Orientador: Julieta Teresa Aier de Oliveira / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Agrícola / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-19T11:02:15Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 SilvaPonchio_AnaPaula_D.pdf: 2173103 bytes, checksum: 7b58f5410a6754d5b290c8b9e0018101 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011 / Resumo: Esta pesquisa analisa as relações entre comunicação e desenvolvimento de agricultores familiares de Teodoro Sampaio (SP), no Pontal do Paranapanema. Apurações revelaram que a agricultura familiar desse município é representada basicamente por assentados da reforma agrária. O Pontal do Paranapanema é uma das regiões com menor desenvolvimento do estado de São Paulo e também a que concentra mais da metade de todas as famílias assentadas no estado - é terra de ativa reconstrução de território. O embasamento teórico principal é o da comunicação para a mudança social, segundo a qual a comunicação pode ter papel estratégico no processo de desenvolvimento à medida que facilita trocas e aproximações entre as pessoas. O objetivo geral desta tese foi entender as práticas de comunicação desses agricultores e relacioná-las com o desenvolvimento de suas famílias. Assumiu-se como proxy de desenvolvimento a combinação entre a percepção que a família tem sobre sua condição de vida e a evolução da sua produção agropecuária. A hipótese principal é que a comunicação é um dos fatores que influenciam positivamente o desenvolvimento de agricultores familiares desse município. Outra hipótese é que existe uma rede de interações sociais que favorece trocas consistentes entre os agricultores familiares do município e desses com outros atores locais. Uma terceira hipótese é que os agricultores têm avançado no processo de emancipação. Por meio das interações sociais, realizadas com autonomia, é que a comunicação cumpriria seu papel de colaborar para o desenvolvimento. Os métodos de coleta foram entrevistas guiadas, entrevistas estruturadas (questionário) e observação não-participante. Para a interpretação das entrevistas guiadas, adotou-se a análise do significado semântico-pragmático da conversação; os dados do questionário foram processados com apoio dos softwares Excel e Stata 9.0. Entre os principais resultados, constatou-se pela via estatística o efeito positivo da comunicação em favor da melhoria da "condição de vida e produção" de parte dos produtores, para aqueles com maior desenvolvimento; para os demais, comunicação "não é o remédio". Contudo, ao serem consideradas as entrevistas guiadas e também o que se observou em campo, não resta dúvidas sobre as potenciais contribuições da comunicação para as diferentes perspectivas de desenvolvimento que aquelas famílias venham a assumir - nem todas privilegiavam o enfoque agropecuário. Já há estabelecida uma rede de comunicação da qual participam os agricultores, extensionistas e atores de outros segmentos da sociedade local, o que viabiliza as contribuições da comunicação. Os produtores assentados estão, sim, em processo de construção de cidadania, que é refletido em sua postura participativa, crítica e de busca pelo cumprimento de direitos. A principal sugestão é que sejam ampliadas as formas de acesso a informação tanto dos produtores quanto dos profissionais do serviço público que os atendem / Abstract: This research investigates relations between communication and the development of family farmers from Teodoro Sampaio city (São Paulo state), in the Pontal do Paranapanema region. Family agriculture in that city is represented basically by settlers from the Agrarian Reform program (implemented by state and federal governments). Traditional farmers do not fit the profile for family farmers - especially in terms of main income source. The Pontal do Paranapanema is one of the regions with the lowest level of development in São Paulo state which gathers more than half of all settled families in the state. The main theoretical basis for the research is the "communication for the social change" (or "Communication for Development"), in which the communication might have a strategic role in the development process, as it promotes interactions among people. This study aimed to understand communication practices of these farmers and relate them with the development of families. The development proxy is understood as the combination between the perception that family has about its life conditions and the evolution of the agricultural production. The main hypothesis is that communication is one of the factors that contributes positively to the development of family farmers from Teodoro Sampaio. Another hypothesis is that a network of social interactions involves family farmers from the city and other local agents. A third hypothesis is that settled farmers are in the process of building their citizenship, which tends to increase their participation in social processes over time. Through social interactions, communication might accomplish its role to collaborate to development. Guided interviews, structured interviews (questionnaires) and non-participant observation were used to collect data. For the interpretation of guided interviews, the analysis of the semantic-pragmatic meaning of the conversation was adopted; the data in the questionnaires were processed in Excel and Stata 9.0. The results