Farmer Field Schools Research Articles

Effect of Integrated Pest Management Training on Ugandan Small-Scale Farmers.

Small-scale farmers in developing countries use hazardous pesticides taking few or no safety measures. Farmer field schools (FFSs) teaching integrated pest management (IPM) have been shown to reduce pesticide use among trained farmers. This cross-sectional study compares pesticide-related knowledge, attitude, practice (KAP), potential exposure, and self-reported poisoning symptoms among 35 FFS farmers, 44 neighboring farmers, and 35 control farmers after an IPM intervention in Uganda (2011-2012). The FFS farmers were encouraged to teach their neighboring farmers. Data were based on standardized interviews and were analyzed using a linear trend test and logistic regression. The results showed that FFS and neighboring farmers used significantly fewer pesticide applications (P = .021) and used more safety measures. No differences were found on the hazardousness of pesticides used or self-reported symptoms. The study supports IPM as a method to reduce pesticide use and potential exposure and to improve pesticide-related KAP among small-scale farmers in developing countries.

Rice Ecosystems and Adoption of Modern Rice Varieties in Odisha, East India: Intensity, Determinants and Policy Implications

Odisha is one of the major rice producing states of the eastern region of India. But, the adoption of modern agricultural technologies like modern varieties (MVs) of paddy is still low and skewed across regions and farmer groups in the state even after five decades of inception of green revolution in India. The state has two distinct ecosystems because out of 6.5 million hectares of gross cropped area of the state, 49% is still rainfed and 51% is irrigated. The patterns of adoption of MVs of rice and constraints in adoption process differ in both ecosystems. On this background, the present paper tries to analyze the intensity of adoption of MVs of rice and its determinants in irrigated and rainfed rice ecosystems of the state. The study is based on the primary data at the household level collected by a multistage purposive sampling method. The sample included 300 farm households from six villages of two districts, i.e., Cuttack and Khordha. These two districts represent the irrigated ecosystem and rainfed ecosystem, respectively. The study found that the total study region shows an increasing trend in the adoption intensity with the rise in the size of operational landholding even though the absolute area for large farmer group is the lowest. This positive association is higher in the irrigated region than in the rainfed ecosystem. There is no huge difference in adoption intensity of MVs across the farmer groups in the irrigated region as compared to their counterparts in the rainfed ecosystem. From the tobit model regression results, the study has found a glaring difference between the specific factors influencing the adoption intensity in both ecosystems. Factors like education, farm size, land position, extension visits, credit accessibility, local market, seed availability, perception about taste of MVs and shorter maturity of MVs were significantly influencing the adoption intensity in irrigated ecosystem. But, in the rainfed ecosystem, variables like non-farm activities, soil quality, land position, seed availability, perception on shorter maturity and higher yield of MVs were the significant determinants of adoption intensity. The pooled sample regression results reveal that the ecosystem dummy variable plays a significant role in the adoption decision. Therefore, the study pitches for the development of irrigation facilities along with rigorous implementation of farmer field school program and strengthening of agricultural extension networks.

IPM for tropical crops: rice.

Abstract Rice is a staple food and the foundation of national stability and economic growth in many developing countries. Rice pests are major biotic constraints limiting rice production globally. This review discusses the biology, ecology, global distribution and plant damage and yield losses caused by insect pests, plant diseases, nematodes, rats and weeds. The interactions among insects, weeds and diseases are discussed. A proposed conceptual framework for arthropod pest management in organic crop production is explained. In this framework, arthropod pest management strategies are classified into four 'phases'. The framework prioritizes pest management options that will prevent damaging levels of pests (phase 1 and 2) and minimize the need for curative actions (phases 3 and 4). We adopt and modify this conceptual framework to structure a discussion on various rice pest management options in rice ecosystems. A detailed package of practices for managing rice pests is given. The relative efficiencies of the Farmers Field Schools and mass media campaigns in transferring IPM technology to rice farmers are discussed.

