Agricultural extension in Ethiopia: the case of participatory demonstration and training extension system

This paper examines the participation of farmers in the Participatory Demonstration and Training Extension System and looks into the principal barriers to the adoption of modern agricultural inputs. The paper is based on a review of the literature and an analysis of data collected from 1482 household heads selected from 16 sites in four regional states, namely, the Amhara National Regional State, the Oromia National Regional State, the Southern Nations, Nationalities and People's Regional State and the Tigray National Regional State. The historical review reveals that extension programmes and policies have been formulated without due consideration to the farmers' opinion and traditional knowledge system. The various extension approaches have been biased against the livestock subsector and research and extension activities have been carried out by different organizations without proper co-ordination which, in most cases, has led to redundancy of effort and wastage of resources. Both the historical review and the survey results reveal that extension service coverage in the country has been very low, the research–extension linkage has been very poor and extension agents have been involved in different activities which are not related to their normal duties. The study also makes it clear that a host of factors, some of which are policy related, were responsible for the low rate of adoption of modern agricultural inputs in the country. (Journal of Social Development in Africa: 2003 18 (1): 49-84)