Marketing Oriented Knowledge for Need-based Support to Sesame Farming Community in Sheikan Locality, North Kordofan State, Sudan

Abstract

Providing agricultural education to farmers about basic dimensions of agricultural marketing is the need of the hour. Marketing awareness enhances market opportunity identification which helps farmers evaluate market options for new products to encourage diversification. The objective of this study is to determine marketing orientations knowledge need for sesame framers in Sheikan locality. Multistage sampling technique was used to select one hundred and fifty headed households (150 HH). Primary data were collected from target beneficiaries using a pre-designed questionnaire administered through random sampling along with field observation. Secondary data were collected from scientific publications, books, reports, and relevant documents from authoritative sources. The data were analysed using statistical tools, with frequency distribution and percentages used to present the proportion of responses for various variables. A chi-square test was conducted to examine the relationships between study variables. The findings revealed that 11.7% of respondents accessed marketing information from other farmers, the majority (84.4%) obtained it from traders, and only 3.9% received information from extension agents. 74.7% need information about transportation, storage, prices and marketing regulations. 78% need to know about the value added process. Intermediaries (61.3 %), low price (29.7%) and transportation (2.7%) were the Challenges. Result of Chi-squire test showed significant association at the level ≤ 0.05 between methods adopted for selling and society partnership, (P=.000, DF =3, X2 =36.730a), planning for cultivation and society partnership (P=.000, DF =3,  X2 =84.751a), source of access information and society partnership (P=.000, DF =4, X2 =74.038a), planning for cultivation and age (P=.02,  DF =9,  X2 =25.532a) and calculation cost before planting and education (P=.011, DF =12, X2 =26.017a).