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1.
Abstract

Purpose: Formal agricultural research has generated vast amount of knowledge and fundamental insights on land management, but their low adoption has been attributed to the use of public extension approach. This research aims to address whether and how full participation of farmers through the concept of Rural Resource Centre (RRC) provides new insights for the development of alternative and farmers-based extension methods.

Design/Methodology/Approach: Using the Concept of RRC, this research assesses the role of farmers in on-farm demonstrations and scaling-up of land management practices, and investigates effective ways to enhance beneficial interactions between researchers, extension workers and farmers in view of improving adoption.

Findings: The findings suggest that farmers can effectively participate in demonstrations and scaling-up of agricultural practices. This participation is enhanced by judicious incentives such as higher crop yields that motivate farmers and influence adoption. The current success of the approach stems from the fact that farmers, extension workers and researchers jointly implement the activities and their different aims were achieved simultaneously: scientific results for researchers, better agricultural practices for extension workers, and economic success and free choice for farmers.

Practical implications: This research concludes that farmers have the capacities to play an innermost role in demonstrations and scaling-up of agricultural practices. However, there is a need to build and strengthen their capacities to facilitate their participation and contribution.

Originality/Value: The article demonstrates the value of the preponderant role of farmers in on-farm demonstrations and scaling-up practices by exhibiting the beneficial interactions between researchers, extension workers and farmers.  相似文献   

2.
Abstract

Purpose: This case study deals with the implementation methodology, innovations and lessons of the ICT initiative in providing agricultural extension services to the rural tribal farming community of North-East India.

Methodology: This study documents the ICT project implementation challenges, impact among farmers and briefly indicates lessons of the e-agriculture project.

Findings: The e-agriculture prototype demonstrated that the Rs. 2,400 (USD 53) cost of the extension services to provide farm advisory services was saved per farmer per year, expenditure was reduced 3.6 times in comparison with the conventional extension system. Sixteenfold less time was required by the farmers for availing the services and threefold less time was required to deliver the services to the farmers compared with the conventional extension system. However, this article argues that in less developed areas, information through ICTs alone may not create expected development. Along with appropriate agricultural information and knowledge, field demonstrations and forward (farm machinery, manure, seeds) and backward linkages (post-harvest technology and market) need to be facilitated with appropriate public–private partnership between knowledge and other rural advisory service providers for agricultural development.

Practical implications: This article lists a number of practical lessons which will be useful for the successful planning and implementation of e-agriculture projects in developing countries.

Original value: This article is a first case study on ICTs for agricultural extension initiatives among the tribal farmers who dominate the less developed North-East India.  相似文献   

3.
Abstract

Changes in education and agriculture in South Africa indicate that agricultural extension practitioners should facilitate continuous learning among farmers. This requires that extension practitioners acquire new skills. To provide these skills requires a critical examination of agricultural extension curricula in the light of South Africa's educational, agricultural and rural development policies with a view to rewriting extension curricula. An initial theoretical examination of extension education in the light of South African education policy yields seven learning outcome indicators encapsulating theory and practice in: 1) theory and practice in problem solving; 2) collect, analyse, organize and critically evaluate information relevant to his extension responsibilities; 3) theory and practice in Participatory Technology Development and innovation; 4) theory and practice in systems (systems thinking), including beyond farm systems; 5) theory and practice in learning facilitation; 6) theory and practice in participatory ‘curriculum’ (extension outcomes, content and process) development; and 7) theory and practice in learning and learning styles. Tertiary institutions and other stakeholders can use these indicators to examine and continuously adjust curricula to ensure extension practitioners are equipped to deliver relevant support to farmers as the agricultural landscape changes.  相似文献   

4.
Books Received     
Abstract

This paper analyses the organizational, financial and technological incentives that service organizations used to motivate farmers to finance agricultural research and extension in Benin. Understanding the foundations and implications of these motivation systems is important for improving farmer financial participation in agricultural research and extension.

We studied three cases of farmer financial participation in the field of agricultural research and extension in Benin. We conducted semi-structured interviews with leaders of service organizations and farmers’ associations, local authorities and individual farmers. Our interviews focused on service delivery systems, mechanisms of farmers’ financial contribution, the functioning of farmers’ associations, and the appropriateness of services provided. We performed thematic and comparative analyses at the interfaces between (1) service providers and partner–farmer associations, (2) service providers and delivered services, and (3) farmers/farmers’ associations and services.

