Assessment of Farmworker’s Level of Knowledge in Banana Cultivation and its Implication on Productivity Improvement in the Lower Shabelle Region of Somalia

Somalia was the largest banana producer and exporter in Africa in early 1990, but both production and export collapsed due to improper use of good agricultural practices and post-harvesting constraints. The government and its partners tried to recover the banana sector, but nothing changed. Researchers hypothesized that studying and improving farmworkers’ knowledge of banana cultivation could contribute to recovering the country’s banana sector. Therefore, the study objective is to study the current knowledge level of banana farm workers on banana cultivation and contributing factors influencing farm workers’ knowledge of banana cultivation in the Lower Shabelle region of Somalia. A cross-sectional study participating 400 farmworkers was implemented in the selected six large-scale banana farms which are the largest production area of the Lower Shabelle region of Somalia by using a well-structured questionnaire. Bloom’s cut-of-point classification was used to categorize knowledge scores into three knowledge levels and data were analysed using descriptive statistics, Chi-square test, and Multiple linear regression at a p-value of <0.05, <0.10, and <0.01. Most of the farm workers (80.2%) were male with 31.57 mean age (SD=8.53) and 167.48 mean income age (SD=81.27). This study reported that 194 (48.5%) farm workers have low knowledge of banana cultivation, 127 (31.8%) have moderate knowledge, and only 79 (19.8%) have good knowledge. The Mean knowledge was 18.54 (SD=6.51) out of 30 maximum expected scores. The weakest knowledge section is pesticide management while the strongest is harvesting. The coefficient of farmworkers’ age, education, training participation, and banana farming experience are significantly associated with their knowledge of banana cultivation activities at p-value <0.05 while the total land size they cultivate has a significant association at p-value <0.10. This study reported almost half of the banana farm workers have a low level of knowledge of banana cultivation. To enhance farmworkers’ cultivation knowledge, agricultural extension and education programs must enhance pesticide management relating knowledge by specifically focusing on older and low-experience farmworkers, rural farmworkers that are far away from training centres, and those who do not have large land sizes. In addition, improving training quality by providing advanced training materials and mentors, increasing training frequency, and improving training effectiveness is highly recommended.


