AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION SERVICES IN MALAWI

PAST, PRESENT AND THE FUTURE

PAPER PRESENTED AT MEAS SYMPOSIUM 1ST TO 5TH JUNE 2015Washington DC

PRESENTATION OUTLINE

• INTRODUCTION• MALAWI AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION HISTORY• PRESENT AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION SERVICES• RE-THINKING AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION

SERVICES• CONCLUSION

INTRODUCTION

• Agriculture main source of livelihoods for 80% of Malawians

• Contributes 39%to GDP• Smallholder farmers play vital role in

agricultural production• Extension key to agricultural productivity

MALAWI AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION HISTORY

• Agricultural Extension undergone many changes• Teaching / prescriptive – forced adoption /

cohesion• Preferential support to individual farmers e.g

the master farmers • Training and visit (Block Extension)• Specialized services – commodity based

extension with assured market

PRESENT EXTENSION SERVICES

Vision: All farmers should demand and access quality extension services from those that best provide them• Pluralistic and demand- driven extension services

provision • Emphasis on decentralised Coordination,

standardised service delivery, and quality extension services

• Distinctive roles for extension players

Role of Public Sector• Development and provision of policy

guidelines for extension • Coordination of stakeholders• Pre – and in- service training provision to

extension workers• Provision of IEC materials• Strengthening farmer organisations• Provision of conducive environment for

private sector development- TWG, FISP

Role of farmer organisations

• Adequately represent interests of farmers and provide services to their members

• Contribute to policy formulation• Offer training and advisory services to their

members from within their own organisation or by hiring staff or farmer-to-farmer

Role of private sector

Private sector looks at profit and not for profit organisations like NGOs

• Provision and delivery of effective extension services

• Developing entrepreneurship• Joint planning and implementation of extension

activities• Contribute to policy formulation• Commercializing and privatizing extension

Academia

• Development of curriculum responding to extension demands

• Training of extension staff• Out reach program• Extension research

Successes of present extension

• Pluralism in extension provision• Farmers demanding services• Bottom up participatory approaches used FFS, FBS, Clusters, lead farmer, farmer led

demonstrations• Coordination structures (DAESS) in use at all

levels• Participation of extension players in agriculture

programs eg Technical working groups

Challenges in present extension services

• High vacancy rates• Poor coordination• Limited coverage of private extension• Poor infrastructure• Limited ability to demand services by farmers• Limited in-services and upgrading training for

extension staff

RE-THINKING EXTENSION SERVICES

To strengthen and upscale the successes that are being registered

• Operationalise and strengthen DAESS• Quality control and standardisation of

extension services –staff, IEC, approaches• Strengthen farmer led extension • Strengthen Research – Extension – Farmer

linkages

RE-THINKING EXTENSION Cont...

• Improve extension coverage• Build and strengthen partnership in extension• Promote market oriented extension and

advisory services• Strengthen mainstreaming of cross-cutting

issues in extension services provision

CONCLUSION

• Agriculture sector and the environment continuously changing, its a must that extension continuously responds the changes

• Continuous capacity development of extension workers is a must

• All extension providers and those supporting extension must effectively coordinate and play their distinctive roles

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION

ZIKOMO KWAMBIRI

Organisation of Ministry of Agriculture

• Ministry and Ministry Departments• 8 Agricultural Development Divisions (ADDs)• 28 Districts• 185 Extension Planning Areas (EPAS)• 2880 Sections• Villages• 4,000,000 Farm families

DAES Subject Matter Specialists – National to Sectional Level

National, ADD, District levels Extension Methodologies and Systems, Food and Nutrition, Agricultural Communication, Agribusiness, Gender and Extension Support Services

Extension Planning Area levelA coordinator for all programs

Sectional level Frontline Extension Worker implementing all Programs with farmers