Incentives for farmer financial participation are the increasing participation strategy, the fulfillment of farmers’ needs and the local leadership valorization. The selection and combination of their variants determine the motivating capacity and orientation of service organizations. Conversely to the increasing participation strategy, an effective fulfillment of farmers’ needs and local leadership valorization can lead to sustainable motivation. As the fulfillment of farmers’ needs determines importantly the effectiveness and sustainability of farmers’ motivation, the strategies of farmer financial participation are likely to fail if there are no successful agricultural technological incentives.

In the current context of privatization of agricultural services in developing countries, this analytical framework is of interest for policy makers and development workers for identifying conditions of farmer financial participation and designing effective motivation strategies.  相似文献   

5.
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6.
Abstract

In many countries agriculture is in a process of rapid change,

  • - it has to meet a growing demand for food in a sustainable way,

  • - the international competition is increasing,

  • - the increase in labour productivity is decreasing the employment opportunities in agriculture,

  • - agricultural research is offering many new opportunities to increase productivity,

  • - government price support for agricultural products in industrial countries is decreasing.

These changes have many implications for agricultural extension, such as:

  • - the knowledge and capabilities of farmers has become a major factor in their ability to compete in national and international markets,

  • - advice is not only needed on the adoption of new technologies, but also on many other decisions farmers have to make, such as the choice of their farming system and the decision whether or not to earn an income from outside agriculture,

  • - this requires a change in extension methods and in the information sources extension agents use,

  • - agricultural development demands painful changes in the way of farming and of living for many farm families. It is a challenge for extension agencies to help farm families to realise this,

  • - a major task for leaders of extension organisations is to manage a process of change in agricultural extension. Often the role extension has to play in agricultural development can not be performed by one extension organisation, but only by a pluralistic extension system.

Agricultural extension is often expected to contribute to a reduction of poverty among farmers and farm labourers. One has to think seriously how one can realise this objective.  相似文献   

7.
Abstract

This study was designed to investigate changes in farming and to look at how farmers adapt to diverse changes in and around their farms in the province of Esfahan, Iran. It is part of a larger project aimed at developing a job competency profile for agricultural extension instructors (AEIs). One hundred and two farmers who had previously followed extension courses in the province of Esfahan were interviewed. The findings demonstrate that a large number of farmers in the target group who are older, married, have low education levels, are smallholders and lack adequate job diversity on their farms. The study revealed that these farmers have experienced sluggish internal and external agricultural change, and they are generally more positive about internal changes than external ones. Respondents designated ‘extension courses’, ‘individual farm visits by official extension agents’ and ‘trial and error’, respectively as their three main learning strategies (LS) to help them adapt to the various changes. The results also indicate that older and more poorly educated farmers have more problems in adopting different LS.  相似文献   

8.
Purpose: To explore why substantial agricultural information gaps persist in African smallholder farming communities and how to reduce them.

Design/methodology/approach: Using conservation agriculture (CA) as a case study, we deeply explore with 29 smallholder farmers why they are yet to obtain sufficient information to enable practice evaluation.

Findings: Respondents asserted that their lack of information on CA was not reflective of a lack of interest in obtaining it, but of the unavailability and inaccessibility of learning opportunities. A deeper analysis revealed an underlying passive approach to seeking information and culture of financial expectancy.

Practical implications: If extension systems are to catalyse broader sustainable intensification, we find the need for emphasis on (1) more inclusive extension mechanisms; (2) education of farmers about demand-driven extension; and (3) revision of direct input provision to lead farmers.

Theoretical implications: While not contesting the value of farmer-to-farmer (F2F) extension systems for those socially connected to lead farmers, we find four research questions for further exploration regarding the practical application of F2F mechanisms that may impede their broader effectiveness, namely (1) Is extension coverage sufficient? (2) Do farmers understand demand-driven extension systems? (3) Do current incentive structures complicate farmer information seeking behaviour? and (4) Do current mechanisms encourage social stratification?

