For more information, please contact: (for Asia courses) Education and Training Program International Institute  of Rural Reconstruction Y.C. James Yen Center Silang 4118, Cavite, Philippines Tel/Fax : (63-46) 414 - 2417 (63-2) 886-4385 Email: Education.Training@iirr.org and / or (for Africa courses) The Training Officer IIRR-Africa Regional Center P.O Box 66873-00800 Westlands Nairobi, Kenya Tel: +254-20-4442610 / 4440991 Fax: 254-20-4448148 E-mail: training@iirr-africa.org or admin@iirr-africa.org

Customized Courses

The Farmer Led Extension Course (Africa)

Agriculture and the management of natural resources for productive enterprises remains an important element of development in Africa. Agricultural extension service is a major strategy to support agricultural innovation, development and production within the region. In recent years, the use of participatory extension approaches has led to positive outcomes in agricultural and natural resources development in the region.

In order to respond to the need and to further promote participatory extension approaches in Africa, the International Institute of Rural Reconstruction (IIRR), in collaboration with the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) is organizing a regional course on Farmer Led Extension. This is particularly important during the time when most African governments are privatizing extension services.

Learning objectives

This course aims to contribute to the institutionalization of farmer led extension approaches in Africa through:

• Creating awareness, understanding and appreciation of the farmer as a leader in rural development and extension
• Building the capacities of these professionals to design, implement, monitor and evaluate participatory extension programs to achieve the goals of food security in the region.

At the end of the course, participants will have:

• Discussed a historical perspective of various approaches, which have been used to provide agricultural extension services to farmers and their communities globally, and more specifically in the African context
• Explained basic concepts and principles which guide participatory extension methodologies;
• Increased their capability to design, implement, and evaluate participatory extension programmes through a critical analysis of extension programmes/approaches in Africa
• Discussed the set of factors (i.e. social, institutional, financial, etc) which influence the decisions and actions to incorporate relevant aspects of participatory extension approaches into agricultural extension programs
• Prepared an action plan to incorporate a participatory extension strategy into an existing agricultural extension program; and
• Explored opportunities to enhance extension partnership, emerging decentralization, privatization and market linkages.

Course content

The course will cover

• An overview of agricultural extension approaches; lessons and insights towards more participatory extension
• Principles and methods of farmer led extension
• Critical analysis of own organizations extension programmes
• Applications of farmer led extension approaches
• Decentralization, privatization and market linkages
• Food security
• Socio-cultural issues that affect extension work
• Participatory research
• Participatory M&E within farmer-led extension
• The development of actions plans to integrate farmer led extension approaches into own work situation.

Learning methods

Case materials, field and agency visits and interaction with farmers, staff from projects and organizations involved in participatory extension programs serve as the basis for discussions. A 2-day field learning is one of the highlights of the course. Participants will also be expected to prepare concrete action plans for integrating lessons learnt in the course into their organization’s extension programmes.
Participants are expected to bring information materials that describe their organization and agricultural extension approaches with which they are working.

top 4