Wednesday, 5 June 2013

RECOGNIZING THE PRINCIPLES AND IDEAS OF EXTENSION


The total concept and practice of extension are the central themes of guide. However, before starting to look at the several different aspects of extension practice, the meaning of the term extension needs to be examined. Rural extension is now a common activity in most countries and regions of the world, and it is a basic element in programmes and projects formulated to bring about change in rural areas and to the rural dwellers. Extension services are similarly a common feature of the administrative structure of rural areas and these services have the responsibility, in partnership with the farmers (target), of directing programmes and projects for changes in farming and innovations.

The service of extension is a term which is open to a wide variety of interpretations. Each extension agent probably has his own understanding of what extension is and known. This understanding will be based on past experience and the particular type of extension service in which the agent is working. This simply means that, there is no single definition of extension which is universally accepted or which is applicable to all situations of extension. Furthermore, extension is a dynamic concept in the sense that the interpretation of it is always changing from time to time. Extension is therefore not a term which can be precisely defined, but one which describes a continual and changing process in rural areas and dwellers.

The word extension can be examined by looking at a number of statements that have been written extension.
  • That the word extension is an informal educational process directed toward the rural dwellers. This process offers advice and information to help them solve their farming problems. Extension also aims to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the farm family, increase production and generally increase the standard of living of the farm family.
  • One of the objectives of extension is to change farmers' outlook toward their farm and life difficulties. Extension is concerned not just with physical and economic achievements but also with the development of the rural people themselves. Extension agents, therefore, discuss matters with the rural people; help them to gain and achieve a clearer insight into their problems and also to decide how to overcome these problems.
  • Is a process of working with rural people in order to improve their livelihoods possible? This involves helping farmers to improve the productivity of their agriculture produce and also developing their abilities to direct their own future development.
The above definitions and statements are presented to illustrate the range of interpretations that can be found about extension. They do, however, they contain a number of common extension points. They all geared that extension is a process which occurs over a period of time, and not a single, one-time activity. They also all underline extension as an educational process which works with rural population, supports them and prepares them to confront their problems more successfully.

If the definitions such as the ones above are examined more carefully, and if the current ideas and practice of extension are considered, four main elements can be identified within the process of extension which is: motivation and self-confidence, knowledge and skills, technical advice and information, farmers' organization, as well as.

Motivation and self-confidence

One of the main challenges to development that many farmers face is isolation, and a feeling that there is little they can do to change their lives. Most farmers will have engage all their lives and living struggling in difficult circumstances to provide for their families with little support or encouragement. It is important for extension workers to work closely with farmers, helping them to take the initiative and generally encouraging them to become involved in extension activities and operations. Equally important is to convince farmers that they can do things for themselves at their own time, that they can make decisions and that they have the ability to break out of their poverty line.

It is not suggested that all extension activities must contain each of these elements, or that some are more important than others. Clearly, the extension approach will be determined by the particular circumstances at that point in time. However, an overall extension service should be based on these elements and should seek to promote them within the rural areas. In most cases the local farmers’ problems will demand on prompt information and advice.

Knowledge and skills

Farmers already have a lot of knowledge about their environment as well as their farming operation, extension can bring them other knowledge and information which they do not posses. For instance, the knowledge about the cause of the damage to a particular crop, the general principles of pest control and pesticides, or the ways in which manure and compost are broken down to provide plant nutrients are all areas of knowledge that the agent can usefully bring to farmers attention.

The application of such knowledge often means that the farmer has to acquire new skills of various kinds: for example, technical skills to operate unfamiliar equipment, organizational skills to manage a group project, the skill to assess the economic aspects of technical advice given, or farm management skills for keeping records and allocating the use of farm resources and equipment. The transfer of knowledge and skills to farmers and their families is an important extension activity and the extension agent must prepare himself thoroughly. He must find out which skills or areas of knowledge are lacking among the farmers in his area, and then arrange suitable learning experiences through which the farmers can acquire them.

Technical advice and information

In extension, there is also the provision of advice and information to assist farmers in making decisions and generally enable them to take action steps. This can be information about prices and markets, for instance, the availability of credit and inputs. The technical advice will probably apply more directly to the production activities of the farm family and to the action needed to improve or sustain production. Much of this technical advice will be based upon the findings of agricultural research. In many instances, farmers are also sources of valuable advice and information for other farmers, and agents should always try to establish a farmer-to-farmer communication.

Farmers' organization

Just like knowledge, information and technical advice, farmers also need some form of organization, both to represent their interests and to give them a means for taking collective action steps. Extension therefore, should be concerned with helping to set up, structure and develop organizations of local farmers group. This should be a joint venture and any such organization should only be set up in consultation with the farmers. In the future, these organizations will make it easier for extension services to work with local farmers, and will also serve as a channel for disseminating information as well as knowledge to the rural dwellers.

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