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Innovations in Agricultural Extension and Advisory Services with Emphasis on Policy

By Charles Masangano

cmasangano@bunda.luanar.mw

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We have an urgent need to transform agriculture to high levels of performance and eradicate hunger in Malawi

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Presentation outline

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Agricultural extension has historically been thought of as the process of extending scientifically proven knowledge and policies to users in order for them to improve their agricultural productivity.◦ The word extension implies extending something.

This was premised on the assumption that Scientific knowledge was always better than farmers or users knowledge and experiences.

The implication being that extension should be a top down process where farmers and users are at the receiving end.

Agricultural Extension and Advisory Services

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Does not take farmers interests and concerns into consideration

Does not value farmer knowledge and experiences and hence not able to build on indigenous knowledge systems

Some technologies promoted may not be suitable to farmers conditions

Narrow based, only concerned with farmers and producers among the many value chain actors

Weaknesses of this conception of extension and advisory services

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This assumption has however, historically driven the design and implementation of agricultural extension services in most countries including Malawi.◦ The coercive system, master farmer system of the

colonial period, the progressive farmer system as well as the block extension system (T&V) were all premised on this assumption.

◦ In addition, extension services were basically considered to be the responsibility of the public sector.

Top Down Approach

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Low response from farmers. Reasons:

◦ Farmer needs and interests were not taken into consideration. One example was promotion of cash crops intended for

export such as cotton and tobacco when farmers were more concerned with ensuring food self sufficiency.

◦ Promoting technologies which were not suitable for farmers situations. An example is promoting capital intensive technologies which

most low resource farmers could not afford. One result being the perception that farmers had “that

extension is for resource rich and credit worthy club members

Challenges of the top down approach

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Valuable farmer knowledge and experiences were always left out of the development process.

The whole responsibility of extension service provision was lefty to the public sector and this had its own challenges.◦ Public sector resources were and are consistently

shrinking.◦ Governments could not maintain provision of high

quality extension services with the limited resources.

Challenges of the top down approach cont.

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There is recognition now that extension and advisory services should ◦ Be driven by democratic principles, central of which

being that farmers should demand services and extension should respond to such demands. EAS will thereby be addressing felt needs

◦ Be accountable to clients◦ Allow more service providers to participate thereby

allowing farmers and users to have greater choices, diversity and quality of services

◦ Diversify the resource base by mobilizing other service providers to participate in service provision as well as financing extension and advisory services

Changing views of agricultural extension and advisory services

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◦ Ensure that extension services that address purely private interests are paid for by private resources.

◦ Be well coordinated so as to avoid duplication of efforts and also avoid sending contradictory messages to users especially farmers.

◦ Be more inclusive and perform a wide range of roles.

◦ Inclusivity in this cases means taking an innovation systems approach involving more players such as value chain actors including producers, service providers, researchers, policy makers and many other stake holders.

Changing views of agricultural extension and advisory services

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Roles of agricultural extension and advisory services must include:◦ Facilitating knowledge management activities◦ Disseminating new knowledge and technologies◦ Facilitating development of networks◦ Organising and facilitating innovation platforms◦ Organising producer groups◦ Facilitating access to input and output markets◦ Facilitating access to credit

Roles of Agricultural Extension and Advisory Services in current environment

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Revised its policy in 2000 where the vision was that:◦ All farmers able to demand extension services.◦ All farmers have access to high quality extension

services.◦ There is pluralism in provision and delivery of

extension services. Building on distinctive competencies of various

service providers. Services offered at decentralized levels.

Malawi Case

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Services that are accountable to those demanding and using them.

Services that contribute to addressing national concerns of improvement of livelihoods

Vision cont.

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The district agricultural extension services system (DAESS) implementation guide was therefore developed in order to facilitate implementation of the policy.

The main purpose of the DAESS is to create a mechanism for enabling farmers to identify, organise and articulate their agricultural felt needs for appropriate action from relevant stakeholders.

District Agricultural Extension Services System

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The specific objectives of the DAESS are:◦ To organise farmers’ agricultural needs◦ To pool service providers and related resources in

order to address farmers needs◦ To instill a sense of ownership and self reliance in

agricultural programmes among farmers◦ To foster coordination among stakeholders in

service provision

Specific Objectives of the DAESS

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I think the country came up with the right type of policy and implementation guide considering that we are in a political environment of multiparty democracy with a decentralized governance system where there is a multitude of extension service providers.

