introductory training course using the lll internet learning

Microsoft Word - Proceed_Uganda.DOCIntroductory Training Course on Using the LLL Internet Learning Support Service
June 22nd to 25th 2004 Global Learning Centre at the Ugandan Management Institute, Kampala. Uganda.
ht tp: / /www.l inkinglearners.net
Course faci l i tators Cl ive Lightfoot Uel i Scheuermeier Jacob Nymand Anne Dennig
PROCEEDINGS: Introductory Training Course on the LLL Internet Learning Support Service
Training Course on Linked Local Learning Internet Learning Support Service Uganda. 22 – 25 June 2004 ht tp: / /www.l ink inglearners.net Page 2 of 22
Contents Page
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Training Course Design 9
Training Course Outputs:
Learning Areas for Improving Info & Communication Management
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Introduction to the Linked Local Learning (LLL) Internet Learning Support Service This internet learning support service allows groups of local learners to stay in contact with each other over distances and help them organize and see the advances in their learning over time. The service is provided by the International Support Group*. How does the internet learning support service work? The basic unit of learning is the ‘local learning group’ of some twenty to forty people all living and working in the same locality. Many local learning groups, maybe from different districts or even countries, come together in a ‘learning team’ to learn about a particular theme. Many learning teams each on different themes share their knowledge in a ‘knowledge pool’. Each and every learning group in a team has access to the internet learning support service. The service works through email and through the internet**.
Through the email the learning support service works like a mailing list. This means that all the learning groups in a learning team get the messages that somebody sends through an email. So everyone sees how a discussion is developing and everyone can email in their ideas. You can therefore follow a discussion simply by saving the email messages. You can also search and automatically get documents by sending an email request.
Through the internet the learning support service works like any other website. You can click on the “LLL Hot Button” on your website that will take you to the LLL internet service website and to the Knowledge Pool from which you can go directly to your learning team. Once in your learning team you can then use all the learning tools directly.
How does the internet learning support service link learners?
Learning groups are linked to all users of the service allowing them to pool their knowledge so that it can be shared among all teams using the service. For example: When a group of learners decides they want to explore a new topic they can search all the discussions and documents of the other learning teams in the ‘knowledge-pool’. When they find anything interesting they can take up contact with those who already have experience to share.
Learning groups can work together in their team using a calendar that allows them to organize who is doing what and when. They can also give each other tasks with deadlines.
Learning groups can discuss a topic with their team members through sending and receiving email messages. Messages are threaded together so you can see which message answers to which earlier message.
Learning groups can identify the messages that they would like to include as news items. A ‘personalized’ automatically generated newsletter sends the news to the learning group.
Learning groups can ask for what has been said in a discussion or written in a document on a topic of their own interest in their team or in other teams by posting their own questions or queries.
Learning groups can put documents into the library for everyone to read. This allows them to see the advances in their learning over time.
Introduction to the Linked Local Learning (LLL) Internet Learning Support Service (continued) How can I use the internet learning support service? There are three kinds of users of the learning support service: learning groups, their learning facilitators and guests.
1. Learning groups are ‘authors’ who can read everything and also write in a contribution. They are on the emailing list. They have to use their personal ID and Password that is given to them by the learning facilitators.
2. Learning facilitators are ‘authors’ and ‘editors’ who can not only read and write they can also edit contributions and settings. They are on the mailing list as the contact person for in the learning teams.
3. Anybody can be a guest to the learning support service by using the "guest" facility. Guests can only read what is there, they cannot contribute anything. They are not on the mailing list to receive any emails.
*ISG is an international non-profit professional association registered in the Netherlands. <www.isglink.org>
**The learning support software is Instantteam. This is shareware, ie. it is free for anybody to install and use it as they wish, or develop it further. Instantteam was developed in a partnership between Helvetas (a Swiss NGO http://www.helvetas.ch ) and the Swiss software company IDESO http://www.ideso.ch
Introduction to Linked Local Learning Processes and Principles of Linked Local Learning Linked Local learning is a simple process in which many different people with a common interest come together to try out new ways of working together. For us, that common interest is information and communication management. Local learning takes us through a structured learning process in which we:
IDENTIFY what is to be learned and who are the learners.
Develop or invent a new IDEA of something to try.
Do some ACTION and try out something.
Get a RESULT from concrete experience.
