Effectiveness of Farm Programs of Bangladesh Betar: An Empirical Study

Abstract

Bangladesh Betar has been developing and broadcasting different types of farm programs for decades for the development of the agriculture and the farming communities of Bangladesh. These farm programs are in dire need of academic research for in-depth evaluation to know the extent to which the programs are successful in achieving the goals. An effort has been made in this study to reveal the effectiveness of the farm programs of Bangladesh Betar. This research is predominantly qualitative in nature where Khulna and Rajshahi districts have been selected as the study areas. Document analysis, key informant interview (KII) and survey methods have been used as methodology for this study. Relevant official documents from Bangladesh Betar, agricultural departments and other government offices have been collected for document analysis. For KII twenty eight key informants from Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock, and Bangladesh Betar have been selected based on some specified criteria. For questionnaire survey, 465 respondents from Rajshahi and Khulna districts have been selected through random sampling technique. Descriptive analysis (Frequency distributions, proportional test analysis) has been done for analyzing the data and binary logistic regression model has been used to measure the intensity of the explanatory variables on explained variables. Experts‟ view is that there is a crying need of farm programs for the development of agriculture. The study has revealed that 71.40% of the experts think that there must be farm programs broadcast from Bangladesh Betar. Almost all (96.8%) the farmers need farm programs. Among them 20% want farm programs from Bangladesh Betar and another 21.72% want farm programs both from Radio (Bangladesh Betar) and Television. The farm programs designed and broadcast from Bangladesh Betar deserve the qualities of a good program to have beneficial effect on farming and the farmers. The present broadcasting schedules do not match the choice of most of the farmers and the broadcasting frequencies of farm programs are not enough. There is discrimination among the sectors in case of allocation of broadcasting hours. According to the experts the programs should be such that the farmers can participate in the programs. Bangladesh Betar itself fails to reach 93.33% of the farmers. Only 6.67% of the farmers listen to the farm programs of Bangladesh Betar. Radio is not culturally fit. Most of the farmers object to the obsolescence of radio (Bangladesh Betar). But almost all the farmers have faith in the information broadcast from Bangladesh Betar. Bangladesh Betar has failed to motivate the farmers to listen to its farm programs. A large number of farmers do not have belief and confidence in the expertise of the government experts especially the agriculture officers and the fisheries officers. Even a vast majority of the farmers think that they know better than the experts. They do not have the urge to know any new technology. Even most of them do not know that they are not aware of the modern farming technologies and their importance. Lack of consciousness of the modern technologies and their benefits is an impediment to listening to the farm programs. Academic education and trainings on agriculture increase the consciousness of the farmers of the new technologies of farming and the benefits of using the technologies which leads them to listening to farm programs. Very weak and constricted FM (Frequency Modulation) transmission of farm programs is an obstacle to listening to the farm programs. The farm programs of Bangladesh Betar are very much effective in educating the farmers about the modern technologies of farming. The study has revealed that most of the farmers who listen to the farm programs do not listen to the programs regularly. Yet, there is a clear difference between the listener and non-listener of the farm programs of Bangladesh Betar. At almost every level of farm knowledge the listeners of the farm programs are at better position than the non-listeners of the farm programs. It is also proved that farm programs can be a better complement to other mechanisms for educating the farmers about the farm technologies. The findings divulge that in every sector the farmers who listen to the farm programs of Bangladesh Betar are aware of the modern technologies for farming more than the farmers who do not listen to the farm programs. The research findings reveal that in every sector the farmers who listen to the farm programs of Bangladesh Betar are motivated to adopt the new technologies more than the farmers who do not listen to the farm programs. Even the mindset of the farmer who listens to the farm programs has shaped up better than that of the farmer who does not listen to the farm programs. The farm programs of Bangladesh Betar are effective for the diffusion of farm technologies and as media of instruction these farm programs deserve the ability to educate and motivate the farmers in adopting farm technologies though Bangladesh Betar itself fails to reach its target listeners. Initiatives are to be taken as stimulants to make the farmers listen to the farm programs of Bangladesh Betar. The programs have to be transmitted in such a way that the farmers can receive and listen to the programs through culturally fit technologies.