Originality/Value: To date, adoption studies have largely utilised quantitative, econometric lenses that generally assume farmers are sufficiently aware of the technologies in question. Due to our in-depth qualitative analysis, we provide novel insights into how to close informational gaps that hamper efforts to increase the food and livelihood security of African smallholder farmers.  相似文献   

9.
Abstract

The aim of this study was to understand the role that agricultural consultants in New Zealand were undertaking in the Research, Development and Extension (RD&E) system—and in particular in relation to environmental extension. New Zealand does not have a public extension service and hence there is a strong reliance on consultants and regional councils for environmental management information and advice. As they are independent of the formal RD&E system there is no guarantee that RD&E outcomes are reaching farmers, nor that effective environmental extension is occurring. The study used a combination of case studies, phone interviews with informed persons and a national web survey to explore the role of the consultant. The study found that agricultural consultants are playing an important role in working with farmers to improve agricultural production. There are, however, indications that gaps have developed over time between agricultural consultants and the agricultural research sector which limit the effectiveness of the RD&E system. Agricultural consultants are playing a minimal role in proactive environmental extension because insufficient market forces are driving this role. The paper suggests that a national database of agricultural consultants could improve the flow of tailored information between research and agricultural consultants and also suggests mechanisms where consultants could be better integrated into the RD&E system and provide feedback to research programs. Market failure in the area of environmental extension could be addressed by publicly funded incentive programs.  相似文献   

10.
Abstract

Promoting rural development in Africa involves learning to clap with two hands, that is to say, creating effective interaction between local knowledge and development initiatives, on the one hand, and the knowledge and initiatives of formal agricultural research and extension, on the other. Farmer innovators ‐men and women farmers who take their own initiative to change local agriculture ‐ are key allies in rural development, as shown by the experience of the ISWC programme in Africa. Focusing on Ethiopia and Tanzania, the authors describe how formal research and extension services are made aware of farmers’ innovative work and are encouraged to document the results, promote their spread, and support further development efforts by farmer innovators. A modified Participatory Technology Development (PTD) approach is thus emerging, which starts not with problem analysis but rather by linking up with local problem‐solving initiatives. While the learning process on this approach continues, dialogue has been initiated with policy‐makers with a view to incorporating the approach into regular government extension, research and training activities.  相似文献   

11.
Abstract

This paper examines the implications of farmers’ propensity to discontinue the adoption of agricultural technologies in southwestern Nigeria. This is predicated on the fact that extension education process should be proactive in addressing farmers in order to sustain the adoption process. Empirical studies looking at diffusion processes from an ex post perspective have failed to deliver in terms of effective ex ante policies and intervention strategies, and the transfer of the technology model has lost much of its lustre. Following a survey of arable crop farmers in two states of southwestern Nigeria, a Tobit model was estimated on the data collected during the 2002 growing season in order to identify variables significant in the farmers’ discontinuance behaviour. The variables identified are: attitude, extension visit, feedback provision, marketability and input availability. From the estimation, foremost among the significant variables leading to discontinuance of improved maize and cowpea varieties is extension visits.  相似文献   

12.
Purpose: The main purpose of this study was to determine the characteristics of farmer-oriented policies as regards the Iranian agricultural extension system. Methodology: To fulfill this objective, a Delphi technique was utilized. The study used a series of three steps, engaging a panel of experts on farmer-oriented policies of agricultural extension system. Finding: The characteristics of farmer-oriented policies in agricultural extension system were classified into six categories including: need-based programs, proper interaction among stakeholders, decentralization and higher stakeholders’ participation, enabling stakeholders with emphasis on smallholder farmers, market-oriented programs and integrated policies. The findings indicated that ‘enabling farmers to solve their technical problems’ and ‘engaging farmers in planning, executing and evaluating of the programs’ had the highest percentage of agreement. Theoretical implication: From a theoretical point of view, the finding of this research has introduced six categories as characteristics of a farmer-oriented policy that could have practical implications for agricultural extension system in Iran. Also, this paper proposes a framework for future studies in the field of farmer-oriented policies in agricultural extension system. Practical implications: Recognizing the characteristics of farmer-oriented intervention of agricultural extension shows that targeted extension approaches are needed to pay attention to these characteristics in various stages of planning, delivering and evaluation of extension programs. Originality/value: This paper provides a comprehensive list of characteristics of farmer-oriented policies of agricultural extension that can be helpful for agricultural policy-makers in devising programs of extension services.  相似文献   