Rationale
Banana is one of the most popular and vital staple foods in the world and originally from Southeast Asia such as Malaysia, the Philippines, and Indonesia.Banana belongs to the family Musaceae and genus Musa, the banana plant is a perennial herbs crop that replaces itself and takes 9 to 12 months starting from the sowing stage of the bulb to the harvesting stage.Bananas consumed domestically are essential food in numerous tropical regions and stand a key role in terms of food security (Julia&Morton, 1987).Its fruit stands as an important source of income, nutrition, and food security for more than 400 million people worldwide.Ecuador is the main producer which supplies around one-third of the world market followed by Costa Rica, Belgium, and Colombia (Banana Link, 2020).Over 900 hundred banana varieties subdivided into 50 groups are cultivated around the world including sweet and non-sweet, but Cavendish is the most widely exported variety (Banana Link, 2020).
African countries have a historical cultivation of bananas but, a limited number of them have excessive production with exporting capacity such as Ghana, Ivory Coast, and Cameroon with 4.3 billion USD annually income (Banana Link, 2020).Tanzania and Uganda are currently one of the highest banana producers in East Africa also they previously experienced low production reasoned farmworkers' low knowledge towards banana cultivation and after improving farmworkers' knowledge it enhanced banana production up to 64% from 10 tons per hectare per year to 19 tons per hectare per year with an extra 8.15M dollar gained per year (Christine Alokit, 2020).This is a good example of how improving farmworkers' knowledge in banana cultivation is interlinked and improves banana production also multifactorial can cause lower yield, but inadequate knowledge can exacerbate the situation (Christine Alokit, 2020) (Folke, 2004).
Farm workers' knowledge level of banana cultivation is vital for successful banana cultivation due to numerous reasons.Farmworkers' deep understanding of various knowledge aspects such as planting techniques, irrigation, fertilization, pest, and disease management, and harvesting practices can contribute to effective farm management with outstanding production and it might ensure optimal plant growth and yield (Collett, et al 2009).Moreover, farmworkers that have up-to-date knowledge can identify early signs of pest infestations or diseases, take preventive measures, and implement appropriate control strategies that minimize crop losses and maintain healthy banana plants.
Knowledgeable farmworkers can also easily analyze soil conditions, assess nutrient deficiencies, and apply fertilizers at the right time in the appropriate quantities.They might also deeply understand soil management practices and be aware of the appropriate stage of maturity for harvesting bananas (Collett, et al 2009).
Somalia's economy depends on agriculture and the country was the largest banana producer and exporter in Africa in early 1990 with 188,500 tons of production from 6,800 hectares of cultivated land with 96 million US dollars in annual income, but unfortunately both production and export collapsed due to the civil war (Abdullahi, et al, 2018).The Somalie's 60% of cultivated land size is in the lower Shabelle region, particularly Janaale and Afgooye districts with numerous large-scale banana farms ranging from 40 to 500 hectares due to its rich and fertile region suited for agricultural production and bisected by the Shabelle river which gives enough irrigation.Furthermore, banana is a vital and popular fruit, sliced banana is often eaten with every meal and some people use it as fresh juice (Abdullahi, et al, 2018).
Farmworkers' demographic characteristics, access and frequency of training participation can become major determinants of cultivation knowledge (Akter, 2017).Banana cultivation is a commercially great and profitable idea in Somalia and can increase the national economy compared to all other crops.Somalia's banana production decreased due to improper use of good agricultural practices, post-harvesting constraints and poor use of inputs such as pest management and fertilizers caused by many challenges including farmworkers' insufficient knowledge and skills in banana cultivation activities.The government and its international partners tried to recover the banana sector IOP Publishing doi:10.1088/1755-1315/1291/1/0120063 by implementing new experiences, technologies, and cultivating cavendish and Gran Nain banana varieties in more than 6,000 hectares of banana in the lower Shabelle particularly Afgooye and Janaale districts, but all these efforts become worthless and production did not improved and the banana sector is not going to reach its power of making assure employment establishment, exporting revenue, and food security stability as before (Jotham Ouko, 2016).
Researchers hypothesized that improving farmworkers' knowledge of banana cultivation can become a greater step to recover the country's banana production so to improve it is mandatory to identify the current knowledge level of banana farm workers on banana cultivation and contributing factors influencing farm workers' knowledge of banana cultivation in the Lower Shabelle region of Somalia.Therefore, the objective of the study is to assess the knowledge level of farm workers on banana cultivation and identify factors associated with farm workers' knowledge of banana cultivation in the Lower Shabelle region of Somalia.

Study design and area
A farm-based cross-sectional study was implemented in the Lower Shabelle region of Somalia.This study targeted six large-scale banana farms in the Afgooye and Janaale districts of the Lower Shabelle region of Somalia.The Lower Shabelle region consists of eleven districts.This study selection is based on the number of hectares they cultivate; any farm with 50 hectares or more was recognized as a large-scale banana farm (Olivares BO, 2020).(Olivares BO, 2022).These two districts were the most common area of banana cultivation in Somalia due to their rich and fertile region suited for agricultural production, and it is bisected by the Shabelle River, which gives enough irrigation water to the agrarians along the riverbank (Abdullahi, 2018).This covers around 67,000 hectares with 30 to 40 thousand hectares of potentially irrigable land, which used to be responsible for over 90% of the banana production in the Lower Shebelle Region and over 50% of all Somalia bananas (Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit) (FSNAU, 2013).The Shabelle River basin originates from the Bale Mountains in the eastern Ethiopian highlands and drains over about 297,000 km2, of which 108,300 km2 lies in Somalia.Arid to semi-arid conditions mainly characterize the climate in Lower Shabelle.The area receives between 500 and 800 mm of rainfall annually, and annual temperatures range from 26°C to 28°C (McKilligan, H. (2003).

Study population, inclusion, and exclusion criteria
The study population was banana farmworkers that conduct on-farm cultivation activities in the selected top six large-scale banana farms in the Lower Shabelle region of Somalia.The six large-scale banana farms' overall size is 1,494 hectares, and every 10 hectares has 12 farmworkers, a total of 1,793 banana farm workers.