REFLECT or think about what happened. The process centres on inventing and trying out a new way of working together. After the trials we then reflect together on how the new ways performed to fine tune or scrap the idea and try something else. It is through reflection and the emergence of new ideas to try out that the learning process becomes continuous as shown below. To succeed local learning must not to dwell too long on problems as this can lead discussions into unhelpful arguments and finger pointing that inhibit future collaboration. Rather discussions should develop what each organization can do to move towards a common improved situation. Discussing new improvements not only motivates people more but also nurtures future collaboration. Making local learning a success depends largely on the local learners themselves. To be successful learners must keep to a basic set of rules as follows:
• Learners must take responsibility for their own ideas and actions. • Learners must be prepared to take the lead using their own existing resources for spontaneous action. • Learners must build trust, rely on the integrity of others and respect others ideas and feelings. • Learners must be open having no hidden agendas and honest to say what they really think.
For more information on Linked Local Learning Lightfoot, Alders & Dolberg. 2001. Linking Local Learners: Negotiating New Development Relationships between Village, District and Nation. ISG/CTA. Wageningen, Netherlands.
ACTION Trying out something
IDENTIFY What is to be learned? Why are we learning it? Who are the learners?
IDEA of something to
Introduction to Linked Local Learning Important information flows in Linked Local Learning? The important information flows in local learning are local between one farmer group and another and between farmer groups and their local service providers. Farmers share their challenges with each other and get back new ideas from each other. Farmers share their service demands with service providers and get back advice on what to do next.
The challenges farmers’ share for new ideas and advice are concrete and practical; such as the Marketing of specific products like peas, or obtaining microfinance for particular enterprises like livestock. The learning is on concrete practical questions like:
How farmers’ questions can be answered by local advisory groups? How to get advice for farmers which they have asked for? How to provide useful responses to farmers’ questions and challenges? How can learners make it easy for farmers to find out what they need to know to improve their farms? How can the internet enable learners to network efficiently when marketing our produce or managing information? How to help farmers and service providers share experiences and challenges?
Farmer Group
Farmer Group
Farmer Group
Advisory Service
Ideas Ideas
Introduction to Linked Local Learning People involved in Linked Local Learning All the people involved in LLL pool their knowledge together on each learning topic. Each topic like Demand Driven Services or Information and Communication Management has its own learning team. That team is made up of people from different countries working a national, district and local levels. The local level comprises farmer groups and local service providers (extension agents, private advisors, NGO’s, private input suppliers). The district or outreach level comprises managers of organizations supporting farmers, private or public service providers or NGO’s. The national level comprises managers and policy makers in public or private organizations. The international level comprises the mentors of the learning process supporting all levels of learners.
COUNTRY COUNTRY COUNTRY
Local Contacts in Farmer Groups FG
LEARNING TEAM
LEARNING TEAM
LT 3
KNOWLEDGE POOL
Introduction to Linked Local Learning Learning Group Contacts
National organizational contact Outreach / District contact Local Learning group contact Kato Asaph [email protected] DATICS national office
Dennis Ssebinojo [email protected] Masaka DATIC Loy Nyamijumbi [email protected] Masaka DATIC George Patrick Wandera [email protected] Tororo DATIC Akaziah Masereje [email protected] Tororo DATIC Abner Botiri [email protected] Pallisa DATIC Godfrey Wambazo [email protected] Kabarole DATIC John Sserwadda [email protected] Rakai DATIC
Caesar Enzama [email protected] UNFFE national secretariat
Perez Kawumi [email protected] Mpigi District Farmers Assoc Peter Kisambira [email protected] Iganga District Farmers Assoc.
David Lule [email protected] Mpigi District Farmers Assoc. Bakka Edward [email protected] Mpigi Jessica Nambuya [email protected] Iganga Joseph Baliraine [email protected] Iganga District Farmers Assoc
James Okoth [email protected] FAO/FFS
Geoffrey Ouma, [email protected] Sihubira Farmers Organisation. Betty Ajambo [email protected] Mahono Mahalabani FFS, Busia John Peter Opio [email protected] Soil Conservation FFS Mbale Pallisa John Ereng [email protected] Africa 2000 network Harriet Atim [email protected] Sweetpotato ICM FFS
Francis Byekwaso [email protected] NAADS secretariat Geresom Okecho [email protected] NAADS secretariat
Charles Aben [email protected] Soroti District Francis Alacho [email protected] Busia District
James Ronald Ocan [email protected] Olio Sub county Farmers' Forum, Soroti Peter Ocepa [email protected] Good Service (U) Ltd, Soroti
Training Course Design The objectives of the training course 1) understand why linked local learning on demand driven services is important to us We want to reach a common understanding of why linked local learning on demand
driven services is important to us
2) understand the processes of linked local learning We want to clarify our understanding of the practice and principles of linked local learning
3) identify the critical challenges we face in making demand driven services work for small holder farm families
We want to identify the critical challenges we face as farmers, service providers and managers of service agencies in making demand driven services work for small holder farm families
4) gain skills in using the LLL internet learning support service We want to get sufficient skills to use the LLL internet learning support service efficiently and cost effectively.
