Information Needs and Computer Skills for Successful Farm Management:A South African Experience

摘要

On analysing the environment in which farming is practised, it was found that meaningful changes had occurred since the middle eighties. These changes had an influence on the types and sources of information, as well the management processes, used by farmers. It is furthermore expected that there will be a difference between farmers with different farming types (livestock, crop or mixed farms). A meaningful correlation was found netween the computer skills of farmers and their management performance. Different agricultural groups had different opinions on the relative importance of computer skills. This paper highlights the types and sources of information required by farmers, the relationship between computer skills and farming performacne, as well as the resulting changes in the computer training of tertiary students in Agricultural Management at Technikon Free State.