Kristin Davis

International Food Policy Research Institute · Development Strategy and Governance Division

Horticulture is a vast scientific discipline ranging from ornamentals to consumable food, which is constantly evolving. One of primary goals of horticultural innovation is to improve consistency, and predictability, among products. Extension is one of the primary channels connecting innovations and technologies to growers. However, despite the impo...

The Michigan State University Alliance for African Partnership (AAP) launched a multi-country study to contribute to upgrading and tailoring the agricultural extension curricula at participating institutions. The first phase of primary data collection consisted of focus group discussions. The focus groups were structured around a specific objective...

Purpose The purpose was to analyze perceptions of knowledge management capacity in extension networks using an exploratory factor analysis approach. Design/methodology/approach The knowledge management content domain was analyzed for content validity, response process validity, internal structure validity, and consequential validity. A pilot versi...

Advancing information and communication technologies (ICTs) has become central to international agricultural and extension development efforts. ICTs are crucial in facilitating information transfer, ensuring stakeholder access to information, and increasing the decision-making capacity of smallholder farmers. The research presented here introduces...

Advancing information and communication technologies (ICTs) has become central to international agricultural and extension development efforts. ICTs are crucial in facilitating information transfer, ensuring stakeholder access to information, and increasing the decision- making capacity of smallholder farmers. The research presented here introduces...

CONTEXT: Climate resilient agriculture (CRA) projects like watershed restoration efforts can enhance agricultural systems’ resilience to climate change and extreme weather shocks by improving soil health and grain yields in vulnerable communities. One such project, Wellness and Agriculture for Life Advancement (WALA) implemented watershed restorati...

Purpose To analyse and compare the extension objectives of individual extension agents across nine countries. Design/methodology/approach Extension agents from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, New Zealand, Nigeria, Paraguay, and South Africa were surveyed using convenience sampling (n = 2707). A typology of extension agents with differ...

As the world continues to experience a population boom amidst growing food insecurity concerns, the need for well-trained and competent youth in agriculture-related industries is on the rise in Sub-Saharan African countries, specifically Uganda. With 78 percent of Uganda’s population below the age of thirty, the number of unemployed and unskilled w...

This study expands on previous research within an international extension context with a particular focus on identifying the capacities associated with effective organizational functioning. A panel composed of 31 experts participated in a three-round Delphi process and identified a list of 38 specific capacities associated with effective organizati...

Since it formally began, extension institutions have been innovating in response to the changing environment. Past crises have induced organizational innovation in limited ways. The COVID-19 crisis appears to have brought about more radical change in extension organizations. In this manuscript, we apply organizational change theory-including insigh...

Complementing and extending the global landscaping and comparison of national extension systems in Part 1 of this book, Part 2 provides country cases where in-depth assessments of national extension system performance were undertaken. This chapter presents Brazil’s National Policy for Technical Assistance and Rural Extension (PNATER) structure and...

Implementation of decentralized and pluralistic policies in provision of extension services has led to increased availability of actors providing extension services to farmers in most developing countries including Kenya. What is unique about extension services providers is that they have a shared goal of improving agricultural productivity. Howeve...

Professionalization is a critical component of organizational capacity and productivity. Yet, rural advisory service (RAS) providers who are charged with disseminating research-driven techniques and ideas that enhance agricultural production and addressing local stakeholder needs are often overlooked in this area. One of the critical disconnects is...

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has the potential to address critical considerations within rural advisory service (RAS) networks, specifically, getting the right information to audiences in a timely and appropriate manner. ICTs are technologies that facilitate knowledge and information sharing. For RAS networks, ICTs can be an impor...

Organisational capacity and management are critical elements of extension systems. This paper examines the organisational capacity and management of the Nigerian extension system. Content analysis of documents and artefacts, semi-structured interviews with key informants, and site visits were used to collect data. The paper looks at individual, org...

Extension is evolving, and extension workers' roles and attitudes are changing with global realities. The purpose of this study was to examine South African extension officers' perceptions of their job, views on the objectives of extension, and conception of agriculture. A questionnaire was developed consisting of general demographic and Likert-sca...

Extension, as a socially-based institution, must constantly evolve with society. This case study on the Global Forum for Rural Advisory Services uses social network theory to add to the literature on network emergence in the context of extension. The researchers explored how an extension network evolved in response to global agricultural issues. Th...

Across the globe extension or rural advisory service (RAS) networks are experiencing dramatic changes. Rural to urban population shifts, climate variability, and increased competition for limited resources have created a challenging environment. When done effectively, advocacy is one of the most successful tool extensionists possess to increase und...

