Extension Services, Biophysical Conditions, and Farmers’ Perceptions on the Adoption of Modern Rice Production Technologies in Kambia District, Sierra Leone
This study examined the influence of extension services, biophysical conditions, and farmers’ perceptions on the adoption of modern rice technologies in Kambia District, Sierra Leone. A cross-sectional mixed-methods research design was employed, integrating quantitative and qualitative approaches. Primary data was collected from 312 randomly selected rice farmers across Samu, Magbema, and Mambolo chiefdoms using structured questionnaires, complemented by key informant interviews and field observations. Descriptive statistics summarized respondents’ characteristics, while Chi-square tests examined associations among categorical variables to identify factors influencing technology adoption. The results revealed significant variations in access to extension services among chiefdoms, including access to extension (χ2 = 254.0, df = 6, p < 0.001), frequency of extension visits (χ2 = 234.0, df = 6, p < 0.001), training participation (χ2 = 226.3, df = 8, p < 0.001), accessibility of extension services (χ2 = 255.1, df = 6, p < 0.001), and follow-up support (χ2 = 236.2, df = 6, p < 0.001). Membership in farmer organizations was strongly associated with participation in modern rice technology training (χ2 = 131.28, p < 0.0001), whereas household income source showed no significant association with training participation (χ2 = 12.34, p = 0.195). Significant differences were also observed in biophysical conditions, including farming systems, soil type, soil fertility, flooding frequency, and drought stress (p < 0.05). Results demonstrated that regular extension contact, training participation, farmer organization membership, favorable soil fertility, irrigation availability, and positive perceptions significantly increased the likelihood of adopting modern rice technologies, while poor extension access, high input costs, limited credit, and environmental constraints reduced adoption. The study concludes that strengthening extension delivery systems, expanding farmer training and demonstrations, improving access to affordable credit and production inputs, and promoting climate-smart, location-specific rice technologies are critical for enhancing technology adoption and sustainable rice productivity in Kambia District. It is recommended that improving agricultural extension services, access to agricultural credits, farmer training, cooperatives, irrigation,
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