MAKING TECHNOLOGIES WORK IN RURAL COMMUNITIES: THE CASE OF FLATBED DRYER APPROPRIATION IN STO. DOMINGO, NUEVA ECIJA, PHILIPPINES

Abstract

This paper aimed to explain how rice farmers in Sto. Domingo, Nueva Ecija, Philippines managed to properly appropriate flatbed dryers. It also sought to describe the modes of appropriation offlatbed dryers: adoption, adaptation, and peer/group learning. Data were gathered through a survey among 131 rice farmers and key informant interviews. Findings revealed that the rice farmers experimented and modified the features of flatbed dryers to better adapt the technology to their needs. The rice farmers have encountered problems in using the technology but have managed to employ adaptation strategies to address these problems which resulted to peer/group learning among them.