Impact of improved groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) production technologies on knowledge and adoption of farmers

Groundnut is an important oilseed crop in Karimnagar district, Telangana state. The KVK, Karimnagar has disseminated improved groundnut production technologies to the farmers of the district through village adoption, technology assessment, refinement, demonstrations and farmer field schools. Further, the KVK has used various modes of communication such as electronic and print media for popularization of technologies. An impact assessment was done in 15 adopted villages with 60 farmers and 15 non-adopted villages with 30 farmers to assess the increase in knowledge and adoption of groundnut technologies. An Ex-post facto research designed was used for impact assessment. The results indicated significant differences in level of knowledge and extent of adoption between farmers of KVK-adopted villages and non-adopted villages. The knowledge scores were high in 48 per cent of farmers from adopted villages whereas high knowledge scores were observed in 23 per cent of farmers from non-adopted villages. The extent of adoption was high in 45 per cent of farmers from adopted villages, whereas it was 27 per cent from non-adopted villages. Farmers from adopted and non-adopted villages possessed knowledge of improved varieties such as K6 and application of gypsum. Deep ploughing and irrigating the crop at regular intervals were adopted by majority of the farmers in non-adopted villages.

Adoption of Integrated Pest Management among Cocoa Farmers in Cross River and Osun States of Nigeria

The determinants of adoption of IPM among cocoa farmers were investigated in Cross Rivers State, 271 trained cocoa farmers were systematically selected out of 2704 while in Osun State 107 were selected out of 1070. Structured questionnaire was used to obtain data on respondents’ socio-economic characteristics, enterprise characteristics and benefits from IPM. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and Chi-square. The mean age of the respondents across the states was 48.52±11.37 years. The total mean yield value was 1006.22kg. More yield (0.98±0.135) was ranked by the respondents as the most important benefit to them, followed by higher product quality (0.97±0.159) and higher income (0.96±0.206). In overall result there was significant relationship of sex (X 2 =130.38) and benefit of IPM. Adoption of IPM increased income and yield among trained respondents. Training of farmers on IPM in all cocoa producing states should be intensified. Keywords : Integrated pest management, Cocoa farmers, Farmers Field School

Bringing Farmer Knowledge and Learning into Agricultural Research: How Agricultural Anthropologists Transformed Strategic Research at the International Rice Research Institute

AbstractDuring the post‐Green Revolution period of rice research at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), a wide range of innovative methodologies were introduced by anthropologists that transformed the way rice research is conducted, with a particular focus on valuing farmer knowledge, criteria, and practices, and on bringing farmers into the research process. This study presents a historic account of the contributions of eight practicing agricultural anthropologists at IRRI, one of the 15 world Consortium for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) centers, between 1978 and 2010. The types of research undertaken reflect how anthropologists work in the area of strategic research, with the mandate to contribute upstream to basic science and downstream to applied outcomes. We document the innovations of IRRI anthropologists, including methodologies by which integrated pest management interventions and other technical tools are adapted by and for farmers; as well as the development of Farmer Field Schools, farmer‐to‐farmer training, and other innovations drawing on anthropological skill sets.

Reckoning the risks and rewards of fertilizer micro-dosing in a sub-humid farming system in Tanzania

Smallholder farmers are reluctant to risk investing in fertilizers. To understand how risk is perceived and how economic returns are distributed before the decision to invest in fertilizer use is made, needs a systematic approach using localized applications. This study assesses the profitability and net return variability of fertilizer micro-dosing (MD) in the sub-humid rain-fed maize (Zea mays L.) farming system in Tanzania. Useful data was gathered from a household baseline survey, water and nutrient limited calibrated yields, marginal costs and yields from farmers’ field trials, along with other information from expert and historical data. Crop yields, crop prices and prices for key production inputs (mainly fertilizer) were simulated for the net economic return distributions for maize under different fertilizer MD rates using the Economic and Nutritional Impact Assessment Model (FARMSIM), which is supported by Simulation and Econometrics to Analyse Risk (SIMETAR). The results show relative differences in stochastic returns between water and nutrient limited (without fertilizer MD) and with fertilizer MD scenarios. Farmers are likely to adopt fertilization technologies if best agronomic practices are promoted through farmer groups and field schools, fertilizers are re-packaged into small quantities for ease of purchase and access, and the coverage of subsidized fertilizers is increased.