highlighted the positive effect of communication for "life conditions and the evolution of agricultural production" only for some farmers, for those with higher development. For others, communication did not present as essential. However, once guided interviews and what has been observed at the field are considered, the potential contributions of communication for different development perspectives that those families might choose become clear - not all of them prioritize the agricultural focus. There is already a communication network established in which farmers and other segments of the local society participate in, which promotes contributions of communication. Settled farmers are in the process of building their citizenship, which is reflected in their participative attitude and in their search to practice their rights. The main suggestion is to improve ways for producers and professionals from public services related to them to access information / Doutorado / Planejamento e Desenvolvimento Rural Sustentável / Doutor em Engenharia Agrícola

Thesis (M.A. Agricultural Management (Agricultural Extension)) -- University of Limpopo, 2019 / This study was designed to examine the perceptions of subsistence farmers about the use of the extension communication channels to receive farm management information including climate variability in relation to their innovation decision process. A survey approach was used in this study and by means of stratified sampling, 85 farmers were selected from 372 respondents from Mankweng and 251 from Tshebela service centres in Polokwane Local Municipality for interviews considering gender and their proportions in each service centre. Data were collected from individual respondents by means of personal interviews using a semi-structured questionnaire. The questionnaire was tested among similar farmers in a village near the University of Limpopo. The data were subjected to both descriptive and inferential analyses using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) programme. The findings around the research questions and the hypothesis test showed that all respondents received farm management information including climate variability through all 10 communication channels investigated. Furthermore, it was indicated that group discussion was the only channel through which most respondents received information most of the time. The study findings also revealed that of all the channels investigated, slightly more than half of the respondents preferred group discussions and of those who preferred group discussions, almost half of them preferred it as the first choice. The hypothesis test further showed that the farmer characteristics that positively influence farmers‟ use of group communication channels were farming experience, farmer association membership and affordability group channels. In other words, a farmer who has more farming experience and belongs to a farmers‟ association is more likely to choose group channels for receiving farm management information including climate variability. The hypothesis test also indicated that the strongest predictor of reporting preference of group channels of communication channels was seeking innovation for a farm management problem in relation to climate variability. Finally, the study found that time was the most serious constraint farmers face in assessing or receiving farm management information including climate variability. ix In view of the fact that most respondents will have group discussions as their first choice, the use of this channel should be timed to allow respondents to attend. Extension agents therefore, have to discuss the timing of such meetings with participants to arrive at times suitable to most participants. Extension agents also need to realise that a subsistence farmer who is looking for information for a farm management problem including climate variability is more likely to seek it through the television. / ARC

Text in English with abstracts in English, Zulu and Sepedi / The objective of this qualitative case study was to determine the information needs of rural farmers in Bungoma County, Western Kenya. The study explored various literature on information needs of rural farmers and the information services available to them. The data were collected through face-to-face interviews with twenty lead farmers who are hosts of Farmers’ Field Schools. The findings show that farmers in Bungoma County are mostly interested in information that helps them to generate quick incomes from their agribusinesses. They access agricultural information mostly from verbal messages passed on by extension officers and local administration leaders. The farmers confessed that the information accessed from electronic sources like local FM radios is very useful in enhancing their agricultural enterprises and therefore agricultural development partners, policy makers and stakeholders in Western Kenya should use local FM radio often to disseminate information on agricultural development. The challenges encountered by the farmers in their quest for information relates to affordability. This study contributes to social change by recommending agricultural development partners, policy makers and stakeholders in Western Kenya implement programmes for reducing the distances that farmers travel to access