Smallholder Orange Farmers’ Access to Market Information in Muheza District, Tanzania

Abstract

This study has investigated market information access by smallholder orange farmers in Muheza District, Tanga Region. Specifically, the study sought to examine the extent to which farmers access market information, their sources of information, and whether their age, gender, and level of education influence them. The study used a descriptive research design and a mixed-methods research approach. It involved 103 randomly selected respondents, four key informants and26 focus group discussion participants divided into two groups, each consisting of 13 participants. To analyze quantitative data, SPSS version 21 was used, and chi-square and logistic regression were run to determine the relationship between variables. Qualitative data were analyzed using content analysis. The findings suggest that the majority of the respondents, access limited market information mainly through relatives and friends, meetings, traders, and radio. Also, at a 5percent confidence level, there is a statistically significant association between preferred information sources, gender, and level of education. Furthermore, the findings suggest that respondents with primary education and below are 91.8 percent less likely to have access to market information. Based on these findings, the study recommends that smallholder orange farmers be encouraged to form or join farmers’ associations to enhance their access to market information.