Innovation platforms are fast becoming part of the mantra of agricultural research for development projects and programmes. Their basic tenet is that stakeholders depend on one another to achieve agricultural development outcomes, and hence need a space where they can learn, negotiate, and coordinate to overcome challenges and capture opportunities...

Innovation platforms are fast becoming part of the mantra of agricultural research for development projects and programmes. Their basic tenet is that stakeholders depend on one another to achieve agricultural development outcomes, and hence need a space where they can learn, negotiate and coordinate to overcome challenges and capture opportunities...

Agricultural extension and advisory services are critical to supporting technological and institutional changes that can improve the livelihoods of small-scale farmers in developing countries. However, many extension services are under-resourced, out of date, and need of structural and content changes. However, efforts to systematically strengthen...

Knowledge management is the creation, coordination, transfer, and integration of knowledge so it is accessible and usable by specific stakeholders. Knowledge management has been shown to facilitate the development of networks, as well as to sustain established networks, based on the appropriate collection and subsequent application of embedded soci...

Innovation Platforms are increasingly being proposed and used in agricultural research for development project and programs. Innovation Platforms provide space to farmers, agricultural service providers, researchers, private sector and other stakeholders to jointly identify, analyse and overcome constraints to agricultural development. Although inn...

Innovation Platforms are fast becoming part of the mantra of agricultural research for development projects and programmes. Their basic tenet is that stakeholders depend on one another to achieve agricultural development outcomes, and hence need a space where they can learn, negotiate, and coordinate to overcome challenges and capture opportunities...

This paper highlights the establishment of development organisations on the African continent and beyond, namely the New Partnership for Africa's Development's Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP), the African Forum for Agricultural Advisory Services (AFAAS), and Southern Africa Regional Forum for Agricultural Advisory S...

Extension and advisory services (EAS) are well recognized as a key factor in contributing to agricultural productivity and growth. However, rigorous evaluation of EAS approaches and assessment of complex national or subnational pluralistic EAS systems are rare. This working paper examines the literature on experiential and empirical insights and ex...

Extension remains a critical institution for supporting rural livelihoods and the Sustainable Development Goals. The Global Forum for Rural Advisory Services (GFRAS) recently launched a ten-year strategic framework and five-year operational plan, both aligned to the Sustainable Development Goals. The strategy was developed using a series of online...

According to the National Development Plan for South Africa there is a need for the training of a new cadre of agricultural extension advisors that will respond effectively to the needs of small-holder farmers. What is needed is a "best-fit" framework for designing and analysing agricultural advisory services namely: Policy environment; Governance...

There is plenty of information available in the public domain that covers various aspects of extension and know-how about new methodologies for implementation. However this information is often scattered and presented in complex academic language. Hence practitioners, who often have very limited time and/or may The Global Good Practices Initiative...

The need for nutrition-sensitive agriculture is well recognized and of growing interest to global development players. Extension and advisory services (EAS), with their established infrastructure, provide a unique opportunity for nutrition interventions to be implemented at scale with significant reach. To assess current integration of nutrition in...

Extension and advisory services (EAS) perform an important role in agricultural development and help reduce hunger and poverty. Development efforts are increasingly complicated because of challenges such as natural resource depletion and climate change. Agricultural development frameworks have moved from a linear to a more complex systems perspecti...

Extension and advisory services are integral to the agricultural innovation systems, where now more than ever they play a brokering role, linking key actors such as producer organizations, research services, and higher education. This module looks at the history and current status of extension and advisory services and examines important topics suc...

Eighty-three percent of the population of Ethiopia depends directly on agriculture for their livelihoods, while many others depend on agriculture-related cottage industries such as textiles, leather, and food oil processing. Agriculture contributes about 46.3 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) (World Bank 2008) and up to 90 percent of total ex...

Farmer field schools (FFSs) are a popular education and extension approach worldwide. Such schools use experiential learning and a group approach to facilitate farmers in making decisions, solving problems, and learning new techniques. However, there is limited or conflicting evidence as to their effect on productivity and poverty, especially in Ea...

The article provides a conceptual framework and discusses research methods for analyzing pluralistic agricultural advisory services. The framework can also assist policy-makers in identifying reform options. It addresses the following question: Which forms of providing and financing agricultural advisory services work best in which situation?The fr...

Agricultural education, research, and extension can contribute substantially to reducing rural poverty in the developing world. However, evidence suggests that their contributions are falling short in Sub-Saharan Africa. The entry of new actors, technologies, and market forces, when combined with new economic and demographic pressures, suggests the...

