Assessment of farmer’s perception about the role of radio Programmes in promoting agricultural development: the Case of waka fm 93.4 radio

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to assess the perception of farmers about the role of radio programmes in promoting agricultural development. The study also sought to discover the perceived effects of radio programmes on farmers' knowledge, find out the factors that limit farmers from listening to the radio programmes, evaluate the perceptions of Essera district farmers about the role of Waka FM radio programmes in promoting agricultural development, and investigate if there is a relationship between the profiles of farmers and their perceptions about radio's role in promoting agricultural development. Both qualitative and quantitative research methods were used, and questionnaires and interviews were the instruments used to collect data. The target populations of the study were Essera district farmers who listen to Waka FM radio programmes and are aged above 20 years. The study used purposive sampling techniques to select respondents. The qualitative data was analyzed in the form of words and narratives, and the quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and presented in the form of frequency and percentage. The main findings of the study revealed that the farmers of Essera district have a positive perception of the role of radio in promoting agricultural development. Gender, Age, and Education levels of farmers have discrete and combined effects on their perceptions. Inconvenience of the program broadcasting time, insufficiencies of allocated airtime for the programmes, a dialect difference, and not providing farmers with current and updated agricultural information are some of the factors that limit farmers from listening to the radio programmes. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended that Waka FM consider broadcasting evening programmes. It is better that the program producers broadcast up-to-date information on improved farming techniques and technologies. It is better that more airtime be allocated to the programmes.