Description
The historical development of agriculture is the history of mankind since it is closely related to the ever-improving and increasing development for the demand for food, feed, energy and other goods and services that originate from plants and animals. Agricultural development has been a major concern to most developing countries within the last two decades. As the world’s present population grows from 6.7 to 9.1 billion by 2050, food production will need to double over this same period. Thus, more effective extension services are needed to address agricultural challenges including meeting the information needs of poor smallholder farmers in developing countries. Agricultural extension efforts have helped the transformation of productivity and production. It has contributed to the reduction of poverty and for the development of the economic and human capital of a nation.
This monograph starts with a chapter that reviews extension programs for post-harvest loss prevention, before presenting key principles abstracted from the review that should be taken into consideration for future post-harvest loss prevention programs. This chapter aims to contribute to knowledge on the role of agricultural extension in the design of post-harvest loss reduction efforts in developing countries. Post-harvest losses represent a significant threat to food security and farmer incomes worldwide. It is inefficient in the global food production system that is avoidable. In deducing principles of designing and implementing agricultural extension programs to reduce post-harvest losses, valuable lessons can be gleaned from the handful of previous extension projects and programs addressing post-harvest loss. The second chapter presents showed the agricultural extension system in the area is playing a pivotal role in terms of food security, local and regional economic development and the creation of employment opportunities. Many efforts have been taken by the government to develop the agriculture sector by initiating advanced scientific research approaches to improve product quality and quantity. This sector is strongly associated with other sectors of the economy and plays a striking role in improving the country’s socio-economic development.
Keeping this in view the fourth chapter aims to investigate farmers’ access to agricultural information sources in rural areas. Which, demand fully requires the attentions of the government to reorganize and reshape the existing structure of the agricultural extension system to make useful efforts for the provision of advisory services and agricultural information sources to rural farming communities.
Further, the book adopts a historical approach to discuss the evolution of agricultural extension in Botswana: the challenges, interventions, policy and other initiatives implemented to make extension effective. Rural development is the mainstay of agriculture and agricultural development in developing countries therefore all efforts geared towards agricultural development will be fruitless without it.
Women, in general, play an important role in small-scale traditional agricultural production. The importance and relevance of women in agricultural development can therefore not be overemphasized. So, the book examined the gender roles in agricultural Activities. The last chapter of the book examined the relationship between challenges faced by extension agents. As the formbook enables extension agents to assess productivity and profitability of farming enterprises in a faster and more reliable manner, so as to increase farmer incomes and achieve food security.