1) Understanding all the tools in the service – team tools and knowledge pool 2) Making contact with other learners 3) Engaging in a discussion and starting your own discussion 4) Putting in and taking out documents in the library of lesson learned 5) Searching for information in the knowledge pool
The training allows trainees to explore with each other and invited resource persons what they mean by demand driven services and how they understand linked local learning processes. From a common understanding of these concepts participants then identify for themselves what critical challenges they face as, farmers, service providers, and managers, in making demand driven services work better for small holder farm families. Skills to use the LLL internet learning support service cover understanding the site and the learning tools available, contacting other learners, engaging in discussions, taking out of and contributing to the library of resource materials, and searching for information in the knowledge pool. The training lasts four days combing face-to-face group work and plenary discussions with online sessions where trainees have access to the suite of learning tools on the LLL internet learning support service. On the first day trainees will explore in groups how they understand the concept of demand driven extension and the processes of linked local learning.
The second day will focus on individual skill building exercises on using internet learning support tools. On the third day trainees will practice online discussion to identify critical challenges for making demand driven advisory services work for them. The fourth day will focus on reflection, evaluation and planning the next six months learning.
Training Course Design The schedule of the training activities
Day 1: Introduction and Internet Simulation Game TIME ACTIVITY
9.00 – 12.30 1. Introduction to the training
2. Presentation of facilitator team and agreement on house rules, appointment of trainee committees for evaluation and welfare 3. Building an internet learning support website in two stages. Stage One: People and Understanding Demand Driven Services 4. Introduction to Stage Two: Internet Simulation Game 5. Formation of teams
LUNCH BREAK 14.00 – 18.00 1. Play internet simulation game
2. Construct the LLL internet learning support services of learning tools and knowledge pool 3. Online guided tour of the LLL services internet site
Day 2. Discovery Learning Tasks TIME ACTIVITY
8.30 – 12.30 1. Introduction to the day’s schedule of activities
2. Explanation of discovery learning tasks on the LLL internet learning support tools 3 Online individual discovery learning on tools
LUNCH BREAK 14.00 – 18.00 1. Individual discovery learning tasks continued
2. Reflection and evaluation of discovery learning tasks 3. Report back of trainee evaluation and welfare committees
Training Course Design The schedule of the training activities (continued)
Day 3. Online Practice of LLL service TIME ACTIVITY
2. Explanation of the online practice session on LLL internet learning support service site 3. Formation of teams 4. Online practice session on the LLL internet service
LUNCH BREAK 14.00 – 18.00 1. Online practice session on using the LLL internet service continued
2. Reflection and evaluation of the practice session 3. Report back of trainee evaluation and welfare committees
Day 4. Reflection and Next Steps TIME ACTIVITY
2. Formation of groups 3. SWOT analysis on sustaining the learning activities
LUNCH BREAK 13.00 - 14.00 1. Reflection on the training activities and training materials
2. Closing and awarding of certificates
Training Course Design Participants Evaluation of the training course
What improvement do I suggest for the next course Duration of the workshop increased so as to get enough practice on the computer More time needed for more “Hands on “ The Internet Before training begin with an introduction to how the Internet works Devote most of the available time on the use of the Internet and email Provide more time for beginner participants on the computer / Internet Involve more farmers Translate course into Kwashilli Have a recap/feedback from participants every morning Inform all the participants irrespective of their computer literacy levels that they work together but be ready to help each other Arrange separate training for different people who are at different wave length of computer knowledge, etc The course should include Internet surfing skills Give more time for practicing, especially on posting and downloading the library. More on sharing experiences with contact persons beyond Africa Having discussions of access to information more targeting the rural farmers with their problems of ignorance, poverty and illiteracy Emphasis on reasonable participation by both sexes ie males and females.
