Factors influencing maize farmers’ access and utilisation of Agricultural Information in Tolon and Kumbungu Districts in Northern Ghana

Maize farmers’ access and utilization of information on improved farming technologies is essential in increasing yield of maize. However, maize farmers continue to record low yield, partly due to poor access and utilisation of information. The study investigated the factors that influence farmers’ access to and use of agricultural information on the maize yield in Tolon and Kumbungu Districts in Northern Ghana. A total of 390 respondents were randomly selected from five (5) communities for the study. Questionnaires and personal interviews were used in collecting data. Secondary data were also obtained from institutions such as Savannah Agriculture Research Institute (SARI) and International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) to compliment the primary data. Descriptive statistics, namely, percentages and frequencies, and probit regression were used to analyse the data. The results revealed that land ownership, timely information, importance of information, understanding of information, utilization of information, access to labour, access to credit and access to extension have significant influence on access to and utilization of agricultural information. The research recommends that there is need for Ghana Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) to collaborate with research institutions to identify and train maize value chain actors on timely information access and management. It is also necessary for MoFA to partner with private financial institutions to make credit available, since, farmers’ access to credit play a key role in agricultural information access as well as its utilisation.