Scaling service delivery in a failed state: cocoa smallholders, Farmer Field Schools, persistent bureaucrats and institutional work in Côte d’Ivoire

ABSTRACTThe increased use of sustainability standards in the international trade in cocoa challenges companies to find effective modes of service delivery to large numbers of small-scale farmers. A case study of the Sustainable Tree Crops Program targeting the small-scale cocoa producers in Côte d’Ivoire supplying international commodity markets shifts attention from mechanisms of private governance to the embedding of service delivery in the institutional dynamics of the state. It demonstrates that, despite a recent history of violent conflict and civil unrest, the introduced Farmer Field Schools programme achieved a surprising scale in terms of numbers and geographical spread. The analysis of this outcome combines political science and anthropological studies of effective and developmental elements in the state with the interest in institutional work found in organization science. The scaling of a new form of service delivery is explained by the skilful practices of institutional work by managers of a public–private partnership. They have been professionally associated with the sector for a long time and had the capacity to embed new forms of service delivery in persistent pockets of bureaucratic effectiveness in a failed state.

‘Sekolah Lapang Petani’: Membangun Komitmen, Disiplin dan Kretivitas Petani Melalui SLP-PHT

AbstractAlthough the Green Revolution in Indonesia has shown an increase in theagriculturalproduction, a rapid marginalisation process among the farmers has taken place simultaneously.This article aims to identify the role of Sekolah Lapang Petani (Farmer Field School), which isone of the programs conducted byPengelolaan Hama Terpadu (Integrated Pest Management,IPM). This program is conducted by the government in response to the negative impacts of theGreen Revolution that is consideredto be responsible in deteriorating the local knowledge andthe local wisdom techniques, the power of creative-innovation and the freedom of the farmers.This study was conducted in two different sites in South Sulawesi, namely: Manjalling Village(Gowa) and Soreang Village (Maros). Our informants are those who joined SLP-PHT programin the two locations. They consistof 17 farmers; 5 of them are from Manjalling, while rests arefrom Soreang. We triangulate, in-depth interview, observation, life history, and focus groupdiscussion (FGD) as our data collection methods.The results showed that the implementation of SLP-PHT program in Manjallingand Soreanghas played an important role in the application process of the local knowledge and the farmers’creative-innovative development in agricultural, such as productive, righteousness, adaptive,and environmentally friendly.Keywords: farmer field school, creativity, innovative, plant fertilizer and medicine.

Indicator-based sustainability assessment of the smallholder beef cattle production system in South Africa

ABSTRACTNinety-five farmers were involved in deriving a set of social, environmental, and economic sustainability indicators, which were used to assess sustainability of the smallholder cattle production system in Ncorha and Gxwalibomvu communities in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. The derived indicators were scored on a 5-point Likert-type scale and aggregated to provide a net sustainability score. Net sustainability scores were grouped into three categories; non-sustainable (<33%), partially sustainable (33–65%), and sustainable (>65%). Aggregate sustainability scores showed that the smallholder cattle production system in Ncorha and Gxwalibomvu, respectively, was socially (48.2% and 56.6%) and environmentally (54.2% and 57%) partially sustainable, but economically (15.7% and 10.8%) non-sustainable. Aggregate scores of the two communities (Ncorha, 37% and Gxwalibomvu, 41.0%) indicated that they were both partially sustainable. Holistic agroecological interventions and institutional support have the potential to improve the economic dimension of sustainability while simultaneously maintaining or improving the social and environmental dimensions. Adoption of agroecological interventions can be facilitated through farmer field schools.

