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Co-Orientation in Gender Preferencesfor Mass Media Usage Among BenueFarmersE. C. Odiaka a & C. P. Obinne ba Mass Media, Cooperative Extension Centre , University ofAgriculture , Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeriab Department of Agricultural Extension and Communication ,University of Agriculture , Makurdi, Benue State, NigeriaPublished online: 05 Nov 2010.

To cite this article: E. C. Odiaka & C. P. Obinne (2010) Co-Orientation in Gender Preferences for MassMedia Usage Among Benue Farmers, Journal of Agricultural & Food Information, 11:4, 322-329, DOI:10.1080/10496505.2010.512249

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Journal of Agricultural & Food Information, 11:322–329, 2010Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLCISSN: 1049-6505 print / 1540-4722 onlineDOI: 10.1080/10496505.2010.512249

Co-Orientation in Gender Preferences for MassMedia Usage Among Benue Farmers

E. C. ODIAKA1 and C. P. OBINNE2

1Mass Media, Cooperative Extension Centre, University of Agriculture, Makurdi,Benue State, Nigeria

2Department of Agricultural Extension and Communication, University of Agriculture,Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria

This study examined the extent of agreement between male and fe-male farmers’ usage of mass media. Data collected from 250 farm-ers in Benue, Nigeria using a structured questionnaire showed that79.6% could read and write and revealed a disparity in the use oftelevision, mobile phones, the Internet, and newspapers. The Mann-Whitney U test showed significant differences in the use of television(.013), the Internet (.044), and newspapers (.082), indicating non-alignment positions. Alignment in the nonuse of production guidesand journals/magazines (dmr = 0) and near alignment for ra-dio (dmr = 1) was observed. We recommend that stakeholders inthe agricultural delivery system make use of mass media that aregender-relevant in disseminating farm messages.

KEYTERMS agricultural information, Benue State, farmers, gen-der preferences, information delivery, mass media usage, Nigeria

INTRODUCTION

Gender considerations are central to agricultural development because thevarious types of agricultural production in Nigeria are carried out by malesand females in different locations. Current understandings of gender in Nige-ria are based on an appreciation of the diverse needs and roles of men andwomen and the obligation to provide equal access to mass media agricultural

Received 2 February 2010; accepted 20 July 2010.Address correspondence to E. C. Odiaka, Cooperative Extension Centre, University of

Agriculture, P.M.B. 2373, Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria. E-mail: odiakaec@yahoo.co.uk

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Gender Preferences for Mass Media Usage 323

information. The Intermediate Technology Development Group-EasternAfrica (2001) noted that gender is a set of social and cultural attributesin which men and women have different roles, needs, and priorities andthey encounter different constraints and have different obligations, suggest-ing that in seeking appropriate information they are likely to prefer differentcommunication channels. Furthermore, the roles played by men and womenare socially defined and are determined by social and economic activities,reflecting biological differences between men and women and varying ac-cording to regions, culture, and activities. The implication is that gender rolesare dynamic—they are constantly changing as a result of women and menthemselves strategizing, negotiating, and bargaining to achieve their cooper-ative and individual interests, and communication is critical in carrying outthese activities.

In the production of food, men’s and women’s roles are often patternedaccording to cultural and social elements and, sometimes, according to bio-logical attributes, suggesting that approaches to sources of information maydiffer. Consideration of gender has become necessary because research find-ings show that, in Africa, women do about 70% of the total work in agricul-ture (Akello & Sarr, 1999) and community structures in most African countrieshave been male-oriented. In fact, females could not be traditional rulers inmost communities or be major decision makers. In Makurdi, for example,Odiaka, Akoroda, and Odiaka (2008) found that 78% of the farmers whoproduce vegetables were females. Buckland and Haleegoah (1996) notedthat, although women contribute between 60–80% of agricultural produc-tion in developing countries, they are least likely to benefit from agriculturalextension services and technologies that could improve production. In fact,in most parts of northern Nigeria, religious considerations have confinedwomen and limited their interactions to mainly their husbands or husbands’wives, thus making access to agricultural information difficult.

