rural areas (Scott, 2013). AEIS should transcend agricultural practices applicable solely to
tillage and encompasses technological transfer, crop cultivation; water management, fertilizer
application; pest management; harvesting; post-harvest handling, transportation of food/food
products; packaging; food preservation; food processing/value addition; food quality
management; food safety; food storage and food marketing (Jones, 2015). Stakeholders in
agricultural industry especially students need information and knowledge about these services to
manage their activities efficiently. For this reason, AEIS for acquiring information and
knowledge for making decisions in agricultural industry should deliver accurate, complete and
concise information to the public. For effectiveness, the information provided by the system
must be user-friendly, well channelled and targeted to the expected users (Reddy, 2012).
Also, agricultural extension information services being systematic processes in nature
where agricultural information is generated, transformed, transferred, consolidated, received and
fed back in such a manner that these processes function together should be systematic. This
underpins that the knowledge acquisition and information dissemination by
agricultural producers are expected to be vibrant for utilization where extension institutes are
located like the study area (Roling, 2008). Extensions are expected to disseminate emerging
ideas amongst their prospective clients. This is in view of the role of research and advisory
services in agricultural extension information works which is to give highly accurate, specific,
unbiased, technical, agricultural information and advice in direct response to the needs of their
clients (Maningas, 2014).
In view of this, NAERLS stands a central place in the provision and not just storage of
AIS meant for sustainable agricultural production. Agricultural Information stored is useless
6
except disseminated through extension services. So, knowledge of information stored and the
medium of communication have a central role to play in facilitating the exposure of agricultural
information seekers to a variety of agricultural related information. This according to
Blackenburg (2012) could only be made possible through the proper articulation and
transmission of related agricultural extension information through appropriate technologies and
medium to the clients. Moreover, communication of agricultural information forms an important
factor that should interact with the entire productivity processes.
Productivity of these other factors, such as land, labour, capital and managerial ability,
can be improved by relevant, reliable and timely agricultural information provision through
AEIS (Bokor, 2011). This agricultural information provided by extension research, education
and agricultural organizations will in turn enable stakeholder make productive decisions.
Maningas, (2014) supported the above revealing that agricultural extension information and its
communication within the reach of the prospective clients is equivalent to empowerment through
control over their resources and productive decision-making processes. Productive
communication of agricultural extension information is very important for self reliance and
urban growth. It provides income for members of the communities depending upon raising
agricultural extension information and productivity through proper information communication
channels (Hayami & Ruttan, 2011). In achieving this, Jones, (2015) stressed that there is a need
for a collaboration between agricultural extension information providers, their immediate public
and governments of the Nations for information sharing on agricultural information services to
create employment, self reliance among the nationals. This is vital among Nigerian teeming
unemployed population.
The Nigerian government in its bid to improve on her students‟ reliance and in order to
reduce the danger of unemployment had always stressed the importance of self-sufficiency in
7
agriculture and food production. These have been through measures like Operation Feed the
Nation (OFN), 1976 dated back to Obasanjo Military Administration, Green Revolution in 1980,
Directorate for Food, Roads and Rural Infrastructure (DFFRI) 1986, Agricultural Development
Projects (ADPs) between 1979 to 2016, River Basin Development Authority(ies) 1976, Better
Life for Rural Women, Family Support Program (FSP) in 1993, Family Economic Advancement
Program (FEAP) in 1996, Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) 1986 to 1988, the
introduction of entrepreneur education for self reliance in universities and a host of other
programs.
Even though some of these programs have not produced sustainable and instant results,
other measures by government include the agricultural transformational agenda designed to
boost employment generation by creating agricultural value chain to keep the masses abreast of
practicable agriculture, Youth With Innovation In Nigeria (YOUWIN); Graduate Internship,
Community Service Program, N-Power Agro and FADAMA III & IV all present opportunities
for reliance. Inclusive is the approval of 15 billion revolving agricultural loan which according to
some beneficiaries‟ have been cumbersome in accessing (Idachaba, 2010). Even with the above,
the Nigerian students, churned out yearly in our tertiary institutions haunt for white collar job
which the government is yet to provide.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
Viable AEIS is supposed to occupy a central place in self reliance and development in societies
where the services are available. This is because AEIS in agriculture and food production are key
facets of inclusive national development. The society and students in particular have agricultural
information needs to empower them which can be fulfilled through a well coordinated AEIS
based on appropriate modern technologies. Agriculture being an important sector of most
8
growing economy as studies have shown has high potentials for self reliance, employment
generation, food security and poverty reduction (Idachaba, 2010; Anderson, 2012 & Scott 2013).
Despite the place and importance of agriculture, it remains unclear why farming and
agricultural practices are not fascinating to students. The fact remains that unemployment
population growth is not met with job provision at the desired level and poverty is still high.
