Relationship Between Personal Characteristics of
Farmers and Adoption of the Recommended Cultural Practices of Faba bean in Siliam, Northern
State of the Sudan
Research paper
Relationship Between Personal Characteristics of Farmers and Adoption of the Recommended Cultural Practices of Faba bean in Siliam, Northern State of the Sudan
Awadia Ahmed Hashim1 and Musa Hago Elfaki2
1 Faculty of Agricultural Science, University of Dongola, Dongola, Sudan
2 Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Gezira, Wad Medani, Sudan.
Corresponding authorعنوان البريد الإلكتروني هذا محمي من روبوتات السبام. يجب عليك تفعيل الجافاسكربت لرؤيته.
A B S T R A C T
Relationship Between Personal Characteristics of Farmers and Recommended Cultural Practices
االعلاقة بين بعض الخصائص الشخصية للمزارعين وتبنى بعض العمليات الفلاحية الموصى
بها لمحصول الفول المصري في مشروع السليم الزراعي – الولاية الشمالية
عوضية احمد هاشم ،1موسى هجو الفكى2
1كلية العلوم الزراعية، جامعة دنقلا، السودان.
2كلية العلوم الزراعية، جامعة الجزيرة، السودان.
هدفت هذه الدراسة لمعرفة العلاقة بين بعض الخصائص الشخصية لمزارعي مشروع السليم الزراعي وتبنيهم لبعض العمليات
الفلاحية الموصي بها من قبل هيئه البحوث الزراعية لمحصول الفول المصري. أجريت الدراسة في مناطق القسمين الاول
والثاني لمشروع السليم الزراعي. حجم العينة 60مزارع. كان أسلوب الدراسة المستخدم هو المسح الميداني وأداة البحث
المستخدمة هي الاستبيان لجمع المعلومات. تم اختيار عينات البحث بواسطة أسلوب العينات العشوائية. تم استخدام نظام الحزمة
الإحصائية للعلوم الاجتماعية ) (SPSSحيث تم تحليل المعلومات باستخدام مربع كاي، النسب المئوية وتباين التوزيع التكراري
للعينات. كانت متغيرات الدراسة هي الخصائص الشخصية للمزارعين من حيث النوع والعمر ومستوى التعليم وصافي الدخل
السنوي اضافة لنوع الحيازة وحجمها وتوفر الخدمات الارشادية والعمليات الفلاحية الموصي بها لمحصول الفول المصري من
حيث تحضير الأرض وتاريخ الزراعة وطريقة الزراعة ومعدل التقاوي وعدد الريات والفترة بين الريات ومواعيد الحصاد. من
أهم النتائج التي توصلت اليها الدراسة أن كل المزارعين من الذكور ومشاركة المرأة فقط في عملية الحصاد وخاصة في
محاصيل التوابل وأيضا أكد %86.7من المزارعين عدم توفر خدمات الارشاد الزراعي. أيضا اتضح من النتائج أنه لا يوجد
تأثير معنوي للعمر ومستوي التعليم على تبني بعض العمليات الفلاحية الموصي بها بينما يوجد تأثير معنوي لمستوى الدخل
وحجم الاسرة ونوع وحجم الحيازة على تبنى بعض العمليات الموصي بها. توصلت الدراسة الي أن هناك علاقة بين بعض
الخصائص الشخصية للمزارعين وتبنى بعض الحزم التقنية الموصي بها
Awadia A. Hashim and Musa H. Elfaki / Nile Journal for Agricultural Sciences Vol. 2, NO. 1 (2017) 1 - 11
Introduction
Faba bean (Vicia faba L) is a significant crop worldwide, ranked as the fourth important grain pulses after dry bean, dry peas and chick peas. It is one of the important annually produced crops in River Nile and Northern States (Sudan Trade Point 2015). It makes up a major part of the daily diet of the population particularly in urban areas where the average per capita consumption was found to be 2.25 Kg/month. It also plays an important role in sustaining the productivity of the farming system through the atmospheric nitrogen fixation (Ahmed and Khalid, 2007). Its products are cheap source of high quality protein in the human diet (Kumari and Vanleur, 2011). Siliam, in Northern State of Sudan, is famous for the production of good quality faba bean. In Siliam, Salih and Ali (1989) reported mean yield of 3.01ton/ha (variety Sm-L).
Bohlen et al. (1969) stated that two interrelated processes help to bring new ideas from their sources of initial development to acceptance by farmers. These processes are called diffusion and adoption.
