Utilization of ICT by Rural Farmers in Lampung, Indonesia

Abstract

Lampung as the gateway of the island of Sumatra, the progess of development and society quite rapidly. The development of information communication technology has also been felt by farmers. This study aims to determine: the accessibility of farmers to conventional agricultural information sources and farmers accessibilty to ICT in finding agricultural information. The sample of farmers is taken by rural area of urban border (Kecamatan Jati Agung, Lampung Selatan Regency adjacent to Bandar Lampung City) where 3G and or 4G cell phone signal coverage is sufficient. The results showed that the accessibility of farmers to ICT is good enough, but the utilization of conventional media is still relatively high. Most farmers know the benefits of hp to find agricultural information, but most farmers use face-to-face with agricultural extension workers to obtain agricultural information. Currently, radio and television have been abandoned by farmers to find agricultural information, and the majority of farmers use it as a medium of entertainment.