13.
Abstract

The paper examines the impact of farmers’ educational attainment on agricultural productivity. More specifically, it evaluates how farmers with vocational training perform compared to those with traditional educational training. A stochastic production frontier and inefficiency effects model is estimated using nationally representative household survey data to analyze the relationship between farmers’ educational attainment and agricultural productivity in Vietnam, while controlling for factors such as gender and farmers’ health status. The results indicate higher returns to vocational training in terms of its impact on raising agricultural productivity, as compared to primary and secondary education. Our findings confirm that significant productivity and welfare gains can be achieved through the promotion of education schemes tailored to the specific technical needs of smallholder or poor farmers. The lack of impact from primary and secondary education signals the need to adjust the curricula of nontraditional educational programmes in rural areas to respond to the technical and other skill needs of farmers. In other words, one general curriculum for everyone may not reap the highest returns to primary and secondary education investment in the context of countries with large farming populations. The originality of the paper resides also in the use of disaggregated education data in terms of formal and non-formal education. In addition, unlike previous studies, the production frontier function and the inefficiency segment are jointly estimated using a one step maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) procedure which guarantees both consistency and efficiency for estimated parameters.  相似文献   

14.
Abstract

A study was conducted to determine the effectiveness of male and female extension agents in reaching farmers, especially women, with extension services in Nigeria. Specially the study determined the levels of awareness of and participation in extension activities, adoption of and technical knowledge of recommended agricultural technologies/practices, satisfaction with the quality of extension services provided and agents' credibility of men and women farmers under male and female extension agents supervision. Data gathered from 141 men and 72 women farmers supervised by male agents and 22 men and 93 women farmers supervised by female agents in Oyo, Kaduna and Rivers State Agricultural Development Projects in Nigeria form the empirical basis for the study. Even though men farmers are more aware of and participated more in the extension activities organised by agents than women farmers, the study shows that women farmers, who are supervised by female agents have more access to extension services than women farmers who work with male agents. Specifically, women farmers, who had females for extension agents had relatively higher levels of awareness and participation of the extension activities organised, adoption of and technical knowledge of recommended technologies/practices and satisfaction with the quality of agents' services and credibility. These differential effects of female and male agents on women's access to extension are significant for the delivery of extension services to women farmers, especially. Extension organisations must encourage and recruit more females for extension work done at the same time evolve strategies that will help male agents to work better with women farmers.  相似文献   

15.
Abstract

This study assessed farmers’ willingness to pay (WTP) for extension services. The Contingent Valuation Method (CVM) was used to assess the amount which farmers are willing to pay. Primary data on the demographic, socio-economic variables of farmers and their WTP were collected from 228 farmers selected randomly in a stage-wise sampling procedure from the Oyo State, Nigeria. The data were summarized using frequency distribution while CVM, commonly used by natural resource economists to assess the willingness of the public to part-fund proposed projects, was used to determine the amount which farmers are willing to pay. Results of the analysis showed that the majority of farmers described themselves as having the ability to pay for services and are willing to pay if their income from farming would increase and the programmes be made relevant to them. They also want to pay through cooperative societies. The CVM result showed that the Lower Bound Mean (LBM) of amount which farmers are willing to pay for extension is N391.47 per farmer per year. The study concluded that there is a challenge to extension specialists to make programmes participatory and farmers relevant if farmers are to be charged with the responsibility of participating in financing agricultural extension services.  相似文献   

16.
Abstract

Purpose: This review paper presents an overview of changes in agricultural extension on a global scale and helps to characterise on-going developments in extension practice.

Design/methodology/approach: Through a critique and synthesis of literature the paper focuses on global political changes which have led to widespread changes from production- to market-oriented extension systems and goes on to discuss pressures on unsustainable public extension systems to reform.

Findings: It is estimated that there are over 800,000 official extension personnel globally, most of whom work in the public sector in developing countries. This review highlights the important consequences for developing countries of global extension reform and the high percentages of farmers reliant on agriculture, making effective agricultural extension a key strategy in tackling poverty and strengthening rural development. It outlines the manner in which governments around the globe have experimented with alternative approaches to extension reform, such as privatisation and cooperatives, and demonstrates how public sector extension has come to be viewed as problematic.

Practical implications: This paper identifies the practical realities of adopting alternative approaches to extension, especially in the context of poverty. It considers the challenges in reforming extension to act as facilitator and enabler, rather than as service provider, and the difficulties in moving towards reforms that promote pluralism and innovation.

Originality/value: This paper contributes to current global debates on reforming agricultural extension by providing learning of how extension services have changed. The paper provides new insights from which lessons can be drawn for future extension reform.  相似文献   

17.
Abstract

This paper describes the rationale for a change from conventional extension towards participatory innovation development and extension. The “Conservation Tillage Project” and the “Food Security Project” developed such an approach and have embarked on institutionalisation of this approach into the agricultural extension service in Masvingo Province in Zimbabwe. Dialogue with farmers, farmer experimentation and the strengthening of self-organisational capacities of rural communities are the major elements to improve development and spreading of innovations, thus the efficiency of extension. The new approach requires a role change of agricultural extension workers from teacher to facilitator as well as appropriate methods and tools. Elements of “Training for Transformation” and Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) were tested and developed and were found to be effective tools. The strategy to institutionalise participatory extension is based on joining efforts and networking with other organisations, a campaign to familiarise institutional staff and a training and follow-up programme for staff in the framework of organisational development.