Sample size and sampling procedure
The study population was 1,793 banana farmworkers in the six selected large-scale farms.The Yamane formula was used to calculate the sample size (Wonde, 2022).Where N is the actual population, and e=margin of error, 0.05.
The reason this study decided to use the Yamane formula is a method determining the appropriate sample size for a population by applying a cross-sectional study using both stratified and simple random sampling techniques which this study used.In addition, it allows for the calculation of sample size based on specific population parameters which are population size, margin of error, and confidence level and formula is straightforward, and the inputs are clearly defined.It accounts for both finite population correction and design effect, which is important in this study.n =N/1+N*(e 2 ).n = 1793/1+1793 (0.05) 2 n=400 The total sample size in this study is 400 respondents.The sample was classified into subgroups and each farm was recognized as one group using a stratified probability sampling technique to ensure each selected large-scale banana farm was properly represented and avoid study undercover bias (Rahman, M. et all 2022).From the above Yamane formula calculation, the total sample size study requires 400 respondents out of the 1793 study population which means this study selected every four represents one of them using a simple random sampling technique.400 represents 1793 total study population according to the above Yamane formula.To randomly select representatives inside each farm a simple random sampling technique was used (Table 1).

Study variables and outcome measurements
A well-structured validated questionnaire was developed from a literature review (Mondal et al.,2014;Nayakarathna,2013;Yuantari, 2015) and then discussed with three agricultural experts.The questionnaire consisted of socio-demographic characteristics, access to participation in training, everparticipation in training, banana farming experience, and thirty true or false simple-dichotomy banana cultivation knowledge statements (Mondal et al.,2014;Nayakarathna,2013;Yuantari, 2015).
The knowledge section was thirty (30) true or false simple-dichotomy statements based on six banana cultivation activities and each activity consist of 5 true or false simple dichotomy statements including soil preparation, planting, irrigation, fertilizing, pest control, and harvesting practice.
The study's independent variables were farmworkers' socio-demographic characteristics (Age, gender, education, family members engaged in banana farming, monthly income from banana farm, banana farming experience, and total landholding size) and access to participate training, receiving training information, source, and frequency of information, ever participated training, distance to the training center, other sources of income apart from the banana farm).

Questionnaire validity and reliability
The index of item objective congruence (IOC) method was used for content validity of the questions evaluated by three agricultural experts by giving each item in the questionnaire either 1 (clearly measuring), -1 (clearly not measuring), or 0 (the content area is unclear).IOC=ΣR/N R=score for each expert per item N=Number of experts The question scored below 0.5 was removed, the question scored between 0.5 to 0.7 was revised according to the expert comment and then included in the questionnaire, and the question above 0.7 was included in the questionnaire without revision (Turner RC, 2003).Subsequently, 30 respondents were pre-tested before actual data collection to ensure reliability and respondents' understanding of the questionnaire and Cronbach's alpha value of 0.847 were achieved which is considered acceptable.

Data collection techniques
Primary data was collected by conducting face-to-face interviews with each participating farmworker in a confidential privet room for approximately 15-20 minutes each following the study questionnaire.The researcher explains the study, and its objectives to each farm worker, and requests to participate.Agreed participants signed a consent form or fingerprint for illiterate respondents.The researcher ensured the data confidentiality and was promised not to release the data for any other purpose apart from the purpose stated.