What did I really like about the course? Participation between different organization and individual organizations as well The workshop method of discussion and hands on practicals ensured full participant by all The idea of exchanging information/sharing experiences through local linked learning Acquiring skills in generating and posting information in the internet service library Hands-on nature and instant viewing of inputs to the LLL link enhanced my understanding The course was very practical It went step by step which was very good Skills on how I can locally improve my learning economically The sharing on LLL it has enabled me get a clear picture of LLL The training was very practical and a lot of hands on skills were developed Having a discussion on the Internet and responding Gaining skills on using the LLL internet support service Built my capacity to post/download discuss, share experiences and search for information on the LLL website Discussions and exchange of ideas on challenges we face in our organization and how we can exchange information on Internet The practical use of the Internet and learning how to access my E-mail Learning how to use the LLL website to engage into constructive and useful discussions and also to be able to access relevant information Acquiring new knowledge and skills to link my self to LLL website to enable to share experience and knowledge with stakeholders of demand driven services Well-organized good facilitators who have made this training more practical and interesting through learning by doing technique I liked the facilitators’ flexibility in handling all the trainees others were fast learners yet others were totally new but they managed. The technical competence of the facilitators The course presenters were very organized and particular to the topics The facilitators were eloquent and good time managers The facilitators were very friendly and easy to approach
Other Comments More frequent training needed, as practice makes perfect There is still need to organize another 1- week training Support our organization with connectivity to Internet Further training needed on information and communication skills Organize another workshop on information technology Decentralize the training to district Another training similar to this should be organized at lower levels The issue of how to advance this LLL through Internet is very critical
Introduction to Learning Areas Demand Driven Services This local lesson learning activity enables local farmer groups and other key players in agriculture support service delivery to learn how they can work together to make demand driven extension work better for small holder farming families. Importance Generally speaking there has been an over reliance on ‘top down’ designs for demand-driven extension systems. The diversity of circumstances that countries, districts and villagers find themselves in has rendered ‘blue print’ approaches to design largely ineffective. Today, many realize that ‘top down’ designs need to be balanced with ‘local’ insights from field experiences. This ‘local’ lesson learning activity intends to provide the voice from local people that many believe is now needed to rapidly enhance on-going efforts in demand-driven services. Of course, lessons are being learnt at the local level all the time - but they are not shared with others, neither are the local good practices that emerge. This local lesson learning activity will use modern information and communication technology combined with an internet learning support service to overcome the ‘sharing and learning together’ challenges currently faced. Goals and objectives The overall goal of local lesson learning is to make demand-driven extension work better for small holder farming families. However, over the next year this lesson learning activity has three immediate objectives as follows:
1. Provide insights from local real world experiences to donors, planners of agricultural services and policy makers on how best to support and facilitate the emergence of farmers’ groups capable of negotiating and/or organising agricultural services and of service providers capable of offering the kind of services which bring real benefits to resource poor farmers
2. Provide insights into how modern Information and Communication Technology can speed up and make more transparent local lesson learning among the many stakeholders involved in demand-driven extension.
3. Strengthen the capacity of resource poor farmers and their organisations to engage in practical learning with service providers and other key players. Implementation of lesson learning activity This lesson learning activity is implemented for one year in four stages each having their own milestones.
1. In the first stage a coordination team of learning facilitators is established along with self-organization of local learning groups in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. 2. The second stage includes training of local learning groups in active learning-by-doing processes and in the use of the internet learning support service, as well as the
determination of what the learning groups what to learn to improve demand driven extension and how they can better connect to the internet. 3. The third stage combines active learning-by-doing in the field by the local learning groups with internet supported learning. 4. The fourth stage reflects on the experiences of the learning groups at a regional workshop and the development of proposals for sustaining the local lesson learning activity.
