Information Studies

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Browsing Information Studies by Author "Elia, Emmanuel F."

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    Dissemination and Use of Information on Climate Change and Variability: A Case Study of Farmers in Maluga and Chibela Villages in Semi-Arid Central Tanzania
    (2016-02-08) Elia, Emmanuel F.; Mutula, Stephen; Stilwell, Christine
    This study was part of broader PhD research which investigated how access to, and use of, information enhances adaptation to climate change and variability in the agricultural sector in semi-arid Central Tanzania. The research was carried out in two villages using Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovations theory and model to assess the dissemination of this information and its use by farmers in their adaptation of their farming practices to climate change and variability. This predominantly qualitative study employed a post-positivist paradigm. Some elements of a quantitative approach were also deployed in the data collection and analysis. The principal data collection methods were interviews and focus group discussions. The study population comprised farmers, agricultural extension officers and the Climate Change Adaptation in Africa project manager. Qualitative data were subjected to content analysis whereas quantitative data were analysed to generate mostly descriptive statistics using SPSS. Key findings of the study show that farmers perceive a problem in the dissemination and use of climate information for agricultural development. They found access to agricultural inputs to be expensive, unreliable and untimely. To mitigate the adverse effects of climate change and variability on farming effectively, the study recommends the repackaging of current and accurate information on climate change and variability, farmer education and training, and collaboration between researchers, meteorology experts, and extension officers and farmers. Moreover, a clear policy framework for disseminating information related to climate change and variability is required.
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    Indigenous Knowledge Use in Seasonal Weather Forecasting in Tanzania: The Case of Semi-Arid Central Tanzania
    (Sabinet Online, 2014-01-01) Elia, Emmanuel F.; Mutula, Stephen; Stilwell, Christine
    This paper is based on part of the findings of a PhD study that was carried out to determine how farmers have used indigenous knowledge (IK) to adapt to climate change and variability in the semiarid region of central Tanzania. Two villages, Maluga and Chibelela, were used as the case studies. The study applied Rogers’ (2003) Diffusion of Innovations theory and model. It adopted a predominantly qualitative approach and a post-positivist paradigm. The study population was made up of farmers, agricultural extension officers and the Climate Change Adaptation in Africa project manager. The principal data collection methods were interviews and focus group discussions. The qualitative data collected were subjected to content analysis whereas quantitative data were analysed with the help of SPSS to generate descriptive statistics. The findings revealed that the farmers in the two villages under study perceive conventional information on weather as unreliable and untimely. Consequently, the farmers turned to IK to predict weather patterns and make the necessary farming adjustments. It was established that uncertainty about seasonal weather forecasts is one of the most critical factors which forces farmers to continue using IK. Farmers’ knowledge of birds, insects, plants, animals, wind direction and astronomical indicators is used to predict weather patterns. The recommendations include the provision of timely and accurate weather forecast information to the farmers to enhance their coping and adaptation strategies under varying climate conditions; and a clear policy framework on the dissemination of information related to weather patterns in rural Tanzania.
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    Use of Indigenous Knowledge in Seasonal Weather Forecasting in Semi-Arid Central Tanzania
    (2014-07-15) Elia, Emmanuel F.; Mutula, Stephen; Stilwell, Christine
    This article is based on part of findings of a PhD study that was carried out to determine how farmers have used indigenous knowledge (IK) to adapt to climate change and variability in the semi-arid region of central Tanzania. Two villages, Maluga and Chibelela, were used as the case studies. The study applied Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovations theory and model. The study which predominantly adopted a qualitative approach used a post-positivist paradigm. The study population was made up of farmers, agricultural extension officers and the Climate Change Adaptation in Africa project manager. The principal data collection methods were interviews and focus group discussions. The qualitative data collected were subjected to content analysis whereas quantitative data were analysed with the help of SPSS to generate descriptive statistics. The findings revealed that the farmers in the two villages under study perceived conventional information on weather as unreliable and untimely. Consequently, the farmers turned to IK to predict weather patterns and make the necessary farming adjustments. It was established that uncertainty about seasonal weather forecasts was one of the most critical factors which forced farmers to continue using IK. Moreover, farmers’ knowledge of birds, insects, plants, animals, wind direction and astronomical indicators was used to predict weather patterns. The recommendations include the provision of timely and accurate weather forecast information to the farmers to enhance their coping and adaptation strategies under varying climate conditions; and a clear policy framework on the dissemination of information related to weather patterns in rural Tanzania.