Role of Education and Training to Make Agritourism A Success Story in India

Abstract

: The paper  explores the  role of entrepreneurship education and training amongst women entrepreneurs to promote agritourism sector of the Indian economy. This study employ qualitative and quantitative approaches to gather  data  questionnaires survey and in-depth face to face interviews, based on a semi-structured questionnaire. The research involved a matched sample of 10 registered farmers (from the Punjab Heritage Tourism Promotion Board) and 200 unregistered male and female farmers selected randomly from the Indian State of  Punjab. Quantitative analysis suggests that there is a direct and significant impact of EET on the management, efficiency, and use of farming land. The findings also suggested that  the fall in the agricultural productivity due to labour shortages;  revenue losses are rising as  commodity prices are falling. Therefore, it is not a surprise that farmers seek to  supplement income through alternative means to enhance their socio-economic stability and viability. The findings suggest that there is high incidence of migration amongst male farming population  and female farmers lack EET and reluctance on their part to work with external male population. However, analysis of male owner-managers of micro and small agritourist firms also reported to  have lower levels of EET and hence the  need for EET  male and females; thus, EET and adequate access to finance were two major determinants of agritourist firms’ success in Indian Punjab.