Introduction to Learning Areas Information and Communication Management This local lesson learning activity enables local and district chapters of farmer associations/unions and other key players in agriculture information services along with their national leadership to learn how they can work together to improve their information and communication management to small farmers. Local lesson learning is a methodology that can enhance the partnerships of CTA, UNFFE and KENFAP by strengthening the demand capacity of national organisations vis-à-vis CTA, and at the same time strengthening their capacity to facilitate and react to demands from their local clients. Importance Many local and national farmer organisations want to use modern information and communication technologies to improve the information and communication management for their activities and interactions with stakeholders. Among the key problems they face is the lack of knowledge on the design of cost-effective and participatory ICM systems. This lesson learning activity will attempt to contribute to the development of such systems. It will help farmers’ organisations more effectively deliver the required services as close as possible to the farmers themselves. In addition, learning will generate new ideas into the use of modern ICTs for information exchanges among key stakeholders (i.e., resource-poor farmers and their collective organisations). The lesson learning activity will also address a number of other burning issues emerging from KENFAP, UNFEE’s and CTA’s experiences with their partnership to develop new information and communication management systems. Key among these issues are: a) weaknesses related to the project management cycle and b) the irregularity of stakeholder feedback on project performance. This latter issue makes it difficult to develop well-defined targeted activities that will make a difference and have an impact. Indeed, many stakeholders ask for a more participatory, systematic process for monitoring what is happening in their projects. Goals and objectives This lesson learning activity has four immediate objectives as follows:
1. Strengthen the capacity of resource poor farmers and their organisations to manage information and communication within their organisation, and with external partners, to ultimately enable them to demand agricultural support services more effectively.
2. Improve interactions between farmers, their organisations and other service providers with a view to mobilising and facilitating the empowerment of the farmers as well as the capacity and structure to respond to the farmers’ service demands.
3. Provide insights from the front line to donors, planners of agricultural services and policy makers on how best to support and facilitate the emergence of farmers’ groups capable of negotiating and/or organising agricultural services and of service providers capable of offering the kind of services which bring real benefits to resource poor farmers
4. Develop a capacity building and learning methodology and a learning methodology for the use of modern Information and Communication Technologies in the spread of local good practice
How is the lesson learning activity implemented? The lesson learning activity is implemented over a period of 5 months (July – November 2004). Following the exploratory workshops in February/March 2004, a coordination team of learning facilitators and self-organised learning groups have been established. Next steps are as follows:
1. Training of local learning groups in active learning-by-doing processes and in the use of the Internet learning support service, as well as the determination of what the learning groups what to learn to improve ICM and how they can better connect to the Internet.
2. Active learning-by-doing in the field by the local learning groups combined with Internet supported learning. 3. Reflection on the experiences of the learning groups at a regional workshop and the development of proposals for sustaining the local lesson learning activity.
Training Course Outputs: Challenges to Demand Driven Services
Yellow Team Challenges of Demand driven Services 1. Access to and cost of acquiring information 2. Lack of learning aids/equipment like Videos, etc 3. Farmers negative attitudes towards participatory planning 4. Top-down planning at district level & national level is not meeting farmers needs 5. Limited resources for transport and allowances to deliver services to the poor 6. Unfavorable policies for small holders 7. Lack of enforcement of laws 8. Politicization of development services program 9. Donor conditions on using development funds
Reply Red Team Challenge: Means and tools of disseminating information in a simply way
1. Access the information the Internet, download it and interpret it into simply and understandable.
2. This information is passed onto link farmers 3. Putting the information in pictorial forms 4. Translating the information through Drama, Role play and songs 5. Use of local magazines
Challenge: Limited resources 1. Improving on member contribution to the group 2. Exploring access to the natural resources around them
Reply Blue Team Challenge: How access information
1. Conduct survey on ways people access info now 2. Integrate separate information collection programs already running
Challenge: Means & tools of disseminating information 1. Pictorial presentation 2. Provide handouts, journals, and newsletters 3. Music, dance and Drama 4. Translation of written material into local language
Reply Green Team Challenge: Dissemination of information
1. Strongly feel that we need to build on the rich indigenous knowledge and local societal structures like drinking groups, burial group, churches, clan meetings as an avenue for information dissemination.
Reply Red Team Challenge: How and where you could get resources
1. Write proposals to relevant institutions which provide funds i.e. S/C, PMA, DATIC etc 2. Encourage farmers to share costs for visits and training 3. Use resources available from local churches, businesses, etc.
