Abstract:

This study aimed at measuring the impact of automation on agricultural information
services in the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO) with a view to
identify problems and make recommendations for the improvement of automated
information services. The objectives of the study were: to establish the means
through which NARO staff offer their information services by way of automation, to
establish clients' attitudes towards the way they receive automated information
services, to identify problems related to automated information services, and to
suggest possible recommendations for overcoming problems related to automated
information services. To achieve the above, personal interviews, observations and
discussions were conducted to collect data from Kawanda and Namulonge. The
findings of the study indicated that librarians carried out most of their library
routines with the aid of computers. The librarians further expressed the need for a
better or modernised automated information service system. Agricultural researchers
wanted current and updated agricultural information of which most of it was meant
by electronic resources, especially CDs. Most problems faced by NARO's
information service system were due to lack of enough funds. Conclusions and
recommendations summed up the study with an illustration that shows a proposed
automated agricultural information system for NARO.