agricultural information and the costs they incur in applying the knowledge gained from the various information channels. / Lolu cwaningo lokuthola kabanzi ngesimo belugxile ekuqaguleni izidingo kwezolwazi nokusetshenziswa kwalo kubalimi basemakhaya endaweni yaseBungoma County, esentshonalanga Kenya. Kulolu cwaningo kuye kwabhekisiswa izincwadi nemibhalo ehlukahlukene maqondana nezidingo zolwazi zabalimi basemakhaya kanye nalezo zinsiza zolwazi abakwaziyo ukufinyelela kuzo. Ulwazi lwedatha luye lwaqoqwa ngokuthi kwenziwe izingxoxo-mibuzo nabalimi abangamashumi amabili okuyibona abavelele futhi abaye basingathe uhlelo lwabalimi olubizwa nge-Farmers’ Field Schools. Okutholakele kukhomba ukuthi intshisekelo yabalimi baseBungoma County ikakhulukazi imayelana nokuthola ulwazi oluzobasiza ekwakheni ngokushesha imali eyingeniso kumabhizinisi abo ezolimo. Kuvamise ukuthi ulwazi lwezolimo baluthole ngemibiko edluliswa ngomlomo ivela kubalimisi (extension officers) nakubaholi bezokuphatha basendaweni. Balibeke ngembaba abalimi elokuthi luwusizo kakhulu ekwesekeni amabhizinisi abo ezolimo ulwazi oluvela emithonjeni ye-elekthronikhi efana nesiteshi somsakazo we-FM sasendaweni, ngakho-ke kungaba ngcono uma labo okubanjiswene nabo (partners) kwezokuthuthukisa ezolimo, futhi nabakhi benqubomgomo kanye nalabo ababambe iqhaza entshonalanga Kenya bengasebenzisa isiteshi somsakazo we-FM sasendaweni ukusabalalisa ulwazi lokuthuthukisa ezolimo. Ukubhekana nezindleko yilona hlangothi abahlangabezana nezinselelo kulo abalimi, ekuphokopheleni kwabo ukuthola ulwazi. Lolu cwaningo luyigalelo ekuguquleni ezenhlalo yomphakathi ngokuphakamisa ukuthi labo okubanjiswene nabo ekuthuthukiseni ezolimo, abakhi benqubomgomo kanye nalabo ababambe iqhaza entshonalanga Kenya mabaqalise ukusebenzisa izinhlelo zokunciphisa amabanga amade okudinga ahanjwe ngabalimi ukuze bafinyelele kulwazi lwezolimo kanye nezindleko abangena kuzo uma sebesebenzisa lolo lwazi abaluthole ngemizila eyehlukene yolwazi. / Nepo ya nyakišišo ye ya khwalithethifi e be e le go laetša dinyakwa tša tshedimošo le ditšhomišo tša balemi ba dinagamagae go la Bungoma County, bodikela bja Kenya. Nyakišišo e nyakišišitše dingwalwa tša go fapana mabapi le dinyakwa tša balemi ba dinagamagae le ditirelo tša tshedimošo tše ba di hwetšago. Datha e kgobokeditšwe ka dipoledišano tša go dirwa thwii le balemi ba go eta pele ba masomepedi bao e lego benggae ba Dikolo tša Tlhabollo ya Balemi. Dikutullo di laetša gore balemi go la Bungoma County ba na le kgahlego gagolo go tshedimošo yeo e ba thušago go tšweletša letseno la ka pela go tšwa go dikgwebotemo tša bona. Ba hwetša tshedimošo ya temo gagolo ka melaetša ya molomo ye e fetišwago ke balemiši le baetapele ba selegae ba tshepedišo. Balemi ba dumetše gore tshedimošo ye e hwetšwago methopong ya elektroniki bjalo ka setiši sa FM sa radio ya tikologo e na le mohola matlafatšong ya dikgwebo tša bona tša temo gomme ka go realo bašomišani ba tlhabollo ya temo, bangwaladipholisi le bakgathatema ka bodikela bja Kenya ba swanela gore ba upše ba šomiše setiši sa FM sa radio go phatlalatša tshedimošo ka ga tlhabollo ya temo. Ditlhohlo tše balemi ba kopanago natšo mošomong wa bona wa tshedimošo di amana le phihlelelego. Nyakišišo ye e kgatha tema go phetogo ya leago ka go eletša bašomišani ba tlhabollo ya temo, bangwaladipholisi le bakgathatema go la borwa bja Kenya gore ba phethagatše mananeo go fokotša bokgole bjoo balemi ba bo sepelago go hwetša tshedimošo ya temo le ditshenyegelo tše ba di dirago tšhomišong ya tsebo ye e hweditšwego go tšwa dikanaleng tša go fapana tša tshedimošo. / Information Science / M.A. (Information Science)

Le milieu du XIXe siècle est une époque de renouvellement des pratiques agricoles dans le monde. Le même phénomène touche l’agriculture du Bas-Canada et c’est dans cette optique de renouvellement des méthodes culturales et d’élevage que l’État intervient en faveur de la diffusion des connaissances. Ce projet de modernisation des pratiques agricoles s’inscrit dans une intervention de l’État qui va finalement se poursuivre pendant des décennies. La longue période étudiée, 1850-1950, met en lumière l’intervention de l’État et l’efficacité de son action auprès des agriculteurs de la région de Charlevoix. L’intervention de l’État a été abordée sous l’angle de la diffusion et de l’adoption des connaissances agricoles. Comme émetteur d’informations, l’État soutient un programme de communication dont l’objectif est la diffusion de connaissances agricoles et l’adoption de celles-ci par les agriculteurs. Pour atteindre ses fins, il met peu à peu en place un ensemble de moyens d’intervention destinés à rejoindre la plus grande majorité des agriculteurs dans leurs milieux. Mais, comme récepteurs des connaissances diffusées, les agriculteurs, en fonction de leur milieu social, culturel et économique, adoptent ou rejettent les propositions qui leur sont faites. Les outils de communications ont d’abord été étudiés pour leur pertinence à rejoindre ces agriculteurs. Puis, afin d’évaluer l’efficacité de l’intervention gouvernementale et la réceptivité des agriculteurs, les choix et les changements survenus dans les méthodes de culture et d’élevage ont été analysés. L’évolution de la stratégie de communication de l’État montre la complexité du processus d’adoption de connaissances nouvelles. Elle révèle que l’adoption d’une innovation est davantage qu’un simple geste technique. Les agriculteurs agissent en effet selon leur environnement. Diverses considérations ont donc joué un rôle de premier plan dans les gestes posés par les agriculteurs. Si ces derniers ont assez rapidement modifié leur choix de culture, les progrès relevés dans les méthodes de culture et d’élevage apparaissent, par contre, beaucoup plus lents, ce qui est instructif de la difficulté d’intégrer des pratiques nouvelles dans leur totalité. / Québec Université Laval, Bibliothèque 2014

