By ANN ZULU
THE issue of extension service has continued to be a
challenge to most farmers in Zambia, because of the huge gap between the number
of Agricultural Extension Officers (AEO) and the number of farmers needing
their services.
Statistics from the Ministry of Agriculture, show a
ratio of one extension officer on average assigned to about 1, 500 farmers, a
situation that makes it difficult for small-scale farmers who need their services
most to access extension services.
However, Chief Chipepo of the Tonga people of Southern
Province observes that an average of one extension officer offers extension
services to 3,000 farmers in some parts of Southern Province.
In an interview, Chief Chipepo stressed the need for
Government to address the shortage of extension officers in the country as soon
as possible, if the diversification of the economy to agriculture was to become
reality.
“Government needs to be strong if we actually see the
agricultural sector as an area to prioritise and then try to recruit more
extension staff.
“This is because we have extension staff in the system
who are trained by the government’s resources and afterwards end up being
employed by individuals and private organisations that are into Agric, because
Government is not employing them,” Chief Chipepo said.
Who
are Extension Officers?
Extension officers serves as advisers, technicians and
middlemen operating between agricultural research institutions and the farming
communities. They also help farmers increase the productivity of their farms
and improve their living standards.
They are change agents, consultants and advocate
helping farmers to identify their problems and find their own solution. The
work for the creation of community harmony essential for group projects.
In most developing countries such as Zambia,
subsistence agriculture dominates the economy and for national progress to
occur, change in agriculture is essential.
The
Role of Extension Service
Agricultural extension service falls under the Ministry
of Agriculture and it’s responsible for promoting the adoption and utilisation
of new scientific farming practices through educational procedures.
Extension service role include acting as an
intermediary between agricultural development institutions and target groups
such as the farmer, women groups and youths; linking the farmer with sources of
farming inputs and credit facilities; and providing timely information on new
innovations and practices.
Importance
of Extension Service
The importance of agricultural extension service in
influencing productivity in the farming business cannot be underestimated.
According to agricultural expert John Bwalya, extension
services should be considered a strategic investment, saying that even if land,
water, seeds, production inputs and capital were made available but smallholder
farmers remained uninformed, they would not be able to efficiently and
productively use them.
“For Zambia’s agriculture to improve, farmers have no
alternative but to learn and adopt recommended scientific farming techniques. And for them to respond positively to new
ideas they must be properly educated on how best to apply the new ideas or
practices to their farming activities as the new ideas are often complex and
technical,” he said.
Impact
of absence of Extension Services on Agriculture Sector
Mr Bwalya noted that some farmers do not see the need
to use improved seeds because they think it will require using more fertiliser
and the produce may go bad early.
“If we are not
able to get the right information to farmers they won’t apply appropriate
methods of farming so at the end they will still be getting lower yields which
will end up impacting the total contribution of the agricultural sector to all
of us,” Mr Bwalya said.
He added that the absence of extension services made
it difficult for the Ministry of Agriculture itself to execute its own
programmes as it tried to modernise the agriculture sector by coming out with
new products, equipment and programmes including the Farmer Input Support
Programme (FISP).
Mr Bwalya said since there were some areas where farmers
did not have information on all of these programmes, it would be difficult to
implement them in the absence of Extenstionj Officers.
Way
forward
Government is aware of the shortage of extension
officers’ situation in the country.
This is why as part of efforts to increase information
access among farmers, earlier this year Agriculture Minister Dora Siliya
approached Cabinet on the issue.
Ms Siliya noted that engaging additional officers would
mitigate the shortage facing her ministry.
She said extension officers should be increased to
acceptable standards to effectively address and communicate to government the
challenges being faced by farmers.
“It is very difficult for the farmer to quickly send
information to the extension officers who should then bring it to the attention
of Government because this one officer has so many farmers to attend to,” Ms
Siliya said.
However, the good news is that the issue of Extension
Services might be lessen as Government is recruiting 472 more officers to boost
its agriculture extension services.
Making the announcement last week, Agriculture Permanent
Secretary Julius Shawa said improving inadequate Extension Officers in various
districts would expand agricultural extension services and help drive
diversified growth.
“Staffing levels are poor, with one camp officer
attending to 1 000 farmers,” Mr Shawa said.
He also said plans were underway to buy motorbikes and
build houses in various districts for Extension Officers.
Mr Shawa observed that the officers lacked adequate
accommodation and transport, making it hard for them to do their jobs.
“Some officers
walk 30 kilometres to get to camps,” he said.
It is impossible for Government alone to address the
challenge of Extension Services in the country, there is need for
non-governmental organisations who were working with farmers and private
institutions who could support to try and recruit extension staff to complement
government’s efforts.
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