THE EFFECT OF ACCESS TO AND USE OF AGRICULTURAL INFORMATION ON THE LIVELIHOOD OF COCOA FARMERS

• <p>                   <b>TABLE OF CONTENTS</b><br></p><p>Declaration..................................................................................................................... i&nbsp;</p><p>Abstract ......................................................................................................................... ii</p><p>&nbsp;Dedication .................................................................................................................... iv&nbsp;</p><p>Acknowledgements ...................................................................................................... v&nbsp;</p><p>Table of Contents ........................................................................................................ vi&nbsp;</p><p>List of Figures .............................................................................................................. xi&nbsp;</p><p>List of Tables ............................................................................................................... xii&nbsp;</p><p>List of Abbreviations ................................................................................................. xiv</p><p><b>

Chapter ONE

INTRODUCTION

• ........................................................................ 1 1</b></p><p>.1 Background of the study ...................................................................................... 1&nbsp;</p><p>
• 1.2Problem Statement ............................................................................................... 8&nbsp;</p><p>
• 1.3Research Questions ............................................................................................ 11&nbsp;</p><p>
• 1.4Objectives of the study ....................................................................................... 12&nbsp;</p><p>
• 1.5Relevance of the study ....................................................................................... 12&nbsp;</p><p>
• 1.6Operationalization of Terminologies .................................................................. 13&nbsp;</p><p>1.
• 6.1Access .................................................................................................... 13&nbsp;</p><p>1.
• 6.2Use ......................................................................................................... 13&nbsp;</p><p>1.
• 6.3Orientation towards improved farming .................................................. 14&nbsp;</p><p>1.
• 6.4Institutional Factors ............................................................................... 14&nbsp;</p><p>1.
• 6.5Livelihood Outcomes ............................................................................. 14&nbsp;</p><p>
• 1.7Study Area ................................................................................................. 14</p><p>&nbsp;
• 1.8Organization of the thesis .............................................................................. 15</p><p><b>&nbsp;

Chapter TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

• ......................................................... 17</b></p><p>&nbsp;
• 2.1Introduction ................................................................................................... 17&nbsp;</p><p>
• 2.2Conceptual Framework ................................................................................. 17&nbsp;</p><p>
• 2.3Theoretical Background ................................................................................ 21&nbsp;</p><p>2.
• 3.1The theory of Diffusion of Innovation ........................................................... 21&nbsp;</p><p> vii 2.
• 3.2The Theory of Planned Behaviour ............................................................. 25&nbsp;</p><p>2.
• 3.3Theory of Motivation ........................................................................................ 27&nbsp;</p><p>
• 2.4The concept of agricultural information................................................................ 28&nbsp;</p><p>2.
• 4.1Sources of agricultural information .................................................................... 29&nbsp;</p><p>2.
• 4.2Information sharing and communication network ............................................. 30&nbsp;</p><p>2.
• 4.3Role of Agricultural Extension Services in agricultural information dissemination .......................... 31&nbsp;</p><p>2.
• 4.4Determinants of farmers’ level of access to agricultural information .................... 31&nbsp;</p><p>2.
• 4.5Factors influencing farmers’ access to and use of Agricultural information ......................................... 32&nbsp;</p><p>2.4.
• 5.1Socio-economic variables influencing access to and use of agricultural information ........................... 33&nbsp;</p><p>2.4.
• 5.2Institutional factors influencing access to and use of agricultural information ..................................... 40&nbsp;</p><p>2.4.
• 5.3Orientation towards improved farming and access to agricultural information and it use. .................... 42&nbsp;</p><p>2.
• 5.1The role of agricultural information in agricultural development .......................................................... 46&nbsp;</p><p>2.
• 5.2Livelihood outcomes .............................................................................. 47&nbsp;</p><p>2.
• 5.3Relationship between agricultural information use and farmers’ livelihood outcomes. ........................... 47&nbsp;</p><p>
• 2.6Summary ....................................................................................................... 49&nbsp;</p><p><b>

Chapter THREE

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

• ................................................................ 50&nbsp;</b></p><p>
• 3.1Introduction ................................................................................................... 50&nbsp;</p><p>
• 3.2Research Design ............................................................................................ 50&nbsp;</p><p>
• 3.3Study Population ........................................................................................... 50&nbsp;</p><p>
• 3.4Sample size ..................................................................................................... 51&nbsp;</p><p>
• 3.5Sampling Procedure ...................................................................................... 52&nbsp;</p><p>3.
• 5.1Multistage sampling ...................................................................................... 52&nbsp;</p><p> viii 3.
• 5.2Purposive sampling ................................................................................ 53&nbsp;</p><p>3.
• 5.3Cluster and simple random sampling ........................................................ 54&nbsp;</p><p>
• 3.6Type of Data .................................................................................................. 54&nbsp;</p><p>
• 3.7Research Instrument Development ............................................................... 55&nbsp;</p><p>
• 3.8Data Collection procedure ............................................................................. 56&nbsp;</p><p>3.
• 8.1Pretesting.................................................................................................... 56&nbsp;</p><p>3.8.
• 2.Data collection ........................................................................................... 57&nbsp;</p><p>
• 3.9Data Analysis................................................................................................. 57&nbsp;</p><p>
• 3.10Analytical Methods ....................................................................................... 59&nbsp;</p><p>3.
• 10.1Level of access to agricultural information .............................................. 60&nbsp;</p><p>3.
• 10.2Level of use of agricultural information. .................................................. 61&nbsp;</p><p>3.
• 10.3Level of farmers’ attitude towards improved farming practices ............... 61&nbsp;</p><p>3.
• 10.4Level of Innovation Proneness.................................................................. 62&nbsp;</p><p>3.
• 10.5Level of Farmers’ Information Seeking Behaviour ................................. 62&nbsp;</p><p>3.
• 10.6Level of farmers’ Achievement Motivation .......................................... 63&nbsp;</p><p>3.
• 10.7Level of Farm Yield ............................................................................... 63&nbsp;</p><p>3.
• 10.8Level of farmers’ average annual Income ............................................. 64&nbsp;</p><p>3.
• 10.9Level of farmers’ wellbeing ...................................................................... 64&nbsp;</p><p>3.
• 10.10Level of Basic household assets possession ........................................ 65&nbsp;</p><p><b>

