Implications of the Innovation System Perspective for Agricultural Extension in Vietnam

Transcription

1 University of Hohenheim the Uplands Program Implications of the Innovation System Perspective for Agricultural Extension in Vietnam Iven Schad 1, Andreas Neef 2, Volker Hoffmann 1 1 The Uplands Program University of Hohenheim, Chair of Agricultural Communication and Extension, Stuttgart/Germany 2 Kyoto University, Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Kyoto/Japan Innovation Asia-Pacific Symposium, 4-7 May 2009, Kathmandu/Nepal

2 University of Hohenheim - The Uplands Program Research for Sustainable Land Use and Rural Development in Mountainous Regions of Southeast Asia Financed by Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, National Research Council of Thailand und Ministry of Science and Technology, Vietnam Innovation Asia-Pacific Symposium, 4-7 May 2009, Kathmandu/Nepal

3 Ecological triggers of change Deforestation Intensification of animal husbandry Lowland rice, fish ponds Land use intensification: anual (cash) crops erosion + runoff Innovation Asia-Pacific Symposium, 4-7 May 2009, Kathmandu/Nepal

4 Socio-economic aspects Ethnic Diversity More than 50 ethnic groups, Most of them in mountainous regions Land Use Systems Risk exposure Rural livelihoods Varying between ethnic groups > 85% of population depend on agric. Climate conditions, e.g. droughts, floods Adequate extension for pro-poor innovation? Commercialization Markets Transition from self-sufficiency to commodity production Infrastructure Lack of roads and transportation Access to Services Less chances for credit and information Restricted access to inputs and product outlets

5 Purpose of the study Explore consequences of diversification of extension providers on marginalized upland farmers Unique ethnical situation Economic transformation Growing income disparities How can studying the pig sector feed into the discussion? Distribution of pig husbandry Intensification is a very recent option Rapidly growing demand for pork needs innovation in raising systems

6 Introduction to the research area Innovation Asia-Pacific Symposium, 4-7 May 2009, Kathmandu/Nepal

7 Framework of the research

8 Methods applied Step 1: Document analysis. Collection of relevant laws and decrees on national and province level to sketch the legal environment of pig husbandry Step 2: RAAKS-tools. Group-based actor mapping and linkage matrixes in 2 villages of each ethnic group Step 3: Open-ended interviews. During >80 interviews with representatives from all actor groups, characteristics of actors were collected in profiles and the quality of linkages was analyzed Step 4: A Quantitative survey was conducted among 180 Hh. In 3 villages of each ethnic group to analyze utilization of information sources

9 Current Policy debates Leanization of production Future of small-scale pig husbandry Call for enhanced participation in designing extension agendas

10 The extension arena State Extension System Voluntary extension system Agricultural Extension Center (AE) Group lectures, demonstration models Veterinary Unit (in MARD) Backing models of AE, vaccination campaigns Traditional actors with stronger commitment to: Sector political directions Classical top-down extension approaches Mass Organizations Group discussions, featuring activities of AE FOs (F-Clubs, (new) Cooperatives) Knowledge exchange, matching contacts with AE Shops and Private Firms Individual extension talks Private service suppliers Various veterinary services New media TV broadcasts, books

11 Usage of information sources Farmers' Contact with Information Sources Black Thai Intensity of contacts Thai > Hmong Source/ Ethnic group Black Thai Hmong traditional sources - + new + - sources Model Model Farmers Farmers Village Village Cadres Cadres Mass Mass Organizations Organizations Feedshop Feedshop Medicine Medicine Shop Shop New New Media Media Percentage Extension Worker Village Village Veterinarian Veterinarian Source: own data Hmong n Thai = 95 n Hmong = 92

12 Communication networks (I) Hmong Increasing diversification, outside-orientation and usage frequency of information sources Thai Village- Veterinarians Friends/ Relatives Village Cadres Communal Extension Workers Mass Organizations Medicine Shops Private Service Suppliers Friends/ Relatives Model Farmers Village Cadres Village- Veterinarians Extension Clubs Relatives outside village New Media District level Extension Service Feed Shops Two distinct knowledge systems along ethnic boundaries (despite spatial proximity) Infrastructure of utilized knowledge sources is uneven Minor exchange and few contact point only between ethnic groups Number of utilized information sources beyond village boundaries larger for the Thai

