Smallholder rice farmers’ access to information in Tanzania: can agricultural marketing co-operative societies provide quality information?
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Date
2023
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Journal of Co-operative and Business Studies
Abstract
Access to quality information plays a crucial role in enhancing the competitiveness of smallholder rice
farmers in Tanzania. Agricultural co-operatives have the potential to overcome smallholder farmers’
information asymmetry. Yet, there is a lack of comprehensive understanding regarding the extent to
which Agricultural Marketing Co-operative Societies (AMCOS) can effectively provide quality
information to smallholder farmers as required by Co-operative Principle number five (Education,
Training, and Information). This paper analyses the current level of access to information among
smallholder rice farmers in AMCOS, evaluating the relevance, adequacy and reliability of information
provided by AMCOS to its members and identifying the factors influencing the adequacy of the
information provided by AMCOS. The study was conducted in Mvomero and Mbarali Districts. A cross-
sectional research design was used and data were collected using a questionnaire that was
administered to 382 randomly selected farmers based on registers availed by co-operative managers
in three co-operatives. Data were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS)
whereby ordinal logistic regression was used to estimate the influence of various factors on the
adequacy of information obtained from AMCOS. The study found that 77.2% of farmers accessed
information on rice agronomy. Smallholder rice farmers obtained adequate (52.6%), relevant
(35.6%) and reliable (37.7%) information from their respective AMCOS. The adequacy of information
was influenced by membership in social groups, access to rice agronomy information and financial
information at p<0.05. It is concluded that agricultural co-operatives are potential platforms for
providing quality information in enhancing smallholder rice farmers’ informed decision-making. The
study recommends that efforts should be made to strengthen AMCOS by providing them with
resources, training, and support to enhance their capacity to deliver accurate and timely information
to farmers. This include collaboration with agricultural extension service providers and leveraging
their networks to access up-to-date information on agronomic practices, weather forecasts, and
market trends to enhance farmers’ competitiveness in rice farming.
Description
Research article
Keywords
rice farming, adequacy, relevance, reliability access, Information access