Department of Agricultural Extension

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    Effects of Migration on the Livelihood of Rural Households in the Kpando District of the Volta Region
    (University of Ghana, 2016-07) Kessie, G.K.; Atengdem, P.; University of Ghana, College of Basic and Applied Sciences School of Agriculture Department of Agricultural Extension
    The main objective of this study is to assess the causes of labour migration, low food crop production and remittance linkages on the livelihood of rural households in the Kpando District. The researcher used survey design to elicit information from 202 heads of non-migrants’ households within the study area. The households used for the study were selected by cluster sampling and information was elicited from them through personal interview and a structured questionnaire. Data for this study were edited, coded and analyzed using Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS) and inferential statistics. The New Economics of Labour Migration, the “Push- Pull” Model and Todaro Model of Migration were used. The sustainable livelihood framework was used to analyse the effects. The results revealed that, majority of rural households in Kpando district were involved in migration, and migration is an important part of their income. Findings showed that people may decide to migrate when their rural economy is disrupted. Such decisions could be as a result of natural catastrophe such as: flood, drought, insects and pests’ infestation, disease problems, infertile soil, lack of arable land for cultivation, communal clashes, family dispute and other adversities. The study found out that migration and remittance showed statistical significant difference compared to agricultural income, hence the decision to migrate. The results obtained from the study on the impact of migration on food crop production, come to validate all three theories. Findings revealed that farmers do not have access to financial support, the few farmers who had financial support from various sources had said it was inadequate for optimum production. The migration of people from food crop production areas affects food crop production negatively - high cost of human labour, increasing the cost of food production in the study area.
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    Communication Channel Preference and Its Relationship With Accessibility to Information
    (University of Ghana, 2001-10) Adugu, E. K.; Fiadjoe, F. Y. M.; University of Ghana, College of Basic and Applied Sciences, School of Agriculture, Department of Agricultural Extension
    The study aimed at researching into communication channel preferences and how it relates to accessibility to information, the study was carried out in the Ho district of the Volta Region of Ghana, Data was collected from four communities in the Ho district. These are: Tanyigbe, Hodzo-Ve, Dave and Gbleve. Volta Community Water and Sanitation Program (VCWSP) ranked Tanyigbe community highest in terms of socio-economic status. Hodzo-Ve, Dave and Gbleve communities had the same lower level of ranking with respect to socio-economic status. The above four communities were purposively selected. The oldest males and females in every fifth house in all the selected communities were interviewed. Fifty-nine males and sixty-one females were interviewed. In all, one hundred and twenty beneficiaries were interviewed in the selected communities. With respect to the extension agents, the following were interviewed: The regional extension supervisor of VCWSP, the Ho district extension supervisor of VCWSP, the regional software officer of VCWSP and the regional gender officer of VCWSP. The prior state of beneficiaries was marked by water and sanitation practices, which created conducive conditions for the health problems and hazards facing them. In response to this situation, innovation information packages were developed by the VCWSP in collaboration with beneficiary communities and disseminated to them. The aim of the innovation information transfer was to change the knowledge and practices of beneficiaries from the prior state to the desired State. Based on the channels used by the source for information dissemination and the preferred channels of the beneficiaries, three categories of beneficiaries exposed to innovation information emerged. These are: A: Beneficiaries who preferred a particular channel and it was used by the source for information delivery to them. B: Beneficiaries who preferred a particular channel but it was not used by the source for information delivery to them. C: Beneficiaries to whom the source used a particular channel for information delivery but it was not their preference. For those in category “A” where preferred channels are used, accessibility to innovation information is high. For those in categories “B” and “C” where preferred channels are not used and the channels used are not preferred respectively, accessibility to information was lower compared with the cases where preferred channels are used. It follows that the higher the extent to which preferred channels of beneficiaries are used, the higher the accessibility to information. Where preferred channels of beneficiaries are used, limitations imposed on beneficiaries due to their peculiar circumstances are taken into consideration. Issues relating to opportunity to interacting with and accessing information are considered. It is for these reasons that throughout the various stages of the innovation decision process, the selfemployed, those employed by others and the unemployed indicated that their channel preferences would enable them undertake their economic activities more effectively. This is reflected in the self-employed having higher frequency of acquisition of information from the source compared with the other types of employment. However, due to the utility of the information to solve problems confronting beneficiaries in their prior state, even where channels used were not convenient to them, they exposed themselves to the information. This was likely due to the fact that they were in dire need of information to solve water and sanitation problems confronting them. All the categories of beneficiaries exposed to innovation information from the source indicated that there had been a change in knowledge with respect to their prior state and are practicing the suggested changes. These occurred in spite of the fact that the channels used by the source were not the preferred channels of beneficiaries to various extents resulting in different levels of accessibility to information. This is due to the fact that all beneficiaries exposed themselves to the innovation information whether channels used by the source were preferred or not preferred. Beneficiaries exposed themselves to innovation information because it was congenial with their beliefs and more importantly their critical need situation. In conclusion, in development communication, relevant information is best communicated to and with the ultimate users of the information through the use of appropriate channels in order to influence their behaviour in the desired direction. Behaviour modification can be achieved faster when the communication channels preferred by the target beneficiaries are used in the information exchange process since this ensures maximum information accessibility.