There are of cause a few areas that need to be further reflected on in both the policy and DAESS.

Overall assessment of performance

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Experiences show that achievement of the vision of the policy and objectives of DAESS are mixed.

There are significant achievements in some of the principles and objectives of the policy DAESS and poor performance in other principles and objectives.

Assessment of Perfomance

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There is need to facilitate agricultural development by promoting agricultural products across their value chains. ◦ There are various players in these value chains

including producers, processors, transporters, wholesalers, retailers etc.

◦ All these need extension and advisory services.◦ This is why there is emphasis on agricultural innovation

systems and most experts refer to agricultural extension and advisory services.

◦ The policy needs to be all encompassing. Some of the clients require extension services while others require advisory services.

Areas for policy reflection

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The issues of coordination, harmonization, standardization and quality control of extension and advisory services need to be thoroughly thought through. Access to high quality extension and advisory services to all who need them can not be ensured if the policy does not provide adequate guidelines for addressing these issues.

Provision of agricultural extension services needs to be properly regulated and the policy needs to provide for such regulatory mechanisms

Areas for policy reflection cont

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DAESS is a good concept as it provides a system through which various extension approaches, methods and activities can be implemented. It provides a good mechanism for:◦ Coordination of extension, harmonization and

standardization of extension activities◦ Accountability to users and ◦ It is in accordance to decentralization system

Overview of DAESS cont.

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The system is only working in very few districts such as Rumphi and Ntcheu.

Most stakeholders do not use the system. ◦ It is not uncommon to find a technical department

in the ministry working straight with farmers without involving any DAESS structures.

◦ Similarly, other service providers such as NGOs, private companies and farmer organizations tend not to work with DAES structures

Challenges

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Most of the stakeholders at district level tend not to be willing to financially support the system.

Studies show that most stakeholders do not have a clear understanding of the system. It is not uncommon to hear sentiments such as DAESS is for DAES only.

There is a serious shortage of field extension staff.

Challenges cont.

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There is need for more sensitization to various stakeholders on DAESS. This sensitization should include:◦ All the technical departments in the ministry◦ Local government staff at district level◦ All extension service providers ◦ Local communities

There is need to put in place mechanisms for regulating activities of extension service providers. DAESS would be better placed to play that role.

Roles and responsibilities of various players need to be more clearly specified (CFA needed here)

Need to continue to promote establishment of farmer organizations.

Need to harmonize various guides eg model village, lead farmer concept with DAESS

Suggestions for improvement

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There is need to:◦ Review the concept to include some of the

missing links such as a national stakeholder panel where issues can be discussed at a national level. MaFAAS if formerly mandated can play such a role

◦ Need to consider structures starting from the village level rather than group village level. The village is a more stable and naturally existing structure in our communities and is likely to be more effective in promoting development activities.

◦ DAESS guide should be a flexible instrument with adaptability to local conditions

Suggestions for improvement cont.

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Need to make issues of extension policy more prominent in the national agricultural policy

Need to move up the responsibility for ensuring that DAESS is being implemented.

The office of the CAETS may be more appropriate in promoting DAESS◦ This office needs to take primary responsibility for

implementing DAESS ◦ This office need to see to it that activities of technical

departments as well as other service providers are in accordance to DAESS

◦ DAES should provide technical expertise for implementing DAESS

Suggestions for improvement cont.

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There is need to train more extension staff in order to reduce staff/farmer ratio in order to increase farmer and other users’ access to extension and advisory services.

There is also need to improve the working and living conditions of extension staff in rural areas. ◦ Poor housing conditions, lack of utilities such as potable

water, electricity, internet connectivity, transport facilities, protective clothes and many other more make working conditions for extension workers very unattractive. The responsibility for correcting these problems lies mostly in our hands.

Suggestions for improvement cont.

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Extension and advisory services need to be more versatile in responding to current and emerging challenges in the agricultural sector.

The issue of climate change and drought that Malawi is experiencing this year are very good examples.◦ More than 90% of all the extension and advisory

service providers in the country are all gathered in this room today. What have we done to help Malawi to appropriately respond to these challenges?

Suggestions for improvement cont.

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The advantages of ICT based extension methods need to not be emphasized.◦ The ability to reach many clients in a short time,◦ The ability to send messages in a timely manner,◦ The increasing ability to create interactive

systems of ICT based extension All point to fact that we need to embrace

the usage of this technology more and more to increase our impact.

Suggestions for improvement cont.

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THANK YOU