Farmers' use of mobile phones to access information on agriculture and services in Uganda

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to analyze the influence of digital literacy on farmers’ use of mobile phones in agricultural communication to access information and services in Luwero District, Uganda. Grounded in technology acceptance model and theory of technology affordance, the study adopts a quantitative approach and cross-sectional design and survey as data collection method. The data was collected from a sample size of (n=351) from three subcounties in Luwero district. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire from 351 smallholder farmers. The results indicated that digital literacy did not significantly influence farmers’ use of mobile phones in agricultural communication. Basic phone use had a significant positive influence on access to information and services. Smartphone use showed a significant but negative association with the use of ICT to access agricultural information and services. It was concluded that basic phones remain the most effective current channel for delivering essential agricultural information (market prices and weather forecasts) to smallholder farmers, while smartphone potential is constrained by cost, coverage, and transitional barriers. The researcher recommends that extension services maintain voice/SMS/USSD platforms for basic phone users while scaling smartphone-based interventions with affordable data subsidies, and targeted digital literacy training to ensure effective access to agricultural information and services. Keywords: Digital Literacy, Mobile Phones, Basic Phones, Smartphones, Agricultural Information Access, Agricultural Services, Smallholder Farmers, Luwero District, Uganda.