Capacities of Extension Personnel within the Pluralistic System of Post-Conflict Liberia

Moore, Austen; Harder, Amy

doi:10.5191/jiaee.2015.22301

Cited by 4 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Therefore, understanding the views of farmers who endured armed conflict provides a basis on which to develop curricula and programs designed to integrate agricultural education, agricultural communications (Acker et al, 2001;Bertini & Glickman, 2009), Extension (Ringer, 2014), and leadership such that practitioners are prepared to work effectively in post-conflict regions (Shinn, Ford, Attaie, & Briers, 2012). Agricultural education and extension writ large, i.e., if viewed as transdisciplinary with global perspectives and responsibilities (Shinn, Wingenbach, Lindner, Briers, & Baker, 2009), has a salient role to play in the economic recovery of rural populations who experience armed conflict (Moore & Harder, 2015). Acker et al (2001) concluded "the role of education in promoting democratic institutions will offer agricultural educators a leadership role should they choose to accept such a role" (p. 8).…”

Section: Implications and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Post-conflict News and Information Needs of West African Farmers: Voices from Côte d’Ivoire and Mali

Maïga

Edwards

Baker

et al. 2016

JIAEE

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During the decades following the independence of Sub-Saharan African countries, many farmers were severely affected by armed conflicts. News and information providers could provide important support toward the economic recovery of these farmers and the rebuilding of their communities. This qualitative study sought to explore farmers’ perceptions on the role of media and other sources in disseminating news and information after armed conflicts ceased in Côte d’Ivoire and in Mali. The study involved 10 key informants, five from each country. Rigorous qualitative research procedures were used to collect and analyze the study’s data. Six themes emerged from the interviews. Farmers perceived the media were interested in reporting about their regions only during the conflicts. They also indicated the absence of Extension or other forms of rural advisory services during and after armed conflicts. However, all 10 key informants perceived the media could assist in recovery and rebuilding efforts and should deliver related information in their local languages as well as provide programs targeting women and youth. Recommendations for policy and practice are offered. In addition, topics are identified on which to train communicators and Extension/advisory agents to meet the information needs of farmers who experience the effects of armed conflict.

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Section: Implications and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Post-conflict News and Information Needs of West African Farmers: Voices from Côte d’Ivoire and Mali

Maïga

Edwards

Baker

et al. 2016

JIAEE

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“…In particular, priority was given to agricultural extension to facilitate the transfer of technologies and knowledge to improve productivity and promote peace and stability in rural areas. Consequently, the government formulated the National Agricultural Extension and Advisory Services (AEAS) policy to drive the transformation effort ( Mcnamara et al., 2011 ; Moore and Harder, 2015 ). Despite these well-intentioned interventions and the high rice production potential of Liberia, rice yields are low at an estimated 1.2–1.6 metric tons per hectare (MT/ha) compared to neighboring countries: Cote d’Ivoire (2.6 MT/ha), Ghana (2.8 MT/ha), and Senegal (4.1 MT/ha) ( FAO, 2019 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of farmer socio-economic characteristics on extension services demand and its intensity of use in post-conflict Liberia

Sumo¹,

Ritho²,

Irungu³

2022

Heliyon

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“…1985;Wellard et al, 2013;Wossen et al, 2017). It remains a vital element of agricultural development in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) where poverty and low agricultural productivity persist in the face of socio-economic and biophysical stressors (Moore and Harder 2015;IPCC, 2018;World Economic Forum, 2018). Rising global population and food demands also pose a challenge to agricultural development in SSA to balance excess food demands with food supply by 2050 (FAO, 2009(FAO, , 2016.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, several institutional and structural problems limit the productivity of extension systems in SSA (Wellard et al, 2013). One important challenge is weak attribution due to poor monitoring mechanisms for tracking the performance of extension agents (Davis, 2008;Moore and Harder, 2015;Purcell and Anderson, 1997). This limits the precise measurement of the effects of extension on agricultural production (Anderson and Feder, 2004;Bindlish and Evenson, 1997).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Role of Information Communication Technologies in Agricultural Extension Delivery

Amadu

McNamara²

2019

AJFAND

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Agriculture is the backbone of many countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Yet, lack of efficient extension systems to support agricultural development is widely seen as a missing link in agricultural transformation in the region. International development agencies have in the past four decades invested heavily in various extension models such as the Training and Visit and Farmer Field School systems in order to enhance the performance of extension workers. Despite such investments, the performance of extension agents does remain suboptimal in many contexts. Studies in other sectors show that incentivizing worker performance through nudges such as incentive realignment schemes that tie worker performance to a pay/bonus system could enhance worker productivity. However, there is a lack of incentive realignment studies that estimate the performance of extension agents in sub-Saharan Africa. A potential hindrance to the application of such scheme to extension is the absence of monitoring mechanisms to track the performance of extension agents who often work across diverse local contexts to reach smallholder farmers with extension advice. This study empirically estimates the effect of an information communication technology (ICT)-based payment incentive system that tracks the performance of extension workers in rural Uganda. It undertakes a quasi-experimental ex-post impact assessment of a payment incentive realignment as an exogenous shift in the price of labor for extension services by Ugandan Community Knowledge Workers (CKWs) in 2011. This study applies a difference-indifference with propensity score matching technique to estimate the effect of an ICT-based incentive realignment scheme in 2011, on the performance of 461 CKWs in rural Uganda. The study shows that CKWs in rural Uganda respond positively to an ICT-based performance incentive scheme that affects the price of labor. Results suggest that such performance systems can enhance the productivity of CKWs-an exemplar of rural extension agents in Uganda and elsewhere in developing countries. It also finds that younger CKWs respond more productively to higher incentives than their older counterparts. Therefore, the study suggests that extension policies that tie extension agents' performance to ICT-based payment incentives could enhance their performance and contribute towards the sustainable developments goals on food security, among others, through multiplier effects.

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Capacities of Extension Personnel within the Pluralistic System of Post-Conflict Liberia

Cited by 4 publications

References 9 publications

Post-conflict News and Information Needs of West African Farmers: Voices from Côte d’Ivoire and Mali

Post-conflict News and Information Needs of West African Farmers: Voices from Côte d’Ivoire and Mali

Effect of farmer socio-economic characteristics on extension services demand and its intensity of use in post-conflict Liberia

The Role of Information Communication Technologies in Agricultural Extension Delivery

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