An analysis of farmer uptake of formal farm management training in Western Australia

Abstract

In the last decade some agricultural policy makers and other industry leaders have suggested that farmers will need to upgrade their business management skills to cope with the rapid changes in the agribusiness environment. Anecdotal and research evidence has suggested that many farmers do not perceive this need and are reluctant to participate in formal business management training to upgrade their skills. A study involving focus groups, a survey of training providers and a telephone survey of 197 farm managers investigated if and why farmers in the south-west agricultural region of Western Australia might be reluctant to participate. Two thirds of farmers in the survey had not participated in formal farm business management training. Older, more experienced farmers with lower levels of formal education were the least likely to attend and were less likely to be aware of available training activities. Women who were members of farm management teams (32%) were more likely to attend training than men. Attitudes towards formal training appear to be improving and farmers are aware of the increasing importance of farm business management training. Lack of attendance seems to be related in some instances to a lack of suitable local training activities, a preference for informal over formal learning and a lack of confidence in the relevance of the training. It is suggested that strategies should be developed to provide and deliver suitable training to those sectors of farming community that are not participating in current programs.