Data analysis
The collected data was cleaned and entered on the spreadsheet then imported into the SPSS version 20 (SPSS, Chicago, IL) for analysis.All categorical characteristics were analysed in descriptive statistics and presented frequency with percentage.The continuous characteristics were also analysed in descriptive statistics and presented mean with maximum, minimum, and standard deviation (SD).
The knowledge statements consist of thirty (30) true or false statements.To study the farm workers' current banana cultivation knowledge level one score gave a correct response and zero scores for an incorrect response to each statement.The maximum expected knowledge score was 30 and 0 was the minimum.All knowledge statements were computed and categorized as low knowledge if the score was (≤60%) (0-18 scores), moderate level (61-80%) (19-23 scores), and high level (≥ 81%) (24-30 scores) according to bloom's cut-of-point classification (Bloom BS, 1956, Bloom, B. S. 1968;Yu et al. l 2022).Consequently, to find the weakest and strongest cultivation area each cultivation part that contains 5 statements is also computed separately and then categorize into Low-level (≤ 60%), Moderate level (61-80%), and High-level (≥ 81%) according to Bloom's cut-off point classification.
To investigate a possible association between the level of knowledge of banana cultivation and socio-demographic characteristics and access to information, training or workshops a Chi-square test (χ2) with cross-tabulation used at a p-value <0.05 was considered statistical significance.
Multiple linear regression was used to find a possible correlation between farm workers' knowledge of banana cultivation and socio-demographic characteristics (age, gender and education), family members engaging in the banana farm, banana farming experience, access to training and workshop information, previous training participation and access to participation, total land holding size (hectare), other sources of income apart from the banana farm, and distance to the training center at a p-value of <0.05, <0.10, and <0.01.Multiple linear regression was used due to having one continuous dependent variable (knowledge score 0 to 30 score) and more combinations of continuous and categorical independent variables to find their association with the outcome variables.All independent variables that used multiple linear regression were continuous variables except gender, training developed near the area, receiving training information, access to participate in training, everparticipated training, and other sources of income apart from the banana farm which are binary variables.Variables that have negative coefficients were recognized that they negatively related to the outcome while positive coefficients were recognized to have positively related to the outcome.
To avoid the standard error in the regression model and ensure multicollinearity does not exist the strength of the correlation and influence between the independent variables, variance inflation factor analysis is calculated using VIF formula (Akinwande, et all 2015).A variance inflation factor analysis (VIF) value of less than 10 is recognized as an acceptable multicollinearity level and included in the model while VIF values greater than 10 are recognized as an unacceptable multicollinearity level and excluded from the mode.VIF=1/1-R 2 VIF=variance inflation factor analysis.R= Coefficient number.

Level of knowledge of banana cultivation
This study reported that 194 (48.5%) farm workers have low knowledge of banana cultivation, 127 (31.8%) have moderate knowledge, and only 79 (19.8%) have good knowledge.Mean knowledge was 18.54(SD=6.51)out of 30 maximum expected scores (Table 2).Almost 48.5% of the banana farm workers had a low level of knowledge of banana cultivation which might cause a lack of optimizing the crop production by not taking appropriate decisions on cultivation techniques such as soil preparation, irrigation, fertilizing, pesticide application and harvesting techniques and this may consequence low production.In addition, farmworkers' inadequate knowledge could lead to low farming practices with diminish sustainable agriculture such as poor water conservation, excessive chemical use, and maximizing environmental impacts that may lead to farm reduction of productivity over long periods.
Moreover, low-knowledge farmworkers are less likely to try new cultivation techniques to enhance their yield and they might not develop innovative solutions to the field problems they encountered.A similar study with the same study method conducted in Bangladesh reported 68% of banana farm workers to have a medium level of knowledge toward banana cultivation and testified that banana production requires sufficient knowledge that can improve farm management practices, advance the adoption of modern technology, and improve agriculture and horticultural practices.Moreover, developing new practices by changing modern agricultural practices requires sufficient knowledge (Prodhan, et al 2017).A similar Canadian study reported that farmworkers' little knowledge is a risk factor for farm production and agricultural sustainability (Mauro, et al 2008).Moreover, one study supported and recognized farmworkers' knowledge as a vital tool that enhances or diminishes the amount of yield and brings sustainable innovation in agriculture (Stuiver, et al 2004).This study reported that 42.8% of the farm workers have a low level of knowledge of pesticide management which is the weakest cultivation knowledge area while 50.0% of them had good knowledge of harvesting practices which is the strongest area (Figure 1).
Farmworkers' low knowledge of pest management can cause poor pesticide practices to lead to yield reduction, environmental and health impacts, soil fertility reduction, pests' resistance, and over expenses with income loss.In addition, farmworkers in the study area used different types of pesticides with different formulations and is highly possible to mix different chemicals and then apply plants which might lead to banana fruit contamination.A study reported after harvest the walls of the bags still contain pesticide residues with concentrations around 0.2-0.5 g/kg, as was found for Chlorpyrifos (Peñuela, 2022) or percentages of pesticides around 3-6% (Moscoso and Peña, 2020), which increases the probability of contamination.Moreover, farmworkers with low knowledge of pesticide management might spray pesticides against the wind direction, which can cause pesticide loss and health impact (Heredia CL, 2023).
Numerous studies supported this (Mekonnen, et all 2002, Negatu, et all 2016, Sharafi, et all 2018).On the other hand, a similar study supported and reported farmworkers' strong harvesting knowledge might reduce post-harvesting loss and they might focus on the sanitation of the fruit after harvest, which is critically important and reduce spoilage losses by 50% or more (Feliziani, et al 2016).
Figure 1 Level of knowledge in each banana cultivation activity

