Abstract
This is a case study-based research project investigating the status of Advisory Extension Services in southern Ethiopia. The goal was to determine whether available service provisions meet the requirements of smallholder farmers and enabled them to improve their farming practices and livelihoods. A combination of an exploratory inductive approach and mixed methods was used (e.g., questionnaire survey, focus group discussions, key informant interviews). Participants included members of farming households, and agents, experts, and providers working in the agricultural rural sector. The key findings suggested that limited access to resources and unpredictable environmental conditions were stifling smallholder farmer innovation and livelihoods. Service provisions should be better tailored to local conditions, provide greater resource access, and work more closely with farmers. The development and implementation of service provision should involve a wide range of institutions and farmers throughout the process. Local community- and farmer-based organisations are especially important, and can work alongside innovative and talented farmers to enable more effective dissemination of information. Agricultural rural development and service provision should focus greater attention on the views and perspectives of farmers from a range of areas with differing socio-demographic and agro-ecological characteristics for comparative analysis.
Highlights
Effective service provision is essential in meeting the needs of the clients and the challenges they face from ongoing changes in their environment and situations
One common way in which smallholder farmers received AESs was through formal channels, i.e., services from government and CSOs/NGOs delivered via extension agents or field workforces Development Agents (DAs)
A comparison of smallholder farmers’ technology adoption in Ethiopia by Krishnan and Krishnan and Patnam (2014) revealed that the continuity of technology or knowledge received by farmers was greater when issued through DAs than through informal channels
Summary
Effective service provision is essential in meeting the needs of the clients (i.e., smallholder farmers) and the challenges they face from ongoing changes in their environment and situations. Access to appropriate advice and service provision is especially vital for those living in rural areas whose lives depend on subsistence smallholder farming. There are a range of mechanisms for providing services to farmers, with different conceptualizations of “service provision”. AES takes into account the systems, context and knowledge exchanges to support farming practices.
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