The scarcity of food is escalating food prices to the extent that theFood and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, in June 2008, is-sued its policy response to the challenge of rising food prices faced by bothdeveloped and developing countries (Boel, 2008). A part of one of the pol-icy response items is to build knowledge to enhance productivity growthand this can only be achieved through the use of appropriate communica-tion channels. Cummings, van Dam, and Valk (2005) observed that, aroundthe world, new information and communication technologies (ICTs) havechanged lives of individuals, organizations, and indeed entire nations andthat women want information and to engage in communication that willimprove their livelihoods and help them achieve their human rights. Thus,communication is a key element in the development process, especially inagricultural development.

Men and women may agree or disagree on issues and in the use ofmedia to obtain agricultural information. Their orientation toward the use of

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324 E. C. Odiaka and C. P. Obinne

specific mass media is based on the assumption that behaviors are the resultof people’s perceptions. However, new agricultural technologies that willimprove production will be meaningless if the end users (men and womenfarmers) do not have access to them or do not make use of appropriate com-munication technologies to clarify or resolve unclear messages. Therefore,this study was designed to ascertain the extent of co-orientation betweenmale and female farmers in their use of mass media technologies to con-firm/resolve confusing agricultural information. We hypothesized that thereis no significant difference between male and female farmers’ use of massmedia technologies for agricultural information.

METHODOLOGY

Benue State, the site of this study, derived its name from the River Benue,the second largest river in Nigeria, and is located in the middle belt regionof the country, with a population of 4.22 million people (Federal Republicof Nigeria, 2007) spread among three senatorial zones: Eastern, Northern,and Central. Popularly referred to as the “Food Basket” state, with its head-quarters in Makurdi, Benue State has a land mass of 30,955 km2 distributedamong 23 Local Government Areas (LGAs)—14 in Tiv-speaking areas, 7 inIdoma-speaking areas, and 2 in Igede-speaking areas (Department of Plan-ning and Statistics, 2004). However, the population of the farm families inthe State is 413,159 and is spread among the 23 LGAs (Planning, Monitoringand Evaluation, 2005). A multi-stage sampling technique was used to selectthe study population. Two LGAs were randomly selected from each of thethree senatorial zones, and 2 communities (1 urban, 1 rural) were randomlyselected from each LGA, yielding a total of 12 communities (6 urban, 6 rural).The Proportionate Stratified Random Sampling (PSRS) formula, as proposedby Nworgu (1991), was used to determine the sample size as follows:

Sample Size = Total farm families per LGA

Total farm families in the studied LGAs× Sample size needed

1

According to Nworgu, the relative contribution of each stratum in the popu-lation is exactly its relative contribution in the sample. The result is as shownin Table 1.

Following the determination of the sample size, a list of farmers fromeach of the 12 communities was purposefully organized along gender lines,and respondents were randomly selected using the ballot method. A total of250 male and female farmers were randomly selected and data were collectedusing a structured questionnaire. The Mann-Whitney U non-parametric test(as found in SPSS version 14) was used to test the hypothesis, because the testdata were qualitative and was ranked. Three possible scenarios—alignment,

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Gender Preferences for Mass Media Usage 325