Blue Team Challenges of Demand driven Services
1. Limited ability of clients to effectively demand or afford services 2. Late release of funds by funding organizations 3. Accessibility of Internet in order to get information costly for local farmers who are in rural
areas 4. Weak farmer groups with poor membership 5. Unfavorable farmers friendly policies 6. Framers sometimes fail to adopt technologies due to lack of farm inputs 7. It takes a lot of time and effort to change farmers’ attitudes 8. Low level of connectivity e.g. lack of skills and tools to access important development
information 9. Mobilizing resources for sustainable groups
Reply Red Team Challenge: How to mobilize resources
1. Sensitizing on the culture of individual/Group savings (Thrifty saving) 2. Setting up revolving credit and saving at favorable and agreeable condition
Reply Yellow Team Challenge: Use of Music, Drama as a tool for information disseminating
1. Our groups are mostly composed of old people who are not interested in things like music or dance
2. How can we effectively utilize these important and cost effective tools? Reply Yellow Team Challenge: How to access important development information
1. Through networking, seminar/ workshop 2. Written literature inform of magazine, brochure, flyers and books 3. Through Radio/Television program
Challenge: Resource Mobilization 1. Conduct training and/or organizing training in resources mobilization
Training Course Outputs: Challenges to Demand Driven Services (continued) Reply Blue Team Challenge: How to empower the community on how to take charge of planning, implementation and control of programs? 1. Planning level: Community is not involved because it has limited capacity and lack awareness
of their roles and policies in place 2. Implementation Level: Farmers organizations are weak and poorly organized hence lack
capacity to hold implementation officers accountable 3. Advocate for active involvement of the communities in planning and implementation. Challenge: How do we mobilize local resources to sustain our activities? 1. Design our resource mobilization strategy 2. Initiate income generating activities 3. Design ways of minimizing costs i.e. by networking amongst service providers and
development organization From Green Challenge: Resource mobilizing for sustainable groups 1. We try to mobilize local resources to sustain our group activities by initiating income-
generating activities. 2. We would be interested in sharing initiatives on income generating activities from farmers and
service providers.
Green Team Challenges on demand driven services 1. Lack of coordination for service providers 2. Lack of funds for accessing the internet 3. Lack of information on markets, credits and processing 4. Unfavorable Government policies that conflict with technical expertise and market
dynamic 5. Lack of transport facilities and poor roads 6. Lack of adequate/poor dissemination of Agro-related information e.g. HIV/AIDS, gender 7. Fighting wrong information farmers get from input suppliers 8. Political interferences 9. Lack of User-friendly training materials 10. Sustainable group formation and management
Reply Yellow Team Challenge: Sustainable groups
1. Groups do not last long because they have short-lived objectives. 2. Groups fail because they lack of participatory planning and have no local ownership 3. Unrealistic expectations by group members from different service providers and others
Reply Red Team Challenge: Concerning Group formation Groups could be sensitized on group dynamics through the following:
1. Groups get training in-group dynamics 2. Organize group exchange visits to more successful group to share experiences 3. Requesting successful groups group to give case story(s)
Reply Blue Team Challenge: On sustainability Group formation and Management
1. Build capacities of these groups in participatory planning and group dynamics 2. Provide regular and reliable information to the groups for purpose of effective planning
Red Team Challenges of Demand driven Services
1. Groups in the rural settings are not yet properly organized 2. The people are not yet aware of what to do “Cannot demand properly and have not yet
been properly sensitized 3. Cost recovery is still a problem for many in the farming community 4. Lack of participatory planning by all stakeholders at all levels 5. Unrealistic expectations by farmers from the different service providers 6. Uncoordinated services to the farmers e.g. other are pro-organic, while others are pro-
convention 7. The low literacy level among the farming community is a problem, as at times even the
service providers may influence the decisions to be taken by the farmers’ fora 8. Market driven approach to stimulate production, hence the demand for services is
lacking 9. The number of women extension workers (service providers) is still very low and this
hinders the whole system, which has majority as women 10. Inadequate market information flow amongst the farming community
Reply Yellow Team Challenge Accessing market information
1. Through networking, seminars, workshops. 2. Written literature in the form of magazines, brochures, flyers and books 3. Through Radio/Television programs
Challenge: Disseminating market information 1. Networking and sensitizing in seminars and workshops 2. Distributing magazines, brochures flyers and books 3. Radio/TVs
Training Course Outputs: Challenges to Demand Driven Services (continued) Reply Green Team Challenge: Market driven approach to stimulate production
1. Provide farmers with well searched timely information on market demands, prices, possible markets, market trends, product preference, potential market areas, increase interaction between buyers and producers and service providers
2. Promote export villages 3. Promote contract farming eg Vanilla in Mukono
Challenge: Exchange the information between buyers, producers and service providers? 1. To intensify the networking between stakeholders through meetings, workshops eg
Cotton and coffee sector Challenge: Local payment for the people who collect and disseminate information
1. Should encourage cost sharing by embedding the cost of service on price of a product Reply Yellow Team Challenge: Exchange of information on marketing
1. Collect market information though market survey 2. Organize farmers sensitization on strategic marketing 3. Carrying out mass radio sensitization in market opportunities
Reply Blue Team Challenge: Market driven approach to stimulate production
1. Mobilize farmers to form and join groups 2. Provide farmer groups with updates on market information 3. Facilitate contract farming with agro processors
Challenge: Exchange the information between buyers, producers and service providers? 1. Facilitate dialogue between the farmers, service providers and the buyers 2. Improve information exchange amongst the farmers, service providers and buyers.
