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1 BACK TO OFFICE REPORT Report on International course on: The Integration between Research, Extension and Applied Agriculture Sponsored by MASHAV (Israel s Agency for International Development Cooperation) Organized by CINADCO (Centre for International Agricultural Development Cooperation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development 26 January, February, 2015

2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I wish to take this opportunity to express our profound gratitude to Israeli Government, MASHAV and CINADCO for their scholarship in helping me participate in this programme. I am greatly indebted to WAAPP-Ghana and the World Bank, for funding my trip to Israel to participate in this all important International Workshop in Israel. I am grateful to my Director, Dr. Kwame A. Amezah for his support and cooperation. I also wish to thank the National Coordinator, WAAPP-Ghana for her immense role and support for my trip. I am grateful to all and sundry coupled with participants from various countries for their cooperation and learning experience.

3 1.0 Introduction Israel s Agency for International Development Cooperation (MASHAV) was founded in 1958 as part of the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It is responsible for initiating and implementing Israel s development of cooperation programme worldwide. MASHAV aims at transferring to developing countries the expertise and technologies that assisted Israel in own path to development. Farmers rely on research and extension to help improve their know-how, efficiency, productivity, profitability, and contribution to the benefit of their livelihoods. In return, the research and extension organisations came to appreciate the important role farmers and farmer organisations play, both in disseminating technology and through effective feedback mechanisms. However, the lack or inadequate close working relationship between national agricultural research and extension organisations and farmers is one of the challenging institutional problems confronting the ministries of agriculture in many developing nations. One of Israel s strengths in the agricultural sector is the trilateral cooperation and close interaction between government s sponsored researchers, extension services and farmers. When a strong connection is established and maintained between all three key partners (researcher-extension officer-farmer), their joint activities can lead to increased and sustained productivity, increased income and well-being of farm people, and to the promotion of national food security and economic growth. It is against this backdrop that MASHAV sponsored this international course for participants from developing countries, to learn from the Israeli experience, expertise, and share experiences with each other. There were nineteen (19) participants from 12 countries (namely Barbados, Georgia, Ghana, India, Kenya, Macedonia, Nigeria, Peru, Rwanda, Senegal, Thailand and Trinidad and Tobago) who participated in the course. 2.0 Objectives The objective of the course was to afford participants the opportunity to learn from Israeli experience and research, taking into consideration the adaptability of methods and technologies to meet their local conditions. Again, the knowledge gained by the

4 participants would expose them to the importance of the cooperation between the research, extension and farmer linkage to the development of the agricultural sector in their respective countries. 3.0 Programme Content The course included professional lectures, visits coupled with workshops in strengthening links among Extension, Research, Farmers and Industry. These included: The National Extension Service in Israel; Research, Extension, Farmers linkages in Israel; Knowledge transfer the daily works of an extension officer; Extension model The Israeli experience; The role of the Research and Development Stations; Visit to GILAT Research Station; Visit to Vegetable growers in the Western Negev Region; Visit to Arava Research and Development regional station and coupled with Open Day and Agricultural Exhibition. 4.0 Expected Output It was expected that, at the end of the course, participants would: Understand the Israeli agricultural research and extension system; Share knowledge and experiences on research and extension from their respective countries; Be involved in the process in developing sustainable strategies for effective research-extension-farmer linkage in technology transfer in agricultural development and extension services in their respective countries. 5.0 Methodology The methods employed during the course included: Professional lectures, Professional visits, Country presentation on research-extension-farmer linkage, Group work coupled with plenary sessions,

5 Man Country presentation on the impressions from the training programme and the potential of implementing knowledge gained; and Sightseeing tours to Jerusalem, Dead Sea, Nazareth and Sea of Galilee. The course was participatory and was facilitated by a team of professors, research scientists and experts from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. 6.0 PHOTOGRAPHS Mango and Wheat production below the Golan Height

6 Visit to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Extension Service Department and National Agricultural Research Organisation Volcani Centre, Bet Dagan Group work and presentation by Participants

7 7.0 RESEARCH AND EXTENSION SYSTEMS IN ISRAEL Extension Service under Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is mandated to undertake the following activities: Individual consultation for farmers; Field laboratoryservices; Short- and long-term training courses; Generation of practical know-how through field tests and observations; and Professional publication, CDs, and videos. Agricultural Research Organization (ARO) is under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Its primary goal include: conducting basic and applied research for Israeli agriculture for example generating new technologies (Genomic; Precision agriculture, Postharvest); Water shortage; Environmental aspects; and Sustainable agriculture and Other Goals such as Extension activities, Teaching and Training and Research collaboration (Local and International). Funding for ARO comes from the government and public sources (50%), Farmers organizations on national and regional levels, collected through a levy on their production (15%), International public sources (15%) and the private sector (20%). The concept of linkage implies the communication and working relationship established between two or more organizations pursuing commonly shared objectives in order to have regular contact and improved productivity. Agricultural research and extension services are two systems which are linked by information flow and feedback. The main target of the research-extension linkage is the farmer. For agricultural technologies to be relevant to local needs, researchers, extension workers and farmers must play important roles in: identifying research problems, adapting the recommendations to local conditions, providing feedback to researchers about the innovations that have been developed. Similarly, the participation of extension workers in adaptive research trials allows them to become familiar with the technologies they are expected to promote and also helps to ensure that the sociological dimensions of farming are not neglected. There are various ways in which Research and Extension collaborate in Israel. These include: Monthly Workshops; Joint discussion on extension and research objectives: Annual work plan (research and extension organizations, state or regional levels,

