Participatory Communication Empowerment and Adoption of Climate-Smart Agriculture Greenhouse Technology among Smallholder Farmers in Kiambu County
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47604/ija.3875Keywords:
Communication, Media, Interactions, Climate, Agriculture, Technology, Innovation, Diffusion Processes, Agricultural Technology, Agricultural Extension ServicesAbstract
Purpose: This study sought to examine the influence of participatory communication empowerment on the adoption of climate-smart agriculture greenhouse farming technology among smallholder farmers in Kiambu County. Climate Change has exacerbated food insecurity and malnutrition, despite the stakeholder interventions to end hunger by 2030 as enshrined in the second Sustainable Development Goal. One of communication’s main roles is to empower individuals through access to information to liberate themselves from their current predicament.
Methodology: The study was conducted using a mixed-method research design, with data collected through questionnaires, in-depth interviews, and focus group discussions. Quantitative data was collected from 387 smallholder farmers in Kiambu County, Kenya, while qualitative data was obtained from 50 key informants comprising of in-depth interviews and focus group discussions. Quantitative data was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics, while qualitative data was analysed using emerging themes as narratives.
Findings: The study established that smallholder farmers were empowered through access to information on smart greenhouse farming through various participatory communication channels. It also established that empowerment influenced the adoption of climate-smart agriculture in that farmers have full control of their greenhouse farming (sig. =.006) because they can easily access and utilise climate-smart greenhouse farming information (sig. =.050) through various channels of communication. The study concludes that access to greenhouse information, having practical experience, working as collective and taking control influence the adoption of greenhouse farming.
Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: The study recommends that policymakers and communication experts should integrate farmers’ ideas and opinions with participatory approaches during the agricultural message development, the formulation of communication policy and the communication strategy.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Ezra Kirui, Prof. Petronilla Mbatha Mathooko, Prof. Idah Gatwiri Muchunku
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