Systemic perspectives on scaling agricultural innovations. A review

Agricultural production involves the scaling of agricultural innovations such as disease-resistant and drought-tolerant maize varieties, zero-tillage techniques, permaculture cultivation practices based on perennial crops and automated milking systems. Scaling agricultural innovations should take into account complex interactions between biophysical, social, economic and institutional factors. Actual methods of scaling are rather empirical and based on the premise of ‘find out what works in one place and do more of the same, in another place’. These methods thus do not sufficiently take into account complex realities beyond the concepts of innovation transfer, dissemination, diffusion and adoption. As a consequence, scaling initiatives often do not produce the desired effect. They may produce undesirable effects in the form of negative spill-overs or unanticipated side effects such as environmental degradation, bad labour conditions of farm workers and loss of control of farming communities over access to genetic resources. Therefore, here, we conceptualise scaling processes as an integral part of a systemic approach to innovation, to anticipate on the possible consequences of scaling efforts. We propose a method that connects the heuristic framework of the multi-level perspective on socio-technical transitions (MLP) to a philosophical ‘modal aspects’ framework, with the objective of elucidating the connectedness between technologies, processes and practices. The resultant framework, the PRactice-Oriented Multi-level perspective on Innovation and Scaling (PROMIS), can inform research and policymakers on the complex dynamics involved in scaling. This is illustrated in relation to three cases in which the framework was applied: scaling agro-ecological practices in Nicaragua, farmer field schools on cocoa cultivation in Cameroon and ‘green rubber’ cultivation in Southwest China.

Gendered division of labour and feminisation of responsibilities in Kenya; implications for development interventions

Analysing gender roles as a social organisation element of a community is critical for understanding actors’ rationales and agency with regard to allocation and use of resources. This article discusses gender relations and how they determine development outcomes, based on a highland-lowland case-study of participants of Farmer Field Schools in Kakamega Central Sub-County (highland) and Mbeere South Sub-County (lowland). The gender relations at stake include the gendered division of labour, gender roles and intra-household power relations as expressed in access and control of resources and benefits and their implications for agricultural development. The study used mixed methods, the Harvard Analytical Framework of gender roles and draws on the Neo-Marxist position on exploitation, categorisation and institutionalisation of power relations, empowerment and the critical moments framework to discuss the results. Results in both Sub-Counties show that patriarchy prevails, determining institutional design, access and control of resources and benefits. Social positions shape capabilities and strategies of actors in decision-making and use of resources to justify gender-specific institutional arrangements. In Kakamega, men get the lion share of incomes from contracted sugarcane farming despite overburdening workloads on women, while in Mbeere, both men and women derive incomes from Khat (Catha Edulis) enterprises. However, women are expected to spend their earnings on household expenditures, which were hitherto responsibilities of men, thereby contributing to the feminisation of responsibilities. Development policies and interventions thus need to be based on an understanding of men and women’s differential access and control over resources and the institutions underpinning men and women’s bargaining power in order to adopt more effective measures to reduce gender inequalities.

Junior Farmer Field Schools, Agricultural Knowledge and Spillover Effects: Quasi-Experimental Evidence from Northern Uganda

We analyse the impact of a junior farmer field school (JFFS) project in Northern Uganda on students’ agricultural knowledge and practices. Assuming that children are induced to transmit their newly acquired knowledge to their parents and guardians, we also test for the presence of spillover effects at household level. The empirical analysis is based on two sources of panel data: a household survey and a dataset containing results of a test on agricultural knowledge administered to treated and control students before and after the program by the project’s staff. We use matching difference-in-differences estimators, comparing the key outcomes across matched samples of treated and non-treated groups before and after the project intervention. We find that the program had positive effects on students’ agricultural knowledge and adoption of good practices and that it produced some spillover effects in terms of improvements of household agricultural knowledge and food security. However, we find no impact on the propensity to introduce new agricultural good practices and on household agricultural production. Overall, our results point to the importance of adapting the basic principles of farmer field schools to children through junior farmer field schools, as they could improve short and long-term food security and well-being of both children and their households.