According to Rogers (2003) diffusion is a process in which an innovation is communicated through certain channels over time among the numbers of a social system, and it occurred between persons while adoption is a decision made by an individual to make full use of an innovation as the best course of action available. He defined innovation as an idea, practice, or object that is perceived by individuals or other units of adoption to be new. He also stated that there are four main elements in the diffusion of innovation which includes: the innovation, communication channel, time and the social system. Social system as an important element in diffusion of innovation was highlighted in early studies. For example, Linton (1952) reported that if we know what society culture is including in its particular system of values and attitudes, we can predict with a fairly high degree of probability whether that bulk of it welcome of or resist a particular innovation. This statement shows the importance of cultural values on individual innovations. A social system with modern norms is more technologically developed, cosmopolite and literate and rational than a social system with traditional norms. Oladele (2005) argued that social scientists investigating farmers’ adoption behavior have accumulated considerable evidence showing that demographic variables, technology characteristics, information sources, knowledge, awareness, attitude, and group influence affect adoption behavior.
Rolling (1988) mentioned that the diffusion process leads to inequitable development unless preventive measures are undertaken. He argued that the tendency of diffusion process to enhance inequity is reinforced by government rural development agencies which follow progressive farmer's strategy.
Relationship Between Personal Characteristics of Farmers and Recommended Cultural Practices
Rogers (2003) stated that the adoption of innovation is related to innovation decision process through which an individual passes from first knowledge of an innovation, to forming an attitudes towards the innovation, deciding to adopt or reject the innovation, implementing the new ideas, and confirming the innovation decision. Accordingly, he developed a model that explains the process which consists of five stages that include: awareness, interest, evaluation, trial and adoption stage. The distribution of adopters based on innovation assumes a normal distribution which is divided into five categories that include the innovators, early adopters, late adopters, late majority and the laggards.
The objective of this study is to determine the relationship between some personal characteristics of farmers of two blocks in Siliam Scheme in Northern state and adoption of some recommended faba bean (Ficia feba) cultural practices. More specifically, the study aims to determine the relationship between age, education level, annual income, family size, type and size of holdings of farmers and farmers’ adoption of the recommended cultural practices namely, land preparation, sowing date, method of sowing, seed rate, number of irrigation, irrigation interval, and period of harvest.
Methodology
Random sampling technique was used to select the sample of the study. Accordingly, a group of 60 of the faba bean farmers' were selected from two blocks of Siliam scheme which is one of the important schemes of the Northern State, Sudan. A structured questionnaire was administered to the 60 randomly selected farmers from the study area. Personal interviews were used during a field survey which was conducted for collection of the primary data. The survey was carried out during the season of 2014. Secondary data were collected from reports, documents, journals and books.
Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used for analysis. Descriptive statistic was used to determine frequency and percentages of personal characteristics of the farmers and adoption of the recommended cultural practices of faba bean. Chi-square test was used to determine the relationship between personal characteristics and the adoption of the recommended cultural practices of faba bean.
Results and Discussion
Personal characteristics of the farmers
Table (1) showed that all of the respondents were males. This is one of tradition of the people in the Northern State, farms are owned by males and women contribution is limited compared to
Awadia A. Hashim and Musa H. Elfaki / Nile Journal for Agricultural Sciences Vol. 2, NO. 1 (2017) 1 - 11
other regions in Sudan. However, now a days, women start to share in the harvest of all the crops especially the spices crops. From the same table we noticed that most of the farmers were literate and young. Also 66.7% of the farmers have medium family size (5 -10 members) and more than half of the farmers, (55%) owned the farms. The vast majority of the farmers (86.7%) said that the extension services were not available so they depend on their own knowledge and other sources of information. In addition, 46.7% of the farmers stated that their holdings are between 5
– 10 feddans.