13 Communication networks (II) Hmong Increasing diversification, outside-orientation and usage frequency of information sources Thai Friends/ Relatives Village- Veterinarians Relatively small number of utilized information sources Village Cadres Emphasis on (informal) information sources within the community Relatives outside village Contacts with traditional sources exceed contacts with new sources considerably System relatively impermeable

14 Communication networks (III) Hmong Increasing diversification, outside-orientation and usage frequency of information sources Thai Private Service Suppliers Friends/ Relatives Model Farmers Large number of utilized information sources Formal information sources dominate Permeability of system is large Utilization of new sources that have a stronger commitment to participation and dialogue s s New Media District level Extension Service Village Cadres Village- Veterinarians Extension Clubs Feed Shops

15 Communication networks (IV) Hmong Increasing diversification, outside-orientation and usage frequency of information sources Thai Limited number of extension providers being utilized from both groups Communal Extension Workers Mass Organizations Medicine Shops Joint information sources less utilized by the Hmong Joint information sources outside villages Linkage Linkage control (from farmers perspective) Relevance of farmers individual situation Accessibility to services Timeliness of services Farmer - Extension Worker Farmer Mass Organizations Farmer Shops Scope of participation

16 Consequences Although extension service supply has increased and diversified Increasing segregation of knowledge system(s) due to Lack of (formalized and informal) inter-ethnic communication Unbalanced utilization of new sources traditional sources Huge potential for innovation through inter-ethnic communication without inputs from outside is not retrieved Development gap of pig husbandry between ethnic groups will further widen who gets to innovate?

17 Approaches towards integrating knowledge domains Stimulating exchange by linking ethnic groups Emphasize positions of jointly used information brokers as facilitators of integrating knowledge domains (requires further institutionalization, e.g. standards, certificates, incentives) Develop and establish approaches for multi-ethnic farmer training groups and discussion platforms (when is the appropriate time for facilitators from outside to pull out? -> problems in sustainability and scaling-out)

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19 Literature Beckman, M. (2004). Extension, Poverty, and Vulnerability in Vietnam. In: Christoplos, I. and Farrington, J. (eds). Poverty, Vulnerability, and Agricultural Extension Policy Reforms in a Globalizing World. Oxford University Press. Castella, J.-C., Slaats, J., Quang, D.D., Geay, F., Linh, N.V., Tho, P.T.T., Connecting Marginal Rice Farmers to Agricultural Knowledge and Information Systems in Vietnam Uplands. In: Journal of Agricultural Education and Extension, 12(2), pp Engel, P.G.H and Salomon, M. (1997). Facilitating innovation for development. A RAAKS Resource Box. Royal Tropical Institute, Amsterdam. Epprecht, M. (2005). Geographic dimensions of livestock holdings in Vietnam. Spatial relationships among poverty, infrastructure and the environment. PPLPI Working Paper No.24. FAO, Rome. GoV (Government of Vietnam)(2004). Decree 17/2004/ND-CP (24 th of August) on: Agriculture and Fishery Extension. Hanoi. Janssen, W. and Braunschweig, T. (2003). Trends in the Organization and Financing of Agricultural Research in Developed Countries. ISNAR Research Report 22. MARD (Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development)(2007). Proposal Development of Agricultural Extension of Vietnam , 1 st draft. Hanoi. Röling, N. (2006). Conceptual and Methodological Developments in Innovation. Key Note Speech to the Innovation Africa Symposium, November 2006 in Kampala, Uganda. Sikor, T. (1999). The Political Economy of Decollectivization: A Study of Differentiation in and among Black Thai Villages of Northern Vietnam. PhD Dissertation. University of California, Berkeley. Worldbank (2006). Enhancing Agricultural Innovation: How to go beyond the strengthening of research systems. Washington.