English

Banana xanthomonas wilt (BXW) has been successfully controlled in major banana growing areas between 2005 and 2008. This was due to combined use of participatory approaches for mobilising technology users such as farmer field schools and Integrated Agricultural Research for development (IAR4D) using cultural practices. However, the approaches focussed on small communities of about 30 to 300 farmers. Between 2010 and 2012, BXW prevalence in the region increased to 34 and 45%. In 2012, the strategy for BXW control changed from approaches that target technology users at community (village level) to those that target many technology users at regional level. Then the action plans of districts and sub-counties were designed to achieve the goal of the regional action plan rather than support action plans of a community. The overall implementation of the regional plan was spearheaded and coordinated by the regional taskforce, instituted by regional stakeholders.&nbsp; BXW prevalence reduced from about 45% in June 2012 to about 13% in September, 2013, with banana production recovery of 40% from the peak of BXW epidemic in all the 10 districts of the Ankole region. The approaches used have been described in this paper to hopefully contribute to scale out BXW control to other main banana growing areas in Uganda and beyond. Key words: Banana, BXW, participatory approaches, scale-out.

Factors Influencing Smallholder Crop Diversification: A Case Study of Manicaland and Masvingo Provinces in Zimbabwe

&lt;p&gt;This study analyzes the degree of crop diversification and factors associated with crop diversification among 479 smallholder farmers in Manicaland and Masvingo provinces of Zimbabwe. The Herfindahl index used to estimate diversification, while the Tobit model evaluated factors associated with crop diversification. The mean crop diversity index is 0.54. On average households in Nyanga and Bikita are the most diversified with indices of 0.48 and 0.49 respectively. The most specialized households are in Mutasa and Chiredzi with indices of 0.62. An analysis by gender shows that male headed households are slightly more diversified than female headed households. The Tobit model indicates that gender of head of household, education, number of livestock units, access to irrigation, membership to a farmers group, access to markets, farming experience, farms on flat terrain, farmer to farm extension, routine extension, agro-ecological zone and household income are significant contributors to increasing crop diversification. In turn, crop specialization is significantly associated with off-farm employment, soil fertility, farmers who are happy with extension contacts per year, farmers trained using the farmer field school approach and farmers who receive NGO extension support.&lt;/p&gt;

Understanding (non-) adoption of Conservation Agriculture in Kenya using the Reasoned Action Approach

In recent years, Conservation Agriculture has been promoted in sub-Saharan Africa as an alternative farming system for smallholder farmers to address declining soil productivity and climate change. CA has to be tailored to the agro-ecological and socio-economic context of smallholder farmers to achieve impact. But even if there is a ‘perfect fit’, the farmer still has his or her own reasons to choose whether to switch to CA or not. This paper explores the reasons why farmers choose for CA or conventional farming, using the Reasoned Action Approach. Based on findings from a recent study in Kenya among CA farmer field school members and their neighbours, the farmer’s decision making is analysed by distinguishing three elements in the decision-making process: the farmer’s attitude towards CA, the farmer’s perception of the social norms towards CA, and the farmer’s perceived behavioural control (PBC) over practicing CA. Strong evidence was found that attitude and PBC are contributing to intentions to adopt CA practices. It is concluded that experimentation and learning are key to support intentions and adoption of CA, because they contribute both to realistic attitudes towards CA and an improved perceived behavioural control.

Rice productivity improvement in Cambodia through the application of technical recommendation in a farmer field school

ABSTRACTInnovation in rice (Oryza sativa) productivity improvement is a major goal for rice research. However, many studies have tended to analyse the various factors that affect productivity separately, while farmers invest their scare resources in farm inputs that impact on multiple factors in the real farm. This study assessed the effectiveness of integrated pest management practised during farmer field school (FFS) training in Cambodia on the production efficiencies, yields and profitability of rice farming. In total, 270 FFSs on rice cultivated in the early wet, wet and dry seasons were randomly selected from three provinces in 3 years to analyse the production practices and productivity using six cost-related factors: seed, planting methods, field management, fertilizer use, pesticide application and harvesting. It was found that yields and profits were significantly higher with the technically recommended practices (TRs) than with traditional farmer practices (FPs). However, the reverse was true for production costs due to the overuse of seed and pesticides in FP, neither of which are correlated with yield increase for both FP and TR. Thus, the FFS approach is a knowledge-intensive field management tool that enables the rational use of farm inputs and that is expected to be highly effective for sustainable rice production improvement.

