Social media use by rural communities in Namibia: A case study of the Anamulenge constituency in the Omusati region
This study sought to determine the level of social media use among the residents of Anamulenge Constituency in the Omusati Region using a mixed method involving qualitative (in-depth interview) and quantitative (survey) designs. The study employed multi-stage cluster sampling by adopting systematic and random sampling to choose settlements, houses and finally participants who use social media for the survey component while interviewees were purposely chosen using the same criterion. A survey questionnaire and interview guide constituted the research instruments. The findings of the study were that Facebook is the most utilised social media platform by the Anamulenge community members, followed by TikTok which speaks to these platforms user-friendliness, not only to the community members but to public officials who wish to communicate messages to the community; despite these social media's popularity, a weakness was that it was being used for misinformation and disinformation. However, their advantage is that it allows for timely communication among residents of Anamulenge Constituency. Therefore, it is recommended that the government enforces its social media use policy and use social media for government information sharing in Anamulenge Constituency given its widespread adoption. It is also critical to open up access to community members to make for interactivity and engagement as well as aid the task of development. In this connection it is recommended that more network towers be erected for stronger connectivity for individuals to access the internet without difficulties
Facebook, Connectivity, Engagement, User-friendliness, Interactivity, Namibia, University of Namibia
Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations