Knowledge, attitude and practices of smart farming technology for small scale farmers in paddy production: A case study in Melaka

Abstract Rice production improvement is determined by several factors, including the farmers’ knowledge, attitude, and practice towards technology. Production increases in quantity and quality when technology is used instead of traditional methods. Thus, this study aims to assess the level of farmers’ knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) of smart farming technologies on paddy farmers agricultural practices. A modified KAP questionnaire was adapted and tailored to interview 110 respondents. The respondents are 100% males. 54.5% of respondents are between 46 to 60 years old, and only 47.3% respondents have completed their secondary level education. From the finding, only 11.8% can demonstrate and sharing about smart farming, which indicates the knowledge mastery of smart farming among the farmers is still low. However, in terms of attitude, 50% show a deep interest and are willing to learn more. Lastly, finding on practice shows that 16.8% of the respondents have utilized drones as their farming tool whereas 1.8% have used other technological tools. These numbers further substantiate the earlier finding on the farmers’ low level of knowledge on smart farming. For correlation analysis, there is a positive and significant correlation between Knowledge and Attitude scores (r = 0.626, p < 0.001) and between Knowledge and Practice (r = 0.792). Similarly, Practice score and Attitude score are positively and significantly correlated (r=0.570, p<0.001), indicating the importance of attitudes in shaping farming practices. Farmers in Melaka district have mixed understanding of smart farming technologies but are positive about learning and applying them. They express interest in government programs and a community-driven approach to knowledge sharing.