TABLE 1 Sample Size and Its Distribution

Distribution of respondents

Urbancommunity

Ruralcommunity

No. of farm SampleSenatorial zone LGA families size Male Female Male Female

Eastern1 Kwande 35,520 44 11 11 11 112 Katsina-Ala 32,210 40 10 10 10 10

Northern3 Guma 27,900 35 9 9 8 94 Makurdi 42,911 53 13 13 14 13

Central5 Oju 25,085 31 7 8 8 86 Otukpo 38,059 47 12 12 12 11

Total 201,685 250 62 63 63 62

near alignment, and nonalignment—were identified. Alignment was deter-mined by equality in the mean rank, i.e., the difference in mean rank (dmr)is 0. Near alignment is shown if the dmr is equal to or less than 1, whilenonalignment is shown when the dmr is greater than 1.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Of the 250 male and female respondents, 45.6% were between 19 and 36years of age; 40.8% were between 37 and 54 years. With regard to theireducational status, 20.8% had primary education, 33.2% secondary educa-tion, and 25.6% post-secondary education. In other words, a majority of thefarmers (79.6%) could at least read and write, irrespective of their locationand gender. The farmers in this group are expected to be more energetic,active, and willing to learn and would likely seek agricultural information toimprove output and resolve confusing farm messages.

Over 16% (16.8%) of males and 9.2% of females fell into the “high massmedia users” category, while 33.2% of males and 40.8% of females were inthe “low/no mass media users” category. Thus, more males were in the highuser category, while more females were in the low user category (Table 2).This result agrees with the finding of Omotayo, Chikwendu, Zaria, Yusuf,

TABLE 2 Farmers’ Usage Level of Mass Media by Gender

Gender Low use (%) High use (%)

Male 83 (33.2) 42 (16.8)Female 102 (40.8) 23 (9.2)Total 185 (74.0) 65 (26.0)

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326 E. C. Odiaka and C. P. Obinne

TABLE 3 Extent of Co-Orientation Between Males and Females in Their Preference for MassMedia to Confirm/Resolve Confusing Agricultural Information

Mass media Male (%) Female (%) Grand total (%)

Radio 49 (19.6) 48 (19.2) 97 (38.8)Television 6 (2.4) 0 (0.0) 6 (2.4)Mobile phone 62 (24.8) 54 (21.6) 116 (46.4)Internet 0 (0.0) 4 (1.6) 4 (1.6)Production guide 0 (0.0) 0 (0.0) 0 (0.0)Newspaper 3 (1.2) 0 (0.0) 3 (1.2)Journal/magazine 0 (0.0) 0 (0.0) 0 (0.0)None of the above 5 (2.0) 19 (7.6) 24 (9.6)Total 125 (50%) 125 (50%) 250 (100%)

and Omenesa (1997) that fewer women listened to radio and that of Okwu(2005) who found that male farmers were more likely to use mass mediathan female farmers. Since an equal number of respondents were drawnfrom both urban and rural areas and there is evidence that the majority ofthem could read and write, the observed gender disparities in mass mediausage may not be easily explained by education or location.

The use of specific mass media by male and female farmers to confirmor resolve ambiguities in agricultural information is shown in Table 3 andFigure 1. The percentage differences in the use of radio (males = 19.6%,females = 19.2%), television (males = 2.4%, females = 0%), mobile phone(males = 24.8%, females = 21.6%), the Internet (males = 0%, females =1.6%), and newspapers (males = 1.2%, females = 0%) indicate disparity in

FIGURE 1 Showing the extent of co-orientation of male and female farmers in the use ofmass media to confirm/resolve confusing agricultural information.

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328 E. C. Odiaka and C. P. Obinne

mass media usage. The Mann-Whitney U test was used to test for significantdifferences in mass media usage between male and female farmers. Theresult, as shown in Table 4, indicated that there were significant differencesin the use of television (.013) and computer for Internet (.044) at a 5% levelof significance and newspaper (.082) at a 10% level, thus rejecting the nullhypothesis and implying a significant difference in male and female farmers’mass media usage levels. There were variations in the mean rank of othermedia for males and females (indicating usage differences), especially forradio and mobile phone, but the Mann-Whitney U test statistics did notshow significant difference. However, the differences found in most of themass media technologies were in favor of male farmers, which agrees withthe findings of Okwu (2005), Odiaka (2008), Hafkin and Odame (2002),and the International Labour Office (1984). Karegero (1995) believed thatsuch discrepancy leads to a lack of appropriate knowledge and skills aboutimproved farming.

