Popularizing National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI) umudike innovations amongst students through the use of demonstration farms

ABSTRACT

Agricultural innovations will have little or no impact until they are shareed with stakeholders in ways that are meaningful to them. This paper highlights the use of demonstration farm by National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI) Umudike to disseminate, promote and popularize her innovations for improved productivity of her mandate crops amongst student visitors from 2018-2020. The demonstration farm was set up at Umudike in the rainy season of each year following good agronomic practices recommended by the Institute. Three thousand six hundred and twelve (3612) students from ninety-four (94) schools visited the farm during the period. The students were first given a pep talk on mandate of the Institute and the objectives of the demonstration farm before a guided tour of the farm after which there was a rap up and question time during which they were individually asked of their impression of the demonstration farm. Other data collected from the visiting schools include;their state, geopolitical zone, number of students and sex of the students. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics such frequencies and percentages. Vast majority (88.90%) of the visiting schools were from the South East geopolitical zone and majorly from Abia State (53.98%) probably due to proximity of the schools in the zone and state to the Institute. They were students mostly from secondary schools (50.00%), with more females (56.45%) than males (43.55%), reflecting the prevailing pattern of school enrolment skewed in favour of females in the zone. Most students (89.56%) were impressed by the innovations demonstrated in the farm. Many were excited to see crops like turmeric and ginger for the first time and learn how they are cultivated. In 2020, there were no student visitors to the demonstration farm as a result of drastic measures taken by government to curtail the transmission of the COVID-19 pandemic which includes closure of schools and movement restrictions.