v.l.v.kameswari india e - extension and small holders looking beyond “information dissemination”...
TRANSCRIPT
V.L.V.KameswariINDIA
e - EXTENSION AND SMALL HOLDERSLOOKING BEYOND “INFORMATION DISSEMINATION”
A Policy Brief
INTRODUCTION
• Indian agriculture is characterized by low productivity, subsistence farming, minimal inputs and distress sale at low paying outlets.
• The sector is facing several challenges due to changes at the local, national and international levels.
• The Public Extension System in India has undergone several changes to overcome the challenges facing the sector.
• One of the strategies adopted is the increasing use of ICTs to reach farmers.
THE STUDY
• There is a strong evidence to suggest that ICTs are rarely used by the farmers’ to access agricultural information.
• The study was carried out to understand the media use and information seeking behavior of farmers.
• It focused on how availability of market and productivity influence use of ICTs by the farmers.
METHODOLOGY
• The study was conducted in 8 villages from four districts in a North Indian state.
• The state of Uttarakhand is divided into two divisions.
• Each division was divided into two zones (lower and middle hills).
• One district was selected from each zone in the division.
• Close and open ended Interview schedules was used for data collection.
STUDY SITE
• The task of providing extension services is mainly confined to the government agencies.
• National Extension System India came into being in 1952.
• Since then, the system has passed through various stages to adapt itself to the changing needs of the society.
• Agricultural extension acquired a well defined shape and became goal oriented during the second phase of National Extension System (NSE) starting from 1960.
RECOMMENDATION 1: NURTURING COOPERATIVES
• Form and nurture cooperatives.
• Increase access to agricultural services including extension advice.
• Public Extension System can come to a cost/ revenue sharing arrangement with these local institutions.
• Ensure intensive and board based extension support.
RECOMMENDATION 2: m - EXTENSION
• High ownership, low cost and wide reach.
• ICT based initiatives in agriculture should mainly focus on use of mobile technologies.
FINDINGS
• Farmers in the study area received agricultural information from a wide range of sources/ channels.
• Maximum number of farmers (62%) approached private input dealers (seed and pesticide suppliers)/ middlemen (adti) for information.
• This heavy dependence on adti was due to absence or inaccessibility of formal institutions to farmers.
RECOMMENDATION 3: BROADBASING EXTENSION
• Needs of the farmers go way beyond simple need for information on improved technologies.
• Hence, there is a need to expand the notion of extension worker from narrow confines of information provider (subject specificity).
• Reorient to provide first level assistance on all aspects of agricultural value chain (multi dimensionality).
FINDINGS
Use mobile phones for post sale inquiry rather than presale negotiations:
• Constrained by structural factors and environmental conditions.
• Lack of market and cold storage facilities.
• Interrelated nature of informal institutions.
• Trust and social norms play an important role in business transactions in rural areas.
RECOMMENDATION 4: SYSTEM APPROACH
• Efficiency in agriculture is interlinked with several factors.
• e- extension initiatives cannot succeed in a contextual vacuum.
• Agricultural Policy should follow a systems approach where by all factors are addressed simultaneously.
SUMMING THE RECOMMENDATIONS
• Nurturing cooperatives
• Broadbasing extension
• m-extension
• Systems approach
CONCLUSION
• This study indicates that the possible advantages from use of ICTs were offset due to absence of other conducive factors.
• Interventions in other parts of the World and India show that the entire agricultural supply chain can be made more efficient by use of ICTs.
• Information, through ICTs or conventional methods, can at best only be an intervening variable.