In South Africa, the majority of inhabitants rely on agriculture as the main source of livelihood. Agricultural crop production remains the primary source of subsistence, employment, and income. Due to policies put in place by the apartheid government, agriculture remained divided into large scale commercial farming and subsistence small scale farming. The 1913 and 1936 Tenure Acts and the 1927 Administration Act favoured white farmers of large scale commercial farms who produced and supplied markets. These acts were effective until 1994. Smallholder farmers were not supported to operate at commercial farming levels and instead remained as subsistence farmers. However, the present government has been putting policies in place to encourage smallholder farmers to operate at commercial farming levels. Smallholder farmers are faced with many challenges that restrict them from being commercially active in crop production. Their challenges range from the lack of land, equipment, and financial resources. They may also struggle to meet the quality and safety standards set by food processors, large retailers, wholesale buyers, and exporters. Smallholder farmers are also constrained by limited support services provided by government. When addressing problems that smallholder farmers are facing it is a common practice to focus on increasing production rather than to look at issues that affect production. It is thus important to look at the whole production system when the aim is to address problems affecting production and to understand the linkages in the system. The objective of this research was to seek a deeper understanding of the quality of relationships among smallholder farmers, extension officers, input suppliers, and output buyers in the maize production system in Msinga, South Africa. This objective was addressed in the application of social learning which was informed by systems thinking in order to gain a deeper understanding of the perspectives, practices, and experiences of all role players involved in maize crop production. This research was conducted through five levels of deeper learning where the first level was the review of literature. Semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions were carried out as tools for data collection in the other four levels of deeper learning. The second level sought to gain individual role player’s perspectives, practices, and experiences on the linkages and the quality of relationships in maize crop production. The third level consisted of two separate focus group discussions that brought together role players that worked together and were familiar with one another. The linkages and the quality of relationships were explored further. The fourth level brought together all role players into one group discussion where there was reflection on the findings of the previous group meetings and a cause and effect analysis on the quality of relationships. The fifth and final level was to establish strategies to improve the quality of relationships among role players in the maize production system. Communication, trust, communal and exchange relationships, control mutuality, satisfaction, and commitment were through a review of literature established as being important indicators of quality of relationships,. It was established that these indicators are interrelated where communication is the most important construct of the quality of a relationship and that the rest of the indicators are developed through communication. However, the findings of the research showed that weak linkages and poor quality relationships among role players of the Maize Production System occurred as a result of farmers’ practices, low literacy levels, lack of financial resources, inappropriate extension approaches, weak production input distribution channels, and farmers’ lack of information and access to output markets. Moreover, limited communication among role players in the system resulted in poor quality of relationships because communication is the most important construct of the quality of relationships. Communication is also the construct through which other indicators are developed. Nevertheless, through social learning, the awareness of the quality of relationships that exist among role players informed new thinking and, as a result it was recognized that change was required. These new insights led to multi-stakeholder conversations over the development of strategies to improve the quality of relationships among role players. These strategies were aimed at improving not only the quality of relationships among role players, but also the forward and backward linkages which would be beneficial to all stakeholders in the maize production system. / Thesis (M.Agric.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2011.

