Farmers' Perceptions and Determinants of Using Varied Sources of Extension for Agricultural Information: Evidence from Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

In many developing countries, agricultural information is disseminated predominantly by government officials; however, the agricultural sector struggles to provide satisfactory services to smallholder farmers. In South Africa, a pressing need exists for more robust and nuanced empirical evidence concerning farmers' preferences regarding utilising various agricultural information sources. Utilising a simple random sampling method, data was collected from 265 respondents through in-person interviews employing a semi-structured questionnaire. The analysis incorporated descriptive statistics, the Perception Index, and Multivariate Probit Regression. The findings from the Multivariate Probit Regression indicated that farmers in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal prefer pluralistic extension sources for agricultural information. Furthermore, variables such as farmers’ satisfaction with the frequency of extension officer visits, the quality of technical advice, and the turnaround time for feedback significantly influenced the farmers' decisions to engage with pluralistic sources for agricultural information. Considering these findings, the study concludes that agricultural information delivery to smallholder farmers should be primarily managed by pluralistic sources of extension services, which acknowledge and embrace the inherent diversity among producers. Consequently, farmers will likely select an information mix that aligns with their specific farming enterprises.