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The millennium development goals (MDGs) emerged from the Millennium Declaration adopted by all Member States of the United Nations. The MDGs are international objectives on poverty reduction adopted by the world community in 2000. This paper examines provision of agricultural information to rural dwellers/farmers in meeting the MDG 1: eradicating poverty and hunger in the world.

The paper is drawn from the authors' interaction /interviews with a group of farmers in Abeokuta, Ogun State.

Methods of disseminating information to farmers identified include the use of electronic and print media, village square meetings, church and mosques as well as market places.

Study recommends the support of pro‐poor policies by the developed countries as this will allow people living in the developing world to break out of the poverty, hunger and malnutrition trap in which they find themselves.

Agricultural information required by farmers, among others, includes pest and disease control and management, services available from government/private organizations and information on high yielding varieties of crops and animals.

This study aims to examine the accessibility and use of web‐based electronic databases on the Health InterNetwork Access to Research Initiative (HINARI) portal by physicians in the Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Aro – a psychiatry health institution in Nigeria.

Collection of data was through the use of a three‐part questionnaire developed by the researcher. A total of 28 copies of the questionnaire were distributed to the respondents out of which 20, representing 67 per cent response rate, were completed, returned and used for the study.

The result revealed that physicians working in a psychiatry health institution have access to and use the HINARI database. The study further revealed that the majority (60 per cent) of the physicians access the portal once every two weeks from the internet cafés in and around the institution. PubMed is the most widely used database in the HINARI portal. Information retrieved is used mostly for clinical decision making. However, respondents are faced with inadequate time for research because of their busy schedule, poor internet access and inadequate information retrieval skills.

The study recommends the development of a library portal/gateway and the setting up of links between the resources to which they subscribe as well as training and retraining of physicians in the use of the HINARI portal so as to justify the huge amount of effort and money spent by the World Health Organization (WHO) to make the resources freely available to scientists in developing countries.

This study has collection development and practical implications for the providers of the databases, such as WHO through the various publishers, as well as librarians in the various institutions. The study recommends training or retraining of physicians in the use of the HINARI portal as well as improvement in information technology and communication infrastructure and extension of internet services to offices of physicians at the hospital.