Socio-demographic characteristics
A total of 400 farm workers participated in this study most of the farm workers 321 (80.2%) were male with 31.57mean age (SD=8.53)and many of them 152(38.0%)had a primary level of education, 277(69.3%) of them had a family member between 1 to 4 that engaged in banana farming and most of them 190 (47.5%) have a monthly income between 50-140 USD (Table 3).
Men aged between 29 to 39 are dominant for banana cultivation in this study, and it could be explained banana farming has been seen as a male-dominated profession and mostly men were primary landowners while women conduct domestic work such as caring for children and maintaining the household which may limit their ability to participate in banana cultivation.Middle-aged men's dominance and a high number of family members engaged in the farm might become vital because banana farming is physically demanding work and require significant manual labor particularly, Somalia where advanced technology and agricultural machines are deficient due to numerous reasons including financial hardship and lack of availability of well-adapted machines for the local production.In addition, land security poses an additional challenge to mechanization because many farms lack land tenure or long-term land use rights.Therefore, farmers tend not to invest heavily in their farms or in preventative measures against degradation with little extension support and low knowledge to operate mechanized equipment and it can lead to misuse and mismanagement of machinery, especially of more sophisticated items (Christine Alokit, 2020) (Folke, 2004) (Akter, 2017) (Lwandasa, et al, 2014).

Good knowledge Moderate knowledge Low knowledge
Subsequently, only 20% of the study participants are old age which might become a risk because older farmworkers often have decades of work experience, and they share valuable lessons with the young farmworkers from their experiences.A similar study reported that farmworkers' age, family size, and education as determinants of knowledge cultivation (Akter, 2017).
On the other hand, a Ugandan study concluded different findings and reported that farmworkers' sex, age, level of education, or marital status were not associated with knowledge (Lwandasa, et al, 2014).
Farm workers' mean monthly income is 167.48USD in this study which refers to low income and farmworkers gaining inadequate income might have a significant impact on their ability to operate and maintain their farms and it might cause farm workers to shift to the other business sector which ultimately leads to low banana production, reduced profitability, making it difficult for farmworkers to sustain their businesses over the long term.A similar study showed income as a significant determinant of knowledge cultivation (Akter, 2017).However, this finding emphasizes not only needed involving more women and young age on the farm, but the industry's diversity and dynamic can become vital in proper farm management and younger and older farmworkers' collaboration can lead to sustainable agriculture.Moreover, women playing farm leadership roles can also contribute to sustainable farm practices (Table 3).

Workshop and training-related characteristics
Most of the farmworkers in this study 178 (44.5%) had 1 to 5 years of banana farming experience, and most of them 170 (42.5%) had land sizes between 30-130 hectares.Only 156 (39.0%) have other sources of income apart from banana cultivation and 53 (13.3%) have other personal farms with 107.84USD mean income.Consequently, only 191(47.8%)farmworkers reported that agricultural training is developed in their area and 62(15.5%) of them said local government is responsible for that development.Moreover, 241(60.3%)reported that they received training information, 47 (11.8%) of them reported the internet was the source of the information and most of them (24.5%) received information every six months.In addition, 263 (65.7%) have access to participate in training and 216 (54.0%) participated in training and 30.5% of them participated in training annually.On the other hand, the most common reason not to participate in training was the lack of nearby training places and most farmworkers 186 (46.5%) home and training places distanced between 3-12km (Table 3).
In Somalia, continuing traditional and outdated farming practices is quite common and farmworkers usually do not prefer modern farming techniques, which can cause less efficiency with less sustainability.Furthermore, farmworkers that do not have training access might have inadequate knowledge of the market trend and consumer demand and it might produce banana verities that are not in high demand leading to less profitability.A similar East African study supported and reported farmworkers' lack of knowledge and weak information access lead to low productivity and reasoned that they produce banana verities that are not in high demand since cavendish verity is common in Africa (Pillay, et al 2001).
In addition, Somalia was one of the largest African banana exports but today the production is not fulfilling even the local market demand.Market demand awareness is so important today due to the globalized market and farmworkers' market changes awareness with quick adaptation to the new demands is highly required in the study setting.Enhancing farmworkers' access to training can improve farmworkers' knowledge and skills, enhance productivity and crop quality, and ultimately can become a buffer for inadequate production.A similar study supported and reported banana farmworkers requires additional training compared to other crops that might enhance their adoption of new cultivation techniques (Yang, et al 2021).
Furthermore, over half of the farm workers have other sources of income which can provide financial stability and reduce the dependence on banana farming alone and it participates in risk management since banana farming is a highly vulnerable sector, particularly in Somalia where government support is deficient, and farm workers are always at risk in unpredictable weather conditions, pests, and price fluctuations since the banana is not a reserved crop.A similar study conducted in the same study area supported (Abdullahi, et al, 2018).

Association between knowledge level and socio-demographic and access to training
Table 3 shows the finding from the chi-square test showed that banana farm workers' knowledge has significantly associated with farmworkers' age (p-value 0.004), education (p-value 0.000), banana farming experience (p-value 0.000), frequency of receiving information (p-value 0.001), their workshop or training participation (p-value 0.000), frequency of training participation (p-value 0.000), distance to training canter (p-value 0.000), and size of the land they cultivated (p-value 0.000).
In the study area farm owners often prefer youth physical strength for numerous reasons.Banana plants are quite heavy and require good physical condition, so physical strength workers are more need to lift and move.In addition, banana cultivation activities often involve a lot of manual labor, particularly during stage harvesting.Moreover, banana farming often requires a hot humid environment, so farm workers believe youth are more tolerant to these conditions and maintain their physical strength and energy levels throughout the day.Farm owners and managers usually do not consider other important skills and experiences that they needed in banana farming, and they only prioritize physical strength to ensure that workers carry out the necessary tasks.Caribbean study supported and recommended prioritizing education and experience more than physical condition (Grossman, et all 1998).
In addition, this study reported the frequency of receiving information, training participation, and distance to the training place and cultivated land size are significantly associated with knowledge of banana cultivation.This could be a reason because most farmworkers did not frequently receive training and it is information due to the lack of government sufficient support.Most of them only received training annually with fewer opportunities to learn new skills, acquire knowledge, and adopt new cultivation practices which causes a lack of staying up to date in the latest cultivation developments and adapting to changing conditions.In addition, high numbers of the farmer live in remote rural areas that are far from the training venue and they might have barriers to accessing training and information with limited opportunities to attend training sessions, making it more difficult for them to acquire new knowledge and skills.Furthermore, travelling costs and time to the training also change issues in the study.A similar study supported and reported training enhances farmworkers' awareness, abilities, and skills and guides them to adopt, and management for new technologies and agricultural innovation (lan Wallace and Essa Nilsson, 1997).One study concluded frequency of receiving information and training participation has a significant impact on farmworkers' knowledge and can lead to farmworkers' deep understanding of various knowledge aspects (Collett, et al 2009).Moreover, it can cause farmworkers to gain up-to-date knowledge to identify early signs of pest infestations or diseases, take preventive measures, and implement appropriate control strategies that minimize crop losses and maintain healthy banana plants.Knowledgeable farmworkers can also easily analyze soil conditions, assess nutrient deficiencies, and apply fertilizers at the right time in the appropriate quantities.They might also deeply understand soil management practices and be aware of the appropriate stage of maturity for harvesting bananas (Collett, et al 2009).

