Extent of Adoption of Mobile Phone Applications by Smallholder Dairy Farmers in Tharaka Nithi County, Kenya
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Date
2023-09
Authors
Mutuma, Samuel P.
Ngare, Wangare L.
Bett, Eric K.
Kamau, Christopher N.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
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Publisher
Tylor and Francis
Abstract
In Kenya, smartphones are readily available at lower cost than before,
allowing farmers to access agricultural information through mobile applications.
However, despite increased ownership of smartphones and the availability of mobile
applications, the overall usage of mobile applications is still low. This research
aimed to assess the factors that determine the adoption of mobile phone applications among smallholder dairy farmers in Tharaka Nithi County of Kenya.
A multistage stratified sampling procedure was used to interview 427 farmers.
A Double Hurdle approach was employed to analyze the drivers of decision and
extent of adoption of mobile applications. The study revealed that 51% of the
respondents used mobile applications to access agricultural information. The decision to use a mobile phone application was influenced by the sex of the household
head, age and level of education, distance to the market center, farming (as the
primary occupation), access to credit, channels of access to information, farmer’s perception on the cost and ease of use of the mobile application. Subsequently,
farm size and the various channels through which farmers access information about
the applications positively influenced the number of mobile applications used. This
study recommends strengthening the existing extension pathways to disseminate
more information regarding the use of mobile applications among smallholder
farmers. Supporting public-private partnerships will be crucial in increasing the
utilization of mobile phone applications.
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Citation
Mutuma, S. P., Ngare, W. L., Bett, E. K., & Kamau, C. N. (2023). Extent of adoption of mobile phone applications by smallholder dairy farmers in Tharaka Nithi County, Kenya. Cogent Food & Agriculture, 9(2), 2265225.