Even with evident potentials of agriculture and the suitability of Nigerian climate/weather for
practices, students from different higher institutions and Ahmadu Bello University inclusive are
finding it difficult to embrace agriculture for empowerment knowing full well they have limited
choices in national job security.
The question therefore remains as to whether these students lack the knowledge and
awareness of the available types of AEIS in services of NAERLS that could cater for their
empowerment needs against social ills. Smith (2011) and Rivera (2013) argued that important
ideas generated by extension workers will have no use unless communicated to the appropriate
quarters. They noted that most researches on agricultural extension information services do not
reach the end users owing to inefficient channel thereby making generated information useless.
In the case of this study, NAERLS is situated in Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. By its
mandate, it is saddled with providing agricultural related information services to their host
community and beyond using different media. Through such agricultural institutions like
NAERLS, Continents and Countries like Asia, India, Mauritius, South Africa and others have
boasted of graduate empowerment and reliance with recorded successes (Smith, 2011).
Observation by the researcher however, revealed that most students of Ahmadu Bello
University, Zaria, are victims of unemployment and prey to antisocial behaviours whereas
services in NAERLS can sustain them. From further observations and as a result of the above,
most students of ABU, Zaria resort to proceeding for their second or third degrees as the case
may be due to lack of immediate job opportunities after graduation. This study therefore
9
becomes necessary to find out agricultural science students‟ access and utilization of AEIS
provision and dissemination by the NAERLS, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria.
1.3 Research Questions
The study seeks to provide answers to the following research questions:
1. What types of agricultural information services are required by agricultural science students
in NAERLS, ABU, Zaria?
2. What is the level of awareness of agricultural science students on agricultural information
services available in NAERLS, ABU, Zaria?
3. What are the preferred channels of accessing agricultural information services by agricultural
science students available in NAERLS?
4. To what extent do agricultural science students utilize agricultural information services
available in NAERLS?
5. To what extent are agricultural science students satisfied with agricultural information
services in NAERLS?
6. What challenges do agricultural science students face in utilizing agricultural information
services in NAERLS, ABU Zaria?
1.4 Objectives of the Study
The objective of the study is to assess the Information Services Provision for access and
utilization of agricultural science students by national agricultural extension research and liaison
services, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria. In specific terms, the study aims at achieving
the following objectives:
1. To find out the types of agricultural information services required by agricultural science
students in NAERLS, ABU, Zaria
10
2. To determine the level of awareness of agricultural science students on agricultural
information services available in NAERLS.
3. To identify agricultural science students‟ preferred channels of agricultural information
service access form NAERLS, ABU Zaria.
4. To determine the extent of utilization of agricultural information services to agricultural
science students.
5. To determine the level of satisfaction of agricultural science students on agricultural
information services by NAERLS.
6. To identify the challenges faced by agricultural science students in utilizing agricultural
information services by NAERLS.
1.5 Significance of the Study
Information forms the root of any meaningful achievement especially when it has to do
with self reliance and National development. Awareness of its availability and communicating it
efficiently is also very important. In a world of unemployed graduate in the balance, information
not only matters but communicating AEIS takes the central stage. This is because AEIS will
enable both agricultural information providers and the students respond to the needs of the public
in the area of agricultural information provision for reliance and development.
The findings and recommendations of this study will create more awareness on one hand
to assist NAERLS to serve the students and the public better in the area of the information
services it provides. On the other hand, it will motivate students to appreciate the usefulness of
AIS in the area of empowerment, self reliance and job provision. It will also add to literature on
utilization of agricultural information showing its importance in empowerment and self reliance.
1.6 Scope of the Study
The focus of this research was to assess the place of Agricultural Information provision
for Self-reliance among agricultural science students by the National Agricultural Extension
11
Research and Liaison Services. The study was limited to Agricultural Science Students, Faculty
of Agriculture, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. This is because ABU, Zaria is one of the
institutions where agriculture extension information services are to be provided to the public
through the National Agricultural Extension Research and Liaison Services.
1.7 Operational Definition of Terms
The following are the operational definitions of the key terms used in the study:
Agricultural Extension Services The activity and practice of generating and disseminating
research information, technological findings and innovations on agriculture to the expected users
of such information in person.
Agricultural Information Services The functions and activities carried out by organizations to
ensure availability of agricultural information to clients through media broadcast, publications,
extension visits, etc
Agriculture The processes involved in tilling, cultivating and preparing the land for planting
crops and rearing of animals for human need.
Information Provision This is the act and process of reaching out to the public particularly
those who need information with the resources of an organization either on demand or wilfully.
Reliance The creation of enabling environment through provision of information and services
for people to be able to carry out activities that will make them independent.
0 Comments