Challenge: Local payment for the people who collect and disseminate information 1. Marketing commission can be used to pay for information collection 2. Networking members can share costs of information collection
Reply Green Team Challenge: Resource mobilizing for sustainable groups
1. How to mobilize local resources to sustain our group activities by initiating income- generating activities.
2. How and where do you access resources to conduct exchange visits and sensitization or training in-group dynamics?
Reply Yellow Team Challenge: Access information through Internet
1. Internet services where we work is new technology and not easily available 2. Experience has shown that most materials for the Internet are too complicated hence we
are unable to understand it and therefore interpret it for our clients’ magazines are not regular in supply if at all available.
Reply Yellow Team Challenge: Mobilize resources for farmer groups
1. However, the saving culture in our community died many years ago with the death of the cooperative societies. So it is not applicable to our situation setting up a revolving funds needs a starter capital, which we don’t have, so, what other strategies can we use
Training Course Outputs – Learning Areas for Improving Demand Driven Services
NAADS DATICS How to improve farmers ability to access and generate capital The issue of generating the necessary capital for farmers to use for scaling up new enterprises. Commercial rates are too high and they often end up poorer than they started. Farmer groups are often too small to succeed in savings and loans schemes. How to increase farmers access to markets The issue of unreliable and inconsistent buyers, farmers should identify reliable buyers like a Factory (as is the case with Beer brewing Sorghum in Soroti) and sign a contract with them. Forming larger farmer groups can put pressure to lobby for better prices and create bulking centres in accessible locations to reduce transport costs.
How to sustain farmer groups The issue of sustainability of rural youth clubs even after 5 years clubs haven’t shown signs of financial self-sustainability. How to have effective farmer demand on service providers The issue of the limited ability of low income farmers to effectively demand for services offered by service providers. How to improve farmer participation in planning The issue of the lack of participatory planning, implementation and evaluation with local farmers in developing demand driven service programs.
FAO FFS UNFEE How to have effective provision of services The issue of coping up with the diverse clientele needs and accommodating as much of their interests as possible cost effectively. How to sustain farmer groups The issue of group break up at the end of a development project because they do not have proper goals and expect free handouts not considering what they can do on their own. They could initiate a savings and credit culture among members or collectively share and hire labour, or pursue a cause that entirely requires local community vision. How to increase farmers access to markets The issue of developing reliable markets for farmers’ produce is hampered by poor definition of what the real problem with the market is - low price, exploitative middlemen, absence of buyers or consumers, lack of access to good roads, lack of market information.
How to sustain farmer groups The issue of build participatory planning capacity of groups and improving leadership within groups. How to have effective demand on service providers The issue of lack of funds to pay for delivery of services especially paying for transport and other allowances. How to increase farmers access to markets The issue of access marketing information and increasing women’s control over the marketing process.
Training Course Outputs – Learning Areas for Improving Information and Communication Management How to increase farmers’ access to agricultural information sources
How to increase farmers’ access to the internet
How to share and exchange information locally
The issue of access to general agro related information so that at the end of the day, villagers can benefit from it not just people in big towns. The feasibility of establishing local information resource centres closer to villages should be tested.
The issue of enabling local people to make more frequent visits to get more emails and spend more time browsing the internet. Ways to find resources for the computers, printers, telephone modems etc., to bring the Internet closer to the village should be tried out.
The issue of making enough copies of the information downloaded from the internet for sharing with others in the farmer group or village so that all can keep up with new information and online discussions. This will also mean organizing enough face-to-face meetings at the different farmer groups and villages to find out information needs and discuss what is being learned from the internet.
Training Course Outputs – Local Organizations for Learning
NAADS team DATICS team
Training Course Photo Record
Training Course Photo Record

introductory training course using the lll internet learning

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