Chapter FOUR

DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS

• RESULTS AND DISCUSSION............................................... 66&nbsp;</b></p><p>
• 4.1Introduction ................................................................................................... 66&nbsp;</p><p>
• 4.2Farmer Characteristics................................................................................... 66&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 2.1Social characteristics of respondents ..................................................... 66&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 2.2Economic characteristics of farmers ...................................................... 70&nbsp;</p><p>
• 4.3Description of respondents’ orientation towards improved farming ............. 72&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 3.1Attitude of farmers towards improved farming practices ...................... 73&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 3.2Information Seeking Behaviour of Farmers .......................................... 74 <br></p><p> x 4.
• 3.3Farmers’ innovation proneness .............................................................. 76&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 3.4Farmers’ achievement motivation.......................................................... 77&nbsp;</p><p>
• 4.5Description of institutional factors of the respondents ................................. 78&nbsp;</p><p>
• 4.6Access to and use of agricultural information ............................................... 80&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 6.1Sources of agricultural information ....................................................... 80&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 6.2Level of access to agricultural information ........................................... 81&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 6.3Use of agricultural information .............................................................. 82&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 6.4Level of use of agricultural information ................................................ 83&nbsp;</p><p>
• 4.7Livelihood Outcomes .................................................................................... 84&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 7.1Level of yield per hectare ...................................................................... 84&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 7.2Farmers’ average annual income ........................................................... 85&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 7.3Farmers wellbeing .................................................................................. 86&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 7.4Assets possession by farmers ................................................................. 87&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 7.5Farmers level of assets possession ......................................................... 88&nbsp;</p><p>
• 4.8Relationship between farmer characteristics, institutional factors and access to agricultural information............................................................................................ 89&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 8.2Relationship between farmers economic characteristics and access to agricultural information ........................................................................................ 90&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 8.3Relationship between farmers’ orientation towards improved farming and agricultural information access ...................................................................... 91&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 8.4Relationship between institutional factors and agricultural information access-93&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 8.5Identification of significant predictor variables of access to agricultural information ........................................................................................................... 94&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 8.6Relationship between farmer characteristics, institutional factors and use of agricultural information ........................................................................................ 97&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 8.7Relationship between economic characteristics of farmers and of agricultural information ........................................................................................ 98 <br></p><p> x 4.
• 8.8Relationship between farmers’ orientation towards improved farming practices and agricultural information use ............................................................ 99&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 8.9Relationship between institutional factors and agricultural information use ........................................ 101&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 8.10Identification of significant predictor variables of the use of agricultural information .......................... 102&nbsp;</p><p>
• 4.9Relationship between level of access to agricultural information and level of use of agricultural information. ................................................................................................................................................... 105&nbsp;</p><p>
• 4.10Effect of the level of use of agricultural information on the livelihood outcomes of cocoa farmers .................................................................................................................................................. 107&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 10.1Effect of level of agricultural information use on yield of cocoa ................................. 108&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 10.2Effect of level of agricultural information use on farmers’ annual income................................... 109&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 10.3Effect of Level of agricultural information use on farmers’ wellbeing ..... ....................................... 110&nbsp;</p><p>4.
• 10.4Effect of Level of agricultural information use on farmer’s assets possession ........................................................................................................... 111&nbsp;</p><p><b>

Chapter FIVE

SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

• CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ...................................... 113&nbsp;</b></p><p>
• 5.1Introduction ................................................................................................. 113&nbsp;</p><p>
• 5.2Summary .......................................................................................................... 113&nbsp;</p><p>
• 5.3Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 117</p><p>&nbsp;
• 5.4Recommendations ............................................................................................ 117&nbsp;</p><p>REFERENCES ......................................................................................................... 120&nbsp;</p><p>APPENDICES .......................................................................................................... 150&nbsp;</p><p>Appendix I: Questionnaire ..................................................................................... 150&nbsp;</p><p>Appendix II: Regression Analysis Tables .............................................................. 156&nbsp;</p><p>Appendix III b: Descriptive statistics of independent variables ............................ 159 <br></p>