Culled from Tribune by our Correspondent., February 20, 2026.
A lecturer at Taraba State University, Dr. Stephen Victor Gana, has advocated the integration of media platforms into agricultural practice as a strategy to enhance farmers’ productivity in Taraba State.
Dr. Gana of the Department of Mass Communication made the call on Wednesday, explaining that the proposal stemmed from his three-year doctoral research at Glorious Vision University.
According to him, blending digital and traditional media tools into agricultural development practice would significantly improve the speed, reach and effectiveness of information dissemination among farmers across the state.
“The integration of media platforms into agricultural practice will enhance farmers’ productivity. It will significantly improve the speed, reach and effectiveness of agricultural information dissemination among farmers in Taraba State,” he said.
The university don noted that his advocacy was motivated by persistent communication gaps between government agricultural agencies and grassroots farmers — a challenge he said has undermined the long-term impact of many well-intended agricultural programmes in the state.
Dr. Gana revealed that findings from his research exposed “weak and poorly coordinated communication strategies” as major barriers to effective information flow, leaving farmers disengaged and excluded from critical decision-making processes.
He proposed a sustainable, farmer-centred communication framework that combines traditional channels such as radio, extension services and community meetings with modern digital tools to ensure easy access to farming applications and innovations.
He further recommended the inclusion of Artificial Intelligence platforms, online partnership networks and interactive digital feedback systems to strengthen agricultural communication and promote timely information exchange across the value chain.
“This blended approach will not only increase awareness but also promote farmer participation, innovation adoption and improved productivity,” he added.
Dr. Gana also called for regular communication audits of government agricultural programmes, as well as capacity building for extension officers and farmers in digital literacy. He stressed the importance of interactive feedback mechanisms and the use of local languages to enhance clarity and acceptance of agricultural messages.
He urged strategic partnerships among government, educational institutions, media organisations and technology providers to build a robust agricultural communication infrastructure capable of repositioning Taraba State on the global map of agro-development.
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