Browsing by Author "Mushunje, Abbyssinia"

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    Efficiency of Small Scale Farmers and Land Reform in Zimbabwe
    (University of Fort Hare, 2001-02) Mushunje, Abbyssinia
    The role and significance of agriculture in the Zimbabwean economy needs no further emphasis. The whole economy depends ~n a stable agrarian growth. Agriculture accounts for 11-14 percent of the GDP and contributes 33 percent of formal employment. Currently the government of Zimbabwe is forging ahead with its controversial Land Reform Programme. This is intended to achieve higher agricultural output, higher labour absorption and a
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    Factors Influencing the Perceptions of Smallholder Farmers towards Adoption of Digital Technologies in Eastern Cape Province, South Africa
    (MDPI, 2023-07-25) Bontsa, Nasiphi Vusokazi; Mushunje, Abbyssinia; Ngarava, Saul
    The objective of the study was to determine the factors that influence the perceptions of smallholder farmers towards the adoption of digital technologies. A purposively selected sample of 250 smallholder farmers who were cross-sectionally surveyed from Port St Johns and Ingquza Hill Local Municipalities in South Africa was used in the study. The Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and the Attention, Desire, and Action (AIDA) model were used to analyse the data. The results showed that digital technologies were perceived to be expensive, cause a digital divide, and discouraged the use of Indigenous Knowledge even though they increased production. Positive perception towards digital technologies was associated with cattle rearing, with extreme negative perception for sheep and goat rearing. Educational level, employment status, monthly income, household size, being part of a cooperative (1% level), age, and source of income (10% level) were significant factors affecting smallholder farmers’ perceptions of digital technologies. In conclusion, there are economic, social justice, and traditional perceptions towards digital technologies by smallholder farmers, with socio-economic factors affecting the perceptions. The study recommends providing low-cost digital technologies that promote Indigenous Knowledge, which should target the youth and young farmers with less education in small households who are full-time farmers with moderate-to-high incomes and are part of farmer groups/organisations.