The Role of Design in Facilitating Technology Adoption Among Smallholder Farmers in Benue State

Agricultural technology adoption among smallholder farmers in Benue State, North Central Nigeria, remains constrained by usability, cultural compatibility, and economic accessibility barriers that are largely design-related rather than technical. This study investigates the role of design quality in facilitating the adoption of three agricultural technologies, specifically improved seed packaging, soil testing kits, and mobile advisory applications, among smallholder farmers in Makurdi, Gboko, and Otukpo local government areas. A sequential explanatory mixed-methods design collects quantitative adoption data from four hundred and eighty farmers through structured surveys assessing technology exposure, trial, and continued use rates, followed by qualitative investigation of adoption motivations and barriers through focus groups with sixty farmers and semi-structured interviews with twenty extension officers. Technology usability assessments using the System Usability Scale are conducted with forty farmers per technology type. Findings reveal that design-related barriers, including label comprehension failures, interface complexity, and packaging misalignment with traditional handling practices, explain a significant proportion of non-adoption variance beyond economic cost and awareness factors. Technologies with higher usability scores record adoption rates two and a half times those of lower-scoring alternatives at equivalent price points. The study develops a Design for Agricultural Technology Adoption Framework specifying user-centred design requirements for each stage of the technology adoption pathway. Recommendations include mandatory usability testing protocols for publicly funded agricultural technology development programmes in Benue State. Keywords: design for adoption, agricultural technology, smallholder farmers, Benue State, usability.