Agricultural technology adoption among smallholder commercial farmers in rural Ghana: a consumer behaviour perspective

Abstract

Through the behavioural perspectives of smallholder farmers, the adoption of agricultural technology is examined to understand opportunities for sustainable food production and develop a strategy for technology adoption. The general food insecurity, hunger, and poverty among rural farmers are problems facing Ghana's agricultural sector. The government launched several agricultural development programs to solve these issues, but did not have the desired impact. Despite the significant advantages of using modern agricultural technology to boost food production, reduce hunger and poverty, and increase incomes for struggling rural farmers, adoption rates among farmers are low. This study uses a marketing approach to help farmers understand the dynamics of adopting agricultural technology. A survey method was utilised to collect data from 285 randomly selected respondents who are smallholder rice farmers in the Volta Region of Ghana. The data received were analysed using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) to understand the relationship and correlation between the measured consumer behaviour variables: Psychological, Personal, Social, and technology adoption patterns. The finding showed a 95% positive relationship between technology adoption and perceived usefulness and other positive correlation records in the SEM analysis. The study opined that increased technology adoption would be achieved by applying a technology adoption strategy that partners with farmers to accommodate their input in designing and deploying agricultural technology. The work presented here is based on evidence that consumer behaviour regarding technology adoption is essential, and a strategy is presented to guide future technology adoption patterns amongst smallholder farmers in Ghana, Volta Region. The study also revealed that though there are several frameworks to support farmers’ adoption of agricultural technology, some academics have begun to see the role of marketing strategy as inherently linked with consumer behaviour and technology adoption to achieve sustainable food production. This study shows numerous opportunities exist for manufacturers of agricultural technology to partner with a farmer to produce technology that increases the adoption rate and establishes consumer behaviour strategy to leverage the benefit of technology for sustainable food production and the partnering opportunities. The results suggest that the government should implement a strategy framework to give agricultural industry stakeholders a focal point, encourage farmers to adopt agricultural technology, and ensure that every part works toward the same goal.