The Mann-Whitney U test results, as indicated in the differences in themean rank in Table 4, showed three categories: alignment, near alignment,and nonalignment. Based on this categorization, the nonuse of productionguides and journals/magazines by both males and females shows a perfectalignment (dmr = 0, respectively). Near alignment was observed for radio(dmr = 1), while nonalignment was observed for television (dmr = 6),mobile phone (dmr = 8), computer for Internet (dmr = 4), and newspaper(dmr = 3). The three alignment positions between males and females in theuse of certain mass media should be a critical consideration for agriculturalextension practitioners when disseminating information or interacting withdifferent categories of farmers.

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The different roles played by males and females in the production of agricul-tural products and the disparities in their preference for mass media to clarifyfarm messages demand that farm information delivery channels for differentcategories of producers be critically considered when devising agriculturaldevelopment strategies. It is, therefore, recommended that stakeholders inthe agricultural delivery system make use of media that are gender-relevantin responding to farmers’ problems and in disseminating farm messages.

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Akello, G., & Sarr, F. (1999). The economic role of women in agriculture and ruraldevelopment (CTA Annual Report Special Paper). Wageningen, The Netherlands:Technical Centre for Agricultural Cooperation.

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Boel, M. F. (2008, June). Statement on rising food prices at the FAO High-LevelConference. Rome, Italy: FAO.

Buckland, L., & Haleegoah, J. (1996). Gender analysis in agricultural production(IITA Research Guide 58). Ibadan, Nigeria: International Institute of TropicalAgriculture.

Cummings, S., van Dam, H., & Valk, M. (2005). Gender and ICTs for development: Aglobal sourcebook. Amsterdam: Royal Tropical Institute.

Department of Planning and Statistics. (2004). Market calendar. Makurdi, Nigeria:Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning.

Federal Republic of Nigeria. (2007). 2006 national population census. Official Gazette(Extraordinary), 94(4), 52.

Hafkin, N. J., & Odame, H. H. (2002). Gender, ICTs and agriculture. Wageningen,The Netherlands: CTA.

Intermediate Technology Development Group-Eastern Africa. (2001). The role ofcommunity-based health care in rural development. Nairobi, Kenya: Author.

International Labour Office. (1984). Rural development and women in Africa.Geneva, Switzerland: Author.

Karegero, K. J. B. (1995). Gender disparities in literacy and implications for agricul-tural extension in Tanzania. UNISWA Journal of Agriculture, 4, 124–135.

Nworgu, B. G. (1991). Educational research: Basic issues and methodology. Ibadan,Nigeria: Oluseyi Press Ltd.

Odiaka, E. C. (2008, May). Gender disparities in the listening and viewing habitsof farmers: Implications for agricultural communication. In Proceedings of theFirst National Conference of the Society for Gender in Agriculture and RuralDevelopment (pp. 113–120). Makurdi, Nigeria: University of Agriculture.

Odiaka, N. I., Akoroda, M. O., & Odiaka, E. C. (2008). Diversity and productionmethods of fluted pumpkin (Telfairia occidentalis Hook F.): Experience withvegetable farmers in Makurdi, Nigeria. African Journal of Biotechnology, 7(8),944–954.

Okwu, O. J. (2005). An evaluation of use and effects of mass media and inter-personal communication channels in agricultural technology transfer in BenueState. Doctoral dissertation, University of Agriculture, Department of AgriculturalExtension and Communication, Makurdi, Nigeria.

Omotayo, A. M., Chikwendu, D. O., Zaria, M. B., Yusuf, J. O., & Omenesa, Z. E.(1997). Effectiveness of radio in Nigeria in dissemination of information onimproved farm practices. Journal of Extension Systems, 13(1), 103–120.

Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation. (2005). Year 2005 wet season CAYS report.Makurdi, Nigeria: Benue State Agricultural and Rural Development Authority.D

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