Farmers’ Satisfaction with the Use of AgriTecH in Disseminating Improved Oil Palm Production Technologies in Western Tanzania

Abstract

This study assessed the level of farmers' satisfaction with the use of AgriTecH in disseminating improved oil palm production technologies in Tabora and Katavi regions in the Western parts of Tanzania. The study adopted a cross-sectional mixed-methods research design involving quantitative and qualitative methodologies. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect quantitative data from a sample of 120 respondents, while focus group discussions and key informant interviews were employed to obtain qualitative data.The collected quantitative data were analysed using a Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) to yield descriptive statistics while content analysis was used to analyse qualitative data. The study found that the majority of the farmers expressed high level of Satisfaction with the use of AgriTecH in dissemination of improved oil palm production technologies across all measurement indicators including responsiveness (93.3%), assurance (90.8%), reliability (89.2%), empathy (89.1%), timeliness (85.0%), access (65%) and tangibility (60.8%). Although farmers showed that they are satisfied with the AgriTecH in the dissemination of improved oil palm production technologies, the lower positive percentage scores in access (65%) and tangibility (60.8%) indicators implied that there is a need for improvements in the components of these indicators. Based on the findings of the study, TARI should make some improvements in the physical component of the AgriTecH to ensure more efficiency in service delivery. Also, both TARI and the Local Government Authorities through the Division of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries should provide convenient ways to increase farmers’ regular visits to the AgriTecH by either supporting their visits at least once per each cropping season or decentralizing the services to the grass root level where farmers are found by strengthening the linkages between the AgriTecH and the Ward Agricultural Resources Centres (WARCs)