IECAMA was established with the mandate of teaching, conducting researches and doing extension works. The extension mandate of the college included transferring local research outputs and technologies to farmers, and importing technologies and improved practices from abroad and introducing them to farmers.

 

Currently until the industry takes over, the development of the Ethiopian economy heavily depends upon the speed with which agricultural growth is achieved. The rate of agricultural growth in turn depends on the speed with which the current subsistence oriented production system is transformed into a market orientated production system.

 

Without doubt, transforming the rain-fed agriculture practice from its current subsistence orientation to market-led large-scale farming through the provision of extension service to smallholder farmer is mandatory.

 

One of the major policy shifts in Ethiopia since 1992 has been the substantial emphasis placed on improving the productivity of smallholder agriculture through increased use of a package of improved agricultural technologies. Among the many institutional support services that need to catalyze the transformation process, the agricultural extension service plays a critical role, since it contributes to the development of the skill and knowledge of farmers to adopt new and improved technologies in the form of seed varieties and animal breeds, implements, chemicals and practices, and the approaches and processes with which the skill development and access to information are realized. As a result, substantial number of smallholder agriculture producers in the country have increasingly managed to select economically viable technologies and practices for maximum and efficient production.

 

Often times, extension impacts have been associated with improvements in productivity and household income. To achieve agricultural development goals, the country has continued to focus on the provision of extension services to farmers through massive deployment of extension agents. Although the country is following market oriented agricultural development strategy, several studies find that the extension service that has been organized for achieving the purpose is not yet adequate. Major problems such as lack of capacity and shortage of extension staff, and finance and investment both from private and public sectors, top-down approach, among others, must be solved to bring a lasting solution. Therefore, it is recommended that steps be taken to provide the extension services to develop holistic and interactive need based operational models geared towards market oriented agricultural development according to the reality on the ground.

 

This could be achieved, prioritizing the modernization of the Agricultural Extension, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (ATVET) colleges by involving them continuously, making them more responsive to the changing needs of a demand-driven and market-driven agricultural sector.

 

Furthermore, that building capacity in the agricultural extension system piloting new initiatives to introduce demand-driven and participatory mechanisms, while, strengthening agricultural research system with improved institutional and human capacity to generate and disseminate client-demanded and market-oriented technologies is recommended.

 

Meeting quality of produce depends heavily on the use of the right technologies and methods of production as well as timely and effective transmission of market information. Important in this respect is also the role, the extension services have to play in linking the different public and private stakeholders involved in input-output marketing and credit supply.

 

What is more, the creation of agricultural innovation teams both at the federal and regional levels will help develop innovative approaches and capacities at the Woreda level, thus contributing to the alleviation of the top-down nature of the extension service.

 

Not only that, efforts by all stakeholders should be strengthened to support the government's endeavour to improve the access and quality of the agricultural extension system and make the service client oriented to address the demands of farmers and pastoralists.

 

Source : allafrica.com