Changes in Agricultural Extension and Implications for Farmer Adoption of New Practices

Abstract

Agricultural extension programs have changed significantly over the past four decades. What has changed and why? Have these changes affected adoption of innovations by farmers? What if anything should policy makers and extension agencies do differently, particularly in developing countries? Structural changes in agriculture, new types of agricultural technologies, tight public budgets, efforts to decentralize government, and emerging information and communication technologies (ICT) have led to pluralistic and, in some cases, lower-cost extension and advisory services that combine public and private mechanisms for financing and implementing extension activities. Farmer groups and virtual networks play a growing role in technology diffusion, and extension services can exploit these networks using the latest ICT approaches.