Table 1: Frequency and percent distribution of personal characteristics of farmers
Item frequency % Item Frequency % Sex Education
Male 60 100 Illiterate 3 5.0
Female 00 00 Literate 57 94.9
Total 60 100 Total 60 100
Age Family size
Less than 30 22 36.5 Less than 5 17 28.4
30 -39 16 26.7 5-10 40 66.7
40 and above 22 3.7 above 10 3 5.0
Total 60 100 Total 60 100
Income/SDG Type of holding
Less than 5000 13 21.7 Owned by farmer 33 55
5000-10000 16 26.7 Government 4 6.7
Above 10000 31 51.6 Rented 19 31.7
Total 60 100.0 Sharecropping 4 6.7
Total 60 100.0
Extension Farm size/feddan
A viable 8 14.3 Less than 5 14 23.4
Not available 52 86.7 5-10 28 46.7
Total 60 100.0 Above 10 18 30
Total 60 100
Association between age and adoption of recommended cultural practices:
Table (2) shows that there is no significant association between age and adoption of all of the recommended faba bean cultural practices. This seems to be in line with the research result of Abass (2006) who found that there were no significant differences between farmers of different groups of ages and their adoption of recommended cultural practices of cotton in Gezira scheme. Age seems to have limited or no effect on adoption of recommended cultural practices. In reviewing research of characteristics of adopter categories, Rogers (2003) found that early adopters are not different from later ones in age.
Relationship Between Personal Characteristics of Farmers and Recommended Cultural Practices
Table 2: Chi-square test for association between age and recommended Faba bean cultural practices
|
Recommended cultural practices
Percentage of holders
Age
Sig.
Association between education level and adoption of recommended Faba bean cultural practices:
Table (3) shows that there is no significant association between education level and all of the recommended faba bean cultural practices under investigation. This is not in line with what Abass (2006) mentioned as what is common in diffusion- adoption research. He stated that diffusion adoption- research indicated that those who have higher education levels are more responsive to new ideas than those with lower education levels.
Table 3: Chi-square test for association between education level and adoption of recommended Faba bean cultural practices
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Recommended
Education (%)
Association between annual income and adoption of recommended Faba bean cultural practices:
Table (4) shows that there is significant association between net annual income and land preparation, seed rate and irrigation interval while there is no significant association between net annual income and the other cultural practices under the study. Sarker et al. (2009) found that
Awadia A. Hashim and Musa H. Elfaki / Nile Journal for Agricultural Sciences Vol. 2, NO. 1 (2017) 1 - 11
farmers with higher income are more likely to adopt risky technology compared with those with low income.
Table 4: Chi-square test for association between annual income level and adoption of recommended faba bean cultural practices
Percentage of holders
|
Recommended
Annual income (SDG)
Sig.
Association between family size and adoption of recommended Faba bean cultural
practices:
Table (5) shows that there is significant association between family size and number of irrigation and the period of harvest while there is no significant association between family size and land preparation, sowing date, seed rate and irrigation interval. Arene (1994) reported a positive and significant relationship between family size and adoption of recommended cultural practices. However, Voh (1982) established that household size is not significantly related to adoption.
Table 5: Chi-square test for association between family size and adoption of recommended faba bean cultural practices
Recommended
Percentage of holders
|
cultural practices Family size
Sig.
Relationship Between Personal Characteristics of Farmers and Recommended Cultural Practices
Association between kind of the farm and adoption of recommended Faba bean cultural practices:
Table (6) shows that there is significant association between kind of the farm and land preparation, seed rate and irrigation interval while there is no significant association between net annual income and the other cultural practices under the study.
Table 6: Chi-square test for association between kind of the farm and adoption of recommended faba bean cultural practices
Recommended
Percentage of holders
|
cultural practices Type of holding
Sig.
Association between farm size and adoption of recommended faba bean cultural practices: Table (7) shows that there is significant association between the size of the farm and sowing date and no. of irrigations while there is no significant association between the size of the farm and the other cultural practices under the study. Abdul et al. (1993) reported a significant relationship between landholdings (farm size) and adoption.
Table 7: Chi-square test for association between farm size and adoption of recommended Faba bean cultural practices
Recommended
Percentage of holders
|
cultural practices Size of holding (fd)
Sig.
Awadia A. Hashim and Musa H. Elfaki / Nile Journal for Agricultural Sciences Vol. 2, NO. 1 (2017) 1 - 11
Conclusion:
Results showed that all the farmers were male and the women help only during the harvest of the crops. There was no significant effect of the age and education status on the adoption of the recommended cultural practices but the net annual income, family size, kind of the holding and the size of the holdings were found to have significant effect on adoption of some recommended cultural practices. Further, there was a problem with the distribution of the extension services in the state.
References
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Arene, C.J. (1994). Discriminant analysis of small holder farmer adoption potential and the prediction of extension cost in Nigeria: a comparative enterprise perspective. Journal of Extension System, 10 (1): 46–58.
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Relationship Between Personal Characteristics of Farmers and Recommended Cultural Practices
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