Farmer field schools (FFS) are a popular education and extension approach worldwide. However, there is limited or conflicting evidence as to their effect on productivity, poverty, and empowerment, especially in East Africa. This study attempts to provide rigorous evidence to policymakers and other stakeholders on the effectiveness of FFS in reducin...

Climate change will certainly affect agriculture, but agriculture can also be harnessed to mitigate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. A key element in supporting agriculture's role is information. The costs of adapting agriculture to climate change can be large and the methods not always well known. Mitigation efforts will require information, educat...

"Every day, millions of rural people who depend on agriculture confront technical, economic, social, cultural, and traditional obstacles to improving their livelihoods. To cope with these obstacles, the rural poor draw on indigenous knowledge and innovate through local experimentation and adaptation. Indigenous knowledge alone, however, is not enou...

This paper examines the role of postsecondary agricultural education and training (AET) in sub-Saharan Africa in the context of the region's agricultural innovation systems. Specifically, the paper looks at how AET in sub-Saharan Africa can contribute to agricultural development by strengthening innovative capacity, or the ability of individuals an...

"Agriculture in Ethiopia is changing. New players, relationships, and policies are influencing how smallholders access and use information and knowledge. Although this growing complexity suggests opportunities for Ethiopian smallholders, too little is known about how these opportunities can be effectively leveraged to promote pro-poor processes of...

Although farmer field schools (FFS) have been used worldwide in extension education for almost 20 years, most studies of their impact have been limited as to scope or rigor. This paper presents a methodology for better understanding how FFS have evolved in three countries in East Africa in response to various factors, and to see what the impact of...

"A mixed-methods, multiple-stage approach was used to obtain data on how gender and wealth affected participation in community groups in Meru, Kenya, and how men and women farmers obtain and diffuse agricultural information. Research techniques included participant observation, documentary analysis, semi-structured interviews, social mapping, group...

This paper examines how post-secondary agricultural education and training (AET) in sub-Saharan Africa can contribute to agricultural development by strengthening the capacity to innovate—to introduce new products and processes that are socially or economically relevant to smallholder farmers and other agents. Using the AET system in Mozambique as...

Many extension education approaches have been tried in Eastern and Southern Africa with varying degrees of success. Extension approaches that contribute to the reduction of poverty in this region are needed. One important model right now is farmer field schools (FFS), based on adult education principles such as experiential learning. Farmer field s...

"Agricultural advisory services play an important role in supporting the use of the agricultural sector as an engine of pro-poor growth and enabling small farmers to meet new challenges, such as accessing export markets, adopting environmentally sustainable production techniques, and coping with HIV/AIDS and other health challenges that affect agri...

Farmer groups are playing an increasingly important role in pluralistic extension systems and agricultural innovation systems. Based upon data collected from individual farmers (n = 88) and farmer groups (n = 46), this paper shows that farmer groups were disseminating information to other farmers, and that farmers relied upon groups for information...

Abstract Agriculture in Ethiopia is increasingly characterized by new players, relationships, and policies that influence the ways ,in which ,knowledge ,is used ,by smallholders. This growing complexity suggests opportunities and challenges for smallholders. However, little is known about how technological, organizational, and institutional innovat...

Agricultural extension is evolving worldwide, and there is much emphasis today on community-based mechanisms of dissemination in order to bring sustainable change. The goal of this study was to examine the factors that make farmer groups successful in dissemination of information and technologies. A mixed-methods, multiple-stage approach was used t...

The development of agricultural biotechnology has proceeded rapidly amidst public controversy over the ethics of genetic manipulation and the required level of regulation. The role of extension traditionally has been to provide unbiased, research-based information to the public on agricultural issues. This paper reviews a case study in which the Fl...

Many different agricultural extension models have been utilized in developing countries in order to bring about rural development. In Kenya, numerous approaches have been tried with varying success. A study conducted in Kenya in 2002 revealed that today a pluralistic system is being built using both elements of past approaches and current developme...

This paper focuses on the effects of institutional partnerships on farmers' groups to leverage livelihood outcomes in Kenya. The key question addressed is: Do partnerships between agencies and rural groups enable the groups to generate beneficial outcomes for rural households? This is important in understanding the viability of rural organizations...

Agriculture in Ethiopia is changing. New players, relationships, and policies are influencing the ways in which information and knowledge are used by smallholders. While this growing complexity suggests opportunities for Ethiopian smallholders, too little is known about how these opportunities can be effectively leveraged to promote pro-poor proces...