Agricultural extension in transition worldwide


Book Description

This publication contains twelve modules which cover a selection of major reform measures in agricultural extension being promulgated and implemented internationally, such as linking farmers to markets, making advisory services more demand-driven, promoting pluralistic advisory systems, and enhancing the role of advisory services within agricultural innovation systems. The reform issues consider the changing roles of the various public, private and non-governmental providers, and highlights the collaboration required to create synergies for more efficient and effective high quality services responding to the needs and demands of smallholder farmers. The modules draw on reform experiences worldwide and provide an introduction, definitions and a discussion for each specific reform measure, as well as case studies, tools, exercises and a reference list. The reform topics are envisaged for policy-makers, management and senior staff of institutions providing agricultural and rural advisory services. It can also be very useful for students studying agriculture, rural development, and extension in particular. This is a substantially updated version of the 2009 publication of the same title, but with only nine modules. These nine modules were restructured and up-dated, and three modules were added. The layout of the modules changed to allow a better overview for the reader.




Agricultural extension: Global status and performance in selected countries


Book Description

Agricultural transformation and development are critical to the livelihoods of more than a billion small-scale farmers and other rural people in developing countries. Extension and advisory services play an important role in such transformation and can assist farmers with advice and information, brokering and facilitating innovations and relationships, and dealing with risks and disasters. Agricultural Extension: Global Status and Performance in Selected Countries provides a global overview of agricultural extension and advisory services, assesses and compares extension systems at the national and regional levels, examines the performance of extension approaches in a selected set of country cases, and shares lessons and policy insights. Drawing on both primary and secondary data, the book contributes to the literature on extension by applying a common and comprehensive framework — the “best-fit” approach — to assessments of extension systems, which allows for comparison across cases and geographies. Insights from the research support reforms — in governance, capacity, management, and advisory methods — to improve outcomes, enhance financial sustainability, and achieve greater scale. Agricultural Extension should be a valuable resource for policymakers, extension practitioners, and others concerned with agricultural development.




Agricultural Extension


Book Description

Agricultural extension is in a great transition worldwide. The demand for public extension reform is greater than ever before. The agriculture knowledge infrastructure is evolving in a big way with the emergence of pluralistic extension actors and innovations to cater the needs of the farmeThis book is an attempt to document the past experiences and recent developments in the agriculture knowledge information systems. The compilation of 14 country s such as; Afghanistan, Benin, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, India, Iran, Mozambique, Nepal, Peru, Philippines, Trinidad and Tobago and Zimbabwe is intended to document the experience of extension systems. The fourteen country s highlight the worldwide agricultural extension reform measures (Decentralization, Privatization, Demand driven and Cost-recovery approaches), Institutional Pluralism (Public, Private, and NGOs) and Innovations (Farmer to Farmer extension, Participatory and Self-Help Group (SHG) approaches and ICT initiatives). The agricultural extension students, academicians, scientist, practitioners, administrators, and policy makers will find this compilation of extension experiences from the fourteen countries relevant for designing future reforms, advancing pluralistic extension system and also to integrating innovations in their extension approaches.







An evolving paradigm of agricultural mechanization development: How much can Africa learn from Asia?


Book Description

Agricultural mechanization in Africa south of the Sahara — especially for small farms and businesses — requires a new paradigm to meet the needs of the continent’s evolving farming systems. Can Asia, with its recent success in adopting mechanization, offer a model for Africa? An Evolving Paradigm of Agricultural Mechanization Development analyzes the experiences of eight Asian and five African countries. The authors explore crucial government roles in boosting and supporting mechanization, from import policies to promotion policies to public good policies. Potential approaches presented to facilitating mechanization in Africa include prioritizing market-led hiring services, eliminating distortions, and developing appropriate technologies for the African context. The role of agricultural mechanization within overall agricultural and rural transformation strategies in Africa is also discussed. The book’s recommendations and insights should be useful to national policymakers and the development community, who can adapt this knowledge to local contexts and use it as a foundation for further research.




Rural Extension Services


Book Description




Agricultural Extension, Rural Development and the Food Security Challenge


Book Description

This publication reviews key trends and policy developments aimed at reforming agricultural extension systems, in order to address issues of food security, poverty alleviation and rural sustainable development. It highlights the importance of the public sector in promoting rural development through extension and communication. A number of recommendations are made for developing countries, which seek to encourage institutional reforms and dialogue among diverse providers of extension services, all aimed at advancing livelihoods and income generation of poor rural people.




Agricultural extension in Central Asia: existing strategies and future needs


Book Description

Agriculture is at the forefront of the development objectives of the republics of Central Asia (CA). Since independence in 1991, these countries have undergone transitions from being centrally planned economies to market-oriented systems, which did not include the creation of agricultural extension systems. This paper provides information on the current status of the agricultural extension systems in CA with special reference to Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. We reviewed the existing extension strategies, donor- and state-driven initiatives to revitalize the agricultural extension systems, informal linkages that nongovernmental organizations play in helping a limited number of farmers, and provided recommendations on ways to further improve the agricultural extension services in CA. The information related to each country was analyzed separately. This is because, after independence, each republic in CA had initiated their agricultural reforms with specific objectives and has now established their unique agricultural systems that differ contextually. However, due to having the same history and agricultural system that existed during the Soviet times, we tried to give a historical perspective to the unified agricultural extension system that existed before independence.




ICTs for Agricultural Extension


Book Description

This book is an attempt to document the National Policy on ICTs in agricultural extension, ICT infrastructure scenario and related issues, case studies on innovative ICTs for agricultural extension initiatives (Village knowledge centres, information kiosks, mobile ICT units, web portals, digital data base and networks, rural tele centres, farmer call centres, mobile telephony, video conference, offline multimedia CDs, decision support systems, expert systems, innovative community radio and television programmes, open distance learning etc. The agricultural extension students, academicians, scientists, practitioners, administrators and policy makers will find this compilation of the "ICTs for Agricultural Extension: Global Experiments, Innovations and Experiences" from twenty eight countries relevant to providing a framework for the design and implementation of sustainable ICT-enabled extension services for the agricultural development.




Improving Agricultural Extension


Book Description

This book on Improving Agricultural Extension: a Reference Manual offers a critical review and inventory-analysis of the "State of the Art" in agricultural extension theory and best practices written by internationally known agricultural extension practitioners, educators and scholars. A total of 38 authors from 15 countries contributed to the 23 chapters of this book and thus they provided broad international perspectives, covering both theory and practice, as well as micro and macro issues related to agricultural extension. It is the third edition of a classic reference manual on agricultural extension published by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations. Aimed at agricultural extension planners, managers, trainers, educators, and field practitioners, this book could be useful in improving the quality of agricultural extension and in generating new ideas and methods for increasing further the cost-effectiveness of agricultural extension programmes. It provides many sound and practical suggestions for developing and improving the conceptual, technical, and operational methods and tools in order to strategically plan, efficently manage, and scientifically evaluate a problem-solving, demand-driven and needs-based agricultural extension programmes.