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Wanting agriculture extension worries experts
Timothy Njakasi, an organic farmer in Kasenge in Mukono Village says extension workers help in transmitting new information. Photo | George Katongole
What you need to know:
- According to the Budget Monitoring and Accountability Unit (BMAU) policy brief of 2019 released by the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, extension services face numerous challenges that need to be quickly addressed.
In agricultural-dependent economies, extension programmes have been the main conduit for disseminating information on farm technologies and assisting farmers in developing their technical and managerial skills.
Essentially, extension programmes help increase farm productivity, revenue, reduce poverty and minimise food insecurity. Yet in Uganda, there is a staggering gap of 4,908 extension workers. With a ratio of extension worker to farmer standing at 1: 1,800 against the recommended 1:500, there is a lot of pressure on service delivery. Agriculture experts are now calling for more support.
During the launch of the first Agricultural Extension Week at Kabira Country Club, Dr John Jjagwe, the Country Manager Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) explains that: “You cannot transform agriculture without extension. As AGRA, we have been passionate about agricultural transformation. We have piloted the Village-Based Advisors (VBA) extension model and we have shared experiences.”
He says that the use of improved seed and fertiliser is not enough to transform agriculture.
“We need extension services, soil management services, and mechanisation as part of the broad intervention,” Jjagwe says. The extension week will be held between May 22 and 26 at Kabira Country Club.
AGRA funds a private sector-led approach through Village-based Advisors, who demonstrate improved crop varieties, fertiliser blends, and to teach farmers good agronomic practices.
This model helps extension services to be learned from model farmers while bridging a significant gap of access to agro-inputs as well as markets.
Government role
Despite effort by the private sector, extension services largely remain the role of government.
Stephen Byantwale, the Commissioner Crop Protection at the agriculture ministry, who represented Minister Frank Tumwebaze notes that extension services have been undergoing a transformation which require adaptability.
“We need to guide our farmers and come up with innovative solutions such as digitisation of extension services so that our people have viable business models to address the current challenges in the sector.
But these tools are currently in the hands of the private sector. Players such as EazyAgric, Omulimisa, Famunera and Jaguza Tech, are taking the lead in that space.
Challenges
According to the Budget Monitoring and Accountability Unit (BMAU) policy brief of 2019 released by the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, extension services face numerous challenges that need to be quickly addressed.
In June 2014, the government restructured the National Agricultural Extension System in order to address past weaknesses in extension services.
The reforms dubbed as “Single Spine Extension System” included transfer of the extension function from the National Agricultural Advisory Services (Naads) to Maaif and the creation of a Directorate of Agricultural Extension Services.
The agricultural extension services are fragmented and uncoordinated due to the diverse players involved in their delivery. These operate largely independently of each other.
The players include; the Directorate of Agricultural Extension Services, technical directorates and agencies (such as: Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) and Cotton Development Organisation), District Local Governments (DLGs), private sector organisations and entities, among others. This fragmentation has in part created gaps in service delivery and duplication of efforts.
This financial year will mark the eighth year of implementation of the Single Spine Agricultural Extension System.
However, the recruitment exercise has not yet filled all required positions to increase access to this critical service.
According to the Ministry of Finance, Maaif has recruited 3,854 (77 percent) extension workers at district and sub-county levels out of the initial target of 5,000. As a result, the current ratio of extension worker to farmer is 1: 1,800 whereas the recommended is 1:500 (the approved structure is 13 officers at district level and three extension staff at sub-county level).
The 5,000 extension staff were for 116 districts in 2015/16, but districts have since increased leading to inadequate staffing both at the district and sub-counties.
This state of affairs has led to poor adoption of technologies. Only 15 per cent of technologies generated by research institutions are reported to reach the farming communities.
According to the Department of Agricultural Extension and Skills Management (DAESM), the optimal utilisation of these technologies is estimated at 28 per cent.
As a result, 68 of the agricultural households are trapped in subsistence production and are outside the money economy.
The policy brief notes that levels of recruitment and financing trends within the system are frustrating the effort.
