@article{Babu:126225,
      recid = {126225},
      author = {Babu, Suresh Chandra},
      title = {Economics of Information in Developing Country  Agriculture: Evidence from South India},
      address = {2012-06-25},
      number = {1007-2016-79792},
      month = {Jun},
      year = {2012},
      abstract = {Public agricultural extension systems often fail due to  inadequate consultation of farmers about their information  needs and poor understanding of their information search  strategies.  In discussing and implementing extension  programs and advisory services, the following questions  need to be addressed: What information do the farmers need?  How and where do they search for information? What factors  determine their search behavior? How much are they willing  to pay for their information? While the first two sets of  questions are addressed fairly well in the literature, the  latter two have not yet been attempted in the context of  developing countries. Using a case study of two districts  in South India, we examine farmer information needs and  their information search behavior, factors affecting their  search behavior, and their willingness to pay for  information. Cluster analysis on access, frequency and use  of information sources identified four farmer information  search behaviors – high, medium, semi-medium and low.  The  groups differed significantly by post-high school studies,  household economic status, cultivated land area,  agricultural income, and membership to a farmer-based  organization (FBO) and a Primary Agricultural Cooperative  Bank (PACB).  We use these four information search  behaviors to examine differences in information needs,  sources used and preferred sources. The important  information needs related to rice included pest and disease  management, pesticide and fertilizer application, seed  variety, seed treatment. Rice production practices and  credit information was more important for the low search  group. Private input dealers and the state department of  agricultural extension staff were the main information  sources, though use of these two sources decreased with  greater information searching.  High and medium searchers  used a greater number of sources, which also included print  media and TV.  The major constraints to information access,  common to all search groups, were poor reliability and  timeliness.  The preferred medium of information was  interpersonal contacts followed by information via mobile  phones, where a helpline or voice messages was preferred  over SMS.  Through a contingent valuation technique it was  found that farmers’ willingness to pay for voice-based  mobile phone messages was low. The results show that the  delivery of agricultural information, tailored to the  different information search behaviors of farmers, is  important to consider for extension programs.},
      url = {http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/126225},
      doi = {https://doi.org/10.22004/ag.econ.126225},
}