Smallholder farmers' motivations for using Conservation Agriculture and the roles of yield, labour and soil fertility in decision making

Conservation Agriculture (CA) has been widely promoted as an agro-ecological approach to sustainable production intensification. Despite numerous initiatives promoting CA across Sub-Saharan Africa there have been low rates of adoption. Furthermore, there has been strong debate concerning the ability of CA to provide benefits to smallholder farmers regarding yield, labour, soil quality and weeding, particularly where farmers are unable to access external inputs such as herbicides. This research finds evidence that CA, using no external inputs, is most attractive among the very poor and that farmers are driven primarily by strong motivational factors in the key areas of current contention, namely yield, labour, soil quality and weeding time benefits. This study is the first to incorporate a quantitative socio-psychological model to understand factors driving adoption of CA. Using the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB), it explores farmers' intention to use CA (within the next 12months) in Cabo Delgado, Mozambique where CA has been promoted for almost a decade. The study site provides a rich population from which to examine farmers' decision making in using CA. Regression estimates show that the TPB provides a valid model of explaining farmers' intention to use CA accounting for 80% of the variation in intention. Farmers' attitude is found to be the strongest predictor of intention. This is mediated through key cognitive drivers present that influence farmers' attitude such as increased yields, reduction in labour, improvement in soil quality and reduction in weeds. Subjective norm (i.e. social pressure from referents) and perceived behavioural control also significantly influenced farmers' intention. Furthermore, path analysis identifies farmers that are members of a Farmer Field School or participants of other organisations (e.g. savings group, seed multiplication group or a specific crop/livestock association) have a significantly stronger positive attitude towards CA with the poorest the most likely users and the cohort that find it the easiest to use. This study provides improved understanding relevant to many developing countries, of smallholder farmers' adoption dynamics related to CA, and of how farmers may approach this and other ‘new’ management systems.

Estimating the impact of farmer field schools in sub‐Saharan Africa: the case of cocoa

AbstractThis study measures the economic impact of the first phase of the Cocoa Livelihood Program (CLP‐I), a current World Cocoa Foundation (WCF) project, sponsored by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and aimed at improving the livelihood of over 200,000 small cocoa producers in sub‐Saharan Africa via training, crop diversification, and farmer‐based organizations. Using data collected from 2,048 pre‐ and post‐CLP‐I interviews of cocoa producers in Ghana, Cote d'Ivoire, Nigeria, and Cameroon, the results show that yield enhancements attributable to CLP‐I are 32%, 34%, 50%, and 62% in Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Nigeria, and Cameroon, respectively. Using a total program cost of $151–$200 per beneficiary and estimated annual benefits of $109–$322 per beneficiary over 25 years, the benefit‐cost ratios are estimated to range from $18 to $62 for every dollar spent on human capital development. These results suggest the WCF should endeavor to increase the number of farmers who receive all, not some, of the components of the program. This would not only help ensure that each producer obtains as much human capital as possible from each of the training programs but increases the probability of reaching the CLP goal of doubling the income of cocoa‐growing households.

Comparison of Farmer’s Agriculture Information Channels and Farming Practice in Tanzania

There are mixed empirical evidences on the effectiveness of Farmer Field School (FFS). The evidences on various studies vary because of the setting, evaluation methods and yardstick used. This paper aims to investigate the impact of District Agricultural Sector Investment Project (DASIP) on knowledge and productivity. The study was conducted in the area where (DASIP) operated. This covered five regions namely Kagera, Mwanza, Mara, Simiyu and Kigoma. Within those regions, the study focused on agro-ecological zone where corn was cultivated. The data was collected from 878 farmers out of 971, who were targeted. Among them, 359 were participant and 519 were non-participant farmers. This study employed a five-stage sampling technique. The findings show that the effects of DASIP on participating farmers are very little as they resemble non-participating farmers in terms of knowledge and farming practices. Despite that, non-participating farmers are 8.724 times the odds of corn yield not to increase compared to participating farmers. Based on findings, it may recommended that, agriculture programmes should run smoothly by providing technical and financial commitment to improve the performance of extension officers.