Articles in Periodicals & Books

Permanent URI for this collection

http://oasis.col.org/handle/11599/18

Browse

Browsing Articles in Periodicals & Books by Subject "Agricultural Extension"

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Open Access
    Achieving Community Development through an Agricultural Extension Programme: Technology Dissemination for Mushroom Farmers
    (2021-07-20) De Silva, Nilantha; Wijeratne, Mahinda; Panda, Santosh
    Mushroom production is a small-scale business unit in rural areas. The Life Long Learning for Farmers (L3F) Programme aims to enhance the socio-economic conditions for them, increasing their access to and use of knowledge and technology. This study evaluates the outcomes of the L3F Programme at the community level. Data were collected through a pre-tested questionnaire survey. The sample consisted of 30 L3F farmers. Farmers’ achievement was assessed by the Farmer Performance Index (FPI). Results indicate that mushroom farmers have scaled up their production; have improved their productivity; designed new experiments to minimise the impact of pests and diseases; focused on environmental sustainability and scientific mushroom production; and improved the quality of packaging. The mobile app Bimmal Govi, blended with Information and Communication Technology, helped them to move with the latest technological advancements. The L3F Programme has increased the standards of mushroom production, helping the farmers become promising entrepreneurs.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Open Access
    Agricultural Extension Agents' Use of Learning-Based Extension Methods in Trinidad and Tobago
    (2020-07-20) Ramjattan, Jeet; Chowdhury, Ataharul; Ganpat, Wayne
    Agricultural extension agents are highly credited for their roles of providing advice to farmers and supporting their learning and decision-making to improve livelihoods. The use of appropriate methods to promote learning in developing countries, including Trinidad and Tobago, has often been highlighted as a development priority. Nevertheless, agricultural extension agents encounter difficulties in applying new competencies. Understanding and utilising appropriate methods based on farmers’ learning needs is critical. This study sought to investigate extension agents’ use of learning-based extension methods. A survey was conducted with 106 extension agents. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression analysis were used to analyse data. The findings show that male agents prefer Plant Clinics and Farmer Field School learning methods. Social influence and networking among organisations had a significant influence on the use of Discovery Based Learning methods. The positive influence of social pressure motivated the agents. The study recommends supporting facilitative conditions through a coordinated programme and to focus on farmers’ learning as a critical consideration for improving the use and impact of learning-based methods.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Open Access
    Changing Roles of Agricultural Extension: Harnessing Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for Adapting to Stresses Envisaged Under Climate Change
    (2011) Meera, Shaik N; Balaji, Venkataraman; Muthuraman, P; Sailaja, B; Dixit, S
    The linkages between agriculture and climate are pronounced and often complex. Agricultural systems are most sensitive to extreme climatic events such as droughts, floods and hailstorms, and to seasonal variability and changing rainfall patterns. The role of inadequate institutional support is frequently cited in the literature as a hindrance to adaptation. In context of climate change, extension will increasingly face challenges of addressing vulnerability. The effectiveness of extension will be influenced by the factors such as identifying vulnerable regions, vulnerable groups, farmers having multiple stressors, areas which will be doubly exposed, for assessing and strengthening the coping strategies among vulnerable regions/groups and improve the ability for adaptive measures. Effective and timely provision of information will play a crucial role in future extension. Despite the need for timely and well-targeted information on climatic risks, there are currently a number of gaps and challenges in providing climate information to the farmers. Of late, organisations in agriculture realised the importance of managing the Knowledge (Implicit & Explicit; Internal & External) for the dissemination purposes. In this chapter, we have discussed at length the cases for developing insights into the contemporary initiatives of integrating ICTs and climate information in extension. In order to promote the development of appropriate community-based ICT endeavors for sharing climate change information and technology options at grassroots level, it is important that we also understand the attributes that must be considered for building more practical and broad based approaches. For the benefit of the readers, a comprehensive framework involving various components of climate change vis a vis Extension is provided. In the context of climate change, information needs assessment and strategies for strengthening Research-Extension-Farmers linkages are discussed in this chapter. Further looking at the complexities of climate change scenario, it is proposed that ICT enabled extension framework may be tested, refined and adapted in future extension endeavours.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Open Access
    From Learning to Empowerment: A Study of Smallholder Farmers in South West Uganda
    (2015-11) Carr, Alexis; Tenywa, Moses; Balasubramanian, K
    The relationship between education and empowerment has been widely debated in development literature. In recent times, social capital and community-centric learning have been increasingly recognized as important variables in the empowerment process. This paper outlines the development of a ‘Three-dimensional Empowerment Framework’, and looks at the relationship between a community-centric learning process and empowerment in selected villages in Uganda. Based on a study of two villages, the paper evaluates the role of the Lifelong Learning for Farmers (L3F) programme, developed and supported by the Commonwealth of Learning (COL), in empowering farming communities. The purpose of the study was to gain a better understanding of empowerment in the selected farming communities and to identify factors that may contribute to empowerment, including the L3F programme. Two sample villages with similar demographics were used for comparison, one L3F village and one non-L3F village, with 62 respondents from the L3F village and 78 from the non-L3F village, selected randomly. A survey, which included demographic questions as well as an empowerment scale, was administered to respondents from both groups. The responses were analysed and a regression model showing the factors that influenced empowerment was developed. The study shows that the integration of human capital (viewed purely from learning, knowledge acquisition, reflective practices, skills and competencies), social capital and financial capital, has a positive impact on development outcomes such as empowerment.