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IMPACT OF VILLAGE SQUARE MEETING ON AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT

Abstract

This research work is aimed at analyzing the impact of village square meeting on agricultural development in Gakem, Bekwarra Local Government Area of Cross River State. The research method used was survey, and questionnaire the instrument. The researcher adopted the systematic random sampling technique to select a sample size of 200 which was used in the study. The findings gotten from the questionnaire shows that the people of Gakem, Bekwarra Local Government are exposed to agricultural messages passed through the village square meeting and that it was as a result of adherence to such messages that they advanced in agricultural practice. It is therefore recommended that the village square medium should advance in the dissemination of agricultural messages in Gakem.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1  Background of the Study

The village square meeting is one of the mediums of traditional media of communication in the rural communities.  It channels a lot of information on day to day activities which takes place in the rural communities. Village square meeting takes place in the village square, where a lot of issues that affects the community are being discussed. Such information includes; Agricultural innovation programmes, burial ceremony or burial arrangement, coronation, naming ceremony, market days and product available for sales, visit of a prominent member of the community such as; a member representing the community in the state and Federal housing, local government chairman, party aspirant and party manifestos to mention a few.  For the purpose of this study, Agricultural innovation or development programmes as affected by the village square meeting as a medium of traditional media will be the focus.

The village square meeting is one of the mediums of traditional communication that helps to service the society or the rural communities through proper information that help the community in their daily interactions. Ever before the emergence of modern mass media, viz, print and broadcast and their introduction to Africa, people in African societies or communities did not live in isolation from one another, there exist many other mediums and channels viz the family, market place, town crier, visits, religious association, gun shot, bush burning, dance display etc. which makes it easier for people to interact and exchange opinions, ideas thoughts and feelings in their local communities.

Acknowledging this facts, Ebeze (2002), write that “before the introduction of modern mass media in Africa, there exist other channels of communication that enable people in ancient African communities to interact and maintain a stable system of living.  These channels as mentioned earlier has helped in shaping African communities, the channels are used as a medium for inculcating the norms and values of the community social mobilization, political mobilization, economic mobilization, cultural mobilization, and the transfer of cultural heritage from generation to generation or from old members of the community to new comers.  All these information carried by the mediums which the village square is one, has helped in rapid development of rural communities in Africa.

The village square meeting for instance brings people from different kindred, clans, sub-communities, families  and dynasty together in the village square to discuss pressing issues. Meeting days are communicated to the members of the communities through various medium such as the town crier, gunshot, family, dance, bush burning, market place, visits, religious association and youth association.

According to Eluwa (2010) “The village square is a special square, set aside for communal meetings and activities”. People converge here to discuss topical issues and events that affect their lives.  Here important messages are passed to the members of the community.  Messages being passed in the village square include; agricultural innovation messages, which will be critically looked into in this study to be able to ascertain how effective is the village square meeting in disseminating agricultural development programmers in the rural communities.

Agriculture is said to be the art and science of crop and animal production. Development to an economist is all about economic change that realistically enhances people’s earnings in addition to raising their living standards via large scale of production of goods and services. In the perspective of the philosopher’s development is conceptualized as the attainment of a meaningful degree of mental alertness and the sophistication of human faculties to the level the individual can not only reason well but also, adopt a logical approach to issues arising from human society.

Agricultural development is therefore, all about agricultural change that realistically enhances the ruralites earnings in addition to raising their living standard via large scale production of crops and animals. It is also the attainment of meaningful degree of mental alertness, and the sophistication of human faculties to the level that the individual in the society or rural community cannot only reason well but adopt a logical approach to agricultural problems or issues arising in the rural community. Agricultural development as been affected positively by the village square meeting will be properly looked into in this study.

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