Factors Associated with Farmworkers' Level of Knowledge
The finding from multiple linear regression indicates that the coefficient of farmworkers' age, education, training participation, and banana farming experience is significantly associated with their knowledge of banana cultivation activities at p-value <0.05 while the total land size they cultivate is significantly associated with their knowledge on banana cultivation activities at p-value <0.10.In addition, the Coefficient of farmworkers' age and training participation is negatively related to the banana cultivation knowledge while all others are positively related to the outcome (Table 4).
The negative association between farmworkers' age and banana cultivation knowledge could be explained by almost half of the study participants being aged between 29 to 39 and only 20% of the farmworkers are old age due to the farm owners' and managers' preference for the young age because banana farming is physically demanding work and requires significant manual labor particularly, in Sub Saharan Africa where innovative technology and agricultural machines are deficient.In addition, younger generations are more likely to be familiar with technology and are more comfortable to use so they might gain more agricultural knowledge than older.Consequently, younger farmworkers might have access to information about farming practices through the internet and social media since the highest source of the information this study reported is the Internet.Furthermore, the security and development of the study area for the last 10 years is gradually improved, and a high number of new generations are graduated from the university, particularly agriculture sector which can provide them with the latest knowledge and skills in the field compared to the older generation that might not have that opportunity due to the nations' decades of conflict.A similar East African study reported a low level of knowledge can associate with older farmworkers and reasoned a lack of technological and sustainable agriculture adoption, particularly in rural areas (Kassie, et all 2013).Another study showed that respondents' ages were positively associated with increased levels of knowledge (Hassan, et al 2021).Akter, et al reported that farmworkers' age is one of the determinants of banana cultivation.One more study concluded that farmworkers' age is not associated with knowledge (Lwandasa, et al, 2014).
One of the remarkable finds was farmworkers' total land holding size positive and significantly associated with banana cultivation knowledge at p-value <0.10.This might explain governmental agricultural extension and training programs in the study area usually focus on large-size farms because they believe that they have the resources to produce large among of yields to fulfil the market demand.Due to that reason, farmer workers in large farms might gain more knowledge than others.On the other hand, farmworkers' workshop/training participation is negatively associated with their knowledge in the study area which is an unexpected finding and might explain training sections mostly developed in the study area annually with a lack of advanced training materials.Consequently, only 184 farmworkers reported that they ever participated in training out of 400 study participants and over 60% of them reported that they only get training annually with a lack of advanced training materials and mentors that might show training is not effective and is not significantly contributing to the knowledge.This study reported that farmworkers' education and experience are positive and significantly associated with banana cultivation knowledge.In general, is a well-now scenario that educated and experienced farmworkers can have more knowledge about cultivation practices, and they might easily adopt a new technology and easily understand soil and crop conditions.In addition, they might have more access to training because they might understand foreign languages such as English since INGO, s in the study area is printed educational posters and videos in the English language mostly.Furthermore, they might have more access to participate in online training due to their advanced formal education.Farm workers practising in the agricultural sector for a long period can have a greater knowledge of crop management and environmental aspects.Due to decades of experience, farmworkers can extremely understand national banana production changes such as climate and weather changes, water and droughts, pests, and can easily adapt and achieve optimal crop yields by developing risk management strategies including crop diversification and intercropping that might gain extra income.A similar study reported that education and experience as determinants of banana cultivation (Akter, 2017).On the other hand, a Ugandan study concluded different findings and reported level of education was not significantly associated with knowledge (Lwandasa, et al, 2014).Another study supported my finding (Van Thanh, N., & Yapwattanaphun, C. (2015).Caribbean study supported and recommended prioritizing education and experience more than physical condition (Grossman, et all 1998).Variance inflation factor analysis (VIF) was used to exclude multicollinearity-influenced variables into the model using the VIF formula; VIF=1/1-R 2 formula (Akinwande, et al 2015).R= Coefficient number.A VIF value of ≤10 is acceptable and included in the model as indicated in Table 5.

Conclusion
Almost 48.5% of the banana farm workers have a low level of knowledge of banana cultivation.To enhance farmworkers' cultivation knowledge, agricultural extension and education programs must enhance pesticide management relating knowledge by specifically focusing on older and lowexperience farmworkers, rural farmworkers that are far away from training centres, and those who do not have large land sizes.
In addition, improving training quality by providing advanced training materials and mentors, increasing training frequency, and improving training effectiveness is highly recommended.Finally, preferring education and experience instead of physical power is highly suggested.

Table 2 .
Overall Level of Knowledge of banana cultivation

Table 3
Association between farmworkers' level of knowledge and socio-demographic and access to information and knowledge

Table 4
Factors Associated with Farmworkers' Knowledge in Multiple linear regression

Table 5 .
Variance inflation factor (VIF) analysis for avoiding multicollinearity