The experiences show that the attitudinal change required to implement participatory approaches is highly depended on personalities. To have an impact on the change of attitudes a continuous mediumterm training process with a close follow-up is required. The paper concludes that institutionalisation of participatory approaches into hierarchically structured organisations is a highly complex intervention. In order to be successful, major changes in planning, implementation and monitoring and evaluation procedures are required. Changes of that nature require a process of at least 5 to 10 years and high commitment on the side of institutional staff on all levels and donors as well.  相似文献   

18.
Purpose: This paper presents economic and pedagogical motivations for adopting information and communications technology (ICT)-mediated learning networks in agricultural education and extension. It proposes a framework for networked learning in agricultural extension and contributes a theoretical and case-based rationale for adopting the networked learning paradigm.

Design/methodology/approach: A review of the literature highlights the economic and pedagogical need for adopting a networked learning approach. Two examples are described to instantiate the language for learning networks: a small community of farmers in India and large Twitter community of Australian farmers.

Findings: This paper reviews evidence that successful networked learning interventions are already occurring within agricultural extension. It provides a framework for describing these interventions and for helping future designers of learning networks in agricultural extension.

Practical implication: Facilitation of learning networks can serve to achieve efficient agricultural extension that connects farmers across distances for constructivist learning. To realize these benefits, designers of learning networks need to consider set design, social design and epistemic design.

Theoretical implication: This paper contributes a theoretical framework for designing, implementing and analysing learning networks in agriculture. It does this by integrating existing ideas from networked learning and applying them to the agricultural context through examples.

Originality/value: This paper contributes an understanding of the value of networked learning for extension in terms of economic and pedagogical benefits. It provides a language for talking about learning networks that is useful for future researchers and for practitioners.  相似文献   


19.
Abstract

Weak linkages among research, education and extension (REE) institutions result in systematic “bottlenecks” in national agricultural technology systems and limit their effectiveness to contribute to development (ISNAR, 1989; Roling, 1990; Kaimowitz, 1990). The advantages of strong linkages are well known. Evidence shows that integrating research, education and extension can improve the overall performance of agricultural technology systems (Engel, 1990; Ortiz, 1990). As Moris (1991) states, “It would be difficult to over-emphasise the enormous tactical importance of having smooth interorganizational linkages for achieving sustained agricultural development”.

If this is the case, why then is the “problem of weak linkages” so persistent and pervasive.

This paper discusses some of the problems and opportunities related to integrating and linking research, extension and education institutions, and to incorporating the active participation of farmers in technology innovation. First, the paper first gives general background to the linkages problem and discusses recent shifts in REE orientation. It then successively addresses issues of policy and structure, pluralistic approaches, and integrated REE. Finally, the paper addresses the implications of the discussion and makes some general suggestions for approaches that might be useful in attacking the “linkages problem”.  相似文献   

20.
Abstract

Purpose: In this article we illustrate the importance of understanding the risk profiles of new technologies, in addition to the changes in productivity, to be able to determine strategies for agricultural development.

Design/methodology/approach: The analysis is based on data obtained from a 2002 survey of subsistence farmers in the Kilimanjaro region of Tanzania, and a Just and Pope (1978) framework is used for modeling risk.

Findings: We find that even if extension services do not increase the mean production, it may reduce production risk.

Practical implication and originality/value: During the past decades, agricultural extension and subsidized conventional inputs such as high-yielding seed varieties, fertilizer and pesticides, have become important components of agricultural aid programs in developing countries. However, outcomes of this type of aid are somewhat ambiguous, and many donor countries have reduced their support in response. For the most part, evaluation of these programs employs total factor productivity analysis to estimate the changes in productivity resulting from investment in aid programs. However, risk-averse, small-scale farmers will consider both the variance in output and the expected mean. They may therefore choose input levels that differ from the optimal input levels of risk-neutral producers, who consider only the expected mean. Programs can therefore have a positive effect because they reduce risk, even if the direct impact on production is limited.  相似文献   

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