JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY


Full Length Research Paper


Exploring the Use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) among Village Extension Agents in Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria

Ebisike Chiazoka*, Sennuga S. Olayemi, Tuedon O. Annirejuoritse and Maimunatu K. Halidu

Article Number - 61BF92257A337  | Vol. 2(8), pp. 78-84, December 2021  | 
 Received: 25 October 2021 |  Accepted: 3 December 2021  |   Published: 31 December 2021

Copyright © 2024 Author(s) retain the copyright of this article.
This article is published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0.

Abstract

The study explored the use of Information and Communication Technology among Village Extension Agents in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nigeria. The study was carried out in five agricultural zones of FCT. Purposive sampling technique was used to select 100 village extension workers in the five agricultural zones of FCT and primary data was collected using structures questionnaire and interview schedule. Results reveals that the ICT tools that are frequently used by village extension agents are; mobile phones (21.82%), followed by WhatsApp (19.04%), internet (17.26%). Few number of village extension workers in the study area access information using ICT tools. 18.42% accessed information on new technologies and weather information, 14.21% accessed information on best cultural practices and plant protection (disease/pest control). Furthermore, the constraints village extension workers faced in the use of ICT were; lack of training on use of ICT in accessing agricultural information (14.96%), high cost of ICT tools (14.73%) and high cost of internet subscription (12.05%). There is a need for constant technical trainings for village extension workers on how to explore ICT in accessing relevant information on new agricultural technologies so that they will be up to date on the latest innovations available for farmers to adopt. Also, it is imperative for the government to look into the cost of ICT tools and its infrastructures because it is the major constraints village extension workers have in exploring the application of ICT tools in agricultural information access and usage in dissemination of information to farmers.

 

Keywords: Technology, Village, Extension, Information, Farmers, Communication.

 

 

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Authors

Ebisike Chiazoka*, Sennuga S. Olayemi, Tuedon O. Annirejuoritse and Maimunatu K. Halidu

Department of Agricultural Extension and Rural Sociology, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Abuja, FCT, P.M.B. 117, Abuja, Nigeria.

*Corresponding author. Email: [email protected]

 

 

How to Cite this Article

Ebisike, C., Sennuga, S. O., Tuedon O. A. & Maimunatu, K. H. (2021). Exploring the application of Information and Communication Technologies among Village Extension Agents in Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria. Journal of Research in Science and Technology, 2(8), 78-84.

 

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Abbreviation: J. Res. Sci. Technol.
ISSN: 2971-7728 (Online)
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Start Year: 2020
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