Application of ICT in Agricultural Sector: Women’s Perspective
Monica N. Agu
Monica. N. Agu, Department of Computer Science, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria.
Manuscript received on January 01, 2013. | Revised Manuscript received on January 02, 2013. | Manuscript published on January 05, 2013. | PP: 58-60 | Volume-2, Issue-6, January 2013. | Retrieval Number: F1093112612/2013©BEIESP
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© The Authors. Published By: Blue Eyes Intelligence Engineering and Sciences Publication (BEIESP). This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
Abstract: Agriculture is the mainstay of most third world economies and occupies a pivotal position in the development of these countries. Despite the importance of agriculture, improvements in this sector have been uneven and, on the whole, disappointing. In any farming system, it is important to recognize the various roles of women. Many women experience a life that is a complex web of multi roles and multi-tasks which requires the average woman to conduct different things in a bid to fulfil her family needs. Women in rural communities are extensively involved in arduous farm operations and agricultural activities, from planting to harvesting and other post harvesting operations. These women have been using and managing natural resources, collecting food etc for their livelihood. In Nigeria, women provide 60 – 80 percent of labour in agriculture through production, processing and marketing of food. They assist on family farms and are farmers in their own right. So the Nigerian women are in an important position to contribute to food supply. This sector faces major challenges for enhancing production in a situation of dwindling natural resources necessary for production. ICT plays an impotant role in addressing these challenges. The paper analyzes the problems facing women in the agricultural sector-and suggests ways to solve these problems. Furthermore the paper surveys the information needs of rural women and how ICT can be used to meet their information needs.
Keywords: Agriculture, information and communication technology, women.