South Africa as other African countries has not been spared from the rural poverty. The South African government is trying to address this problem through various government departments. One such ministry trying to address rural poverty is the Ministry of Agriculture, working together with the provincial Ministries of Agriculture in different provinces. The provision of appropriate agricultural extension services is regarded as a tool that may be used to address rural poverty and development in South Africa’s rural areas. Appropriate extension services will depend on the knowledge management system applied by the organisation making it innovative and responsive to the needs of the farmers. The objective of this research was therefore to identify knowledge management systems applied by extension workers to support community garden farmers in the uMgungundlovu District Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal. To address the objective, qualitative research methods, namely focus group discussion and semi-structured interviews, were used. In this research, it was evident that the extension workers were not efficiently managing knowledge within their department, among themselves as well as among the farmers. The extension workers have potential knowledge management methods in place, such as departmental meetings. However, the extension workers’ practices do not capture the true essence of knowledge management. There is no evidence that knowledge gained by extension workers during meetings and informal discussions in the organisation is translated into learning, which could lead to the development of new knowledge by the extension workers. The extension workers claimed that they are using appropriate methods to learn from the farmers and to share knowledge with them. However, the farmers do not believe that the extension workers make use of any methods to encourage knowledge sharing and learning. It is thus evident that extension workers do not integrate knowledge gained from the farmers into the improvement of their own agricultural extension practices. Agricultural extension organisations therefore need to adopt methods that encourage learning, reflection and engagement with the knowledge gained from the organisation and the farmers for real knowledge management to take place. This, in essence, will lead to the creation, sharing, utilization, absorption and transformation of knowledge. / Thesis (M.Agric.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2011.

Villagisation and large-scale agricultural investments in Gambella region has been a major concern of human right groups. The Ethiopian government argues that Villagisation program is voluntary and part of Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP) which attempts to bring development to indigenous communities and nothing to do with large-scale agricultural investment. On the contrary, human right groups and local civil society organizations claim that the Ethiopian government is forcefully relocating indigenous people from their ancestral land under the disguise of development while the true motive of the government is to expand agricultural investment in the region at the expense of the livelihood of the local communities. This research is an attempt to investigate the controversial Villagisation and large-scale agricultural investment in Gambella regional state by looking into the link between large scale agricultural investment and Villagisation. The main focus of the research is to examine the impacts of agricultural investment and Villagisation in Gambella region the light of the Ethiopian government policy in the region and the alleged development induced human right violations. The research is based on a qualitative method to capture data from 32 Villagisation sites using in-depth interviews, focus group discussions and field observations. For the purpose of this study, 241 participants were selected from the study sites to participate in the research. Out of the 241 participants 75 of them were participated in in-depth interviews and the rest were included in focus group discussions and informal discussions based on the participants’ knowledge, views, experience and feelings associated with Villagisation and large-scale agricultural investment in the region. The findings of this study show no indication of involuntary Villagisation, no significant relationship between Villagisation and investment, or no evidence of previously occupied land being leased to investors. However, the study reveals that there has been serious lack of communication and misinformation from the government side in the process of planning and implementing the Villagisation program. Owing to this, suspicion and lack of trust between government officials and the local communities characterized implementation of the Villagisation project. / Geography / M.A. (Geography)