8 commodity levels), Branch Committees (research, extension, growers representatives defining applied research objectives and funding) and Technical Committees: Pesticides Recommendation and Registration, Seed Registration, Varieties, etc.); Technical Evaluation Panels of field trials and demonstrations; Steering Committees of Regional Research Stations and Regional Research and Development (R&D) programmes; State and regional season-end summaries of Research & Development (R&D) findings and recommendations; Pre-seasonal meetings and Professional Associations. The regional Research and Development centres are financially supported by the government, the regional authority, and other public sources. The research carried in the R&D centres is of applied and practical in nature. 8.0 LESSONS LEARNT IN ISRAEL Farmers visit Extension offices every 1 st and 3 rd Sunday for information in their respective regions; Extension workers are requested to come out with a programme outline for 1-2 years. Green Agriculture Police Unit regulate the movement of Nomads especially Bedouins from destroying farmers crops; Cooperation between Research, Extension, Farmers and Agro-industries had helped boost Israeli agriculture; Researchers are paid to solve farmers problems; Israeli extension workers are well resourced with cars, laptop, smartphones, etc.

9 Tomato and Strawberry production at Yair Research and Development Centre, Arava Desert 8.0 LESSONS LEARNT IN ISRAEL Research Institutes are evaluated based on what have been done in solving farmers problems coupled with adoption rate; Ministry of Agric., National Agric. Research Organisation and Extension Services Department are located in the same environment for effective communication and linkage; Every behaviour of a farmer needs a specific extension methodology to build trust, accept and adopt a technology; Extension Service has separate budget from the Israeli Government; Best extension method is farmer to farmer visit as they share ideas and experiences; Extension workers participate in adaptive research trials which allow them to become familiar with the technologies they are expected to promote and also help to ensure that the sociological dimensions of farming are not neglected.

10 Assessment of nutrient requirement for high yield fruit and oil content in olive plant at Gilat Research and Development Centre 8.0 LESSONS LEARNT IN ISRAEL Israeli farmers are aware of new technologies through participation in technology generation by researchers; Farmers should be approached with one or two technologies at a time to win their confidence, thus adopting technologies; Extension workers work in direct relation with companies in the agricultural industry. These companies participate in extension activities to promote their products; Extension workers assess the characteristics and quality of crop varieties on farmers field for various companies; National Agric. Research Organisation is under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

11 Computerised system for irrigation including fertigation in the Negev Desert, Israel Varieties of Sweet Pepper Arava Agricultural Exhibition and Open Day and citrus production in the Negev Desert respectively

12 Mobile Boom Sprayer for irrigation coupled with carrot production under drip irrigation in the Negev Desert, Israel 8.0 LESSONS LEARNT IN ISRAEL Open Days and Exhibitions are supported by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Regional and Local Councils in showcasing achievements by research and industry; Researchers and Extension officers meet every Monday to brainstorm on research-extension objectives discuss problems pertaining to various commodities; Extension officers use Whatsapp to communicate with each other. Farmers can send pictures on the state of their crops for diagnostic study by extension officers, but they visit the farms to verify what they observed in the pictures; There are between 12,000 15,000 farmers in Israel. There are farmers who leased their lands to others for farming activities; In Israel, % of GDP is invested in Research; To ensure that the results from research is safe and achievable, adaptive trials are conducted for 3-4 years before the technology (ies) is introduced to farmers.

13 Farmer s innovation-production of decorative pumpkin coupled with exhibition of honey melon at Open Day and Exhibition, Arava 9.0 RECOMMENDATIONS Each district should select two or three crops for production to meet food security needs of the people. Choice of crops should be based on comparative advantage, importance of crops to the people in the district and availability of markets within the district or nearby districts; Field officers should be professionally trained to specialise in the selected crops to effectively render extension service along the agricultural value chain; Directorate of Agricultural Extension Services should be given separate budget to effectively offer extension service to farmers and other stakeholders at the district, regional and national levels; Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) should be given separate budget to solve demand-driven farmers constraints to increase productivity, increase food sufficiency and improve the livelihood of farmers ; Field officers should be resourced with smart phones, Laptops, means of transport and other logistical support to enhance extension delivery; DAES should be supported to establish model farms at the district level in collaboration with one or two successful farmers or champion farmers" to enhance the adoption of technologies; The Government of Ghana should come out with funding mechanism for sustainability of Research-Extension-Farmer-Linkage Committees, for example, levy exporters of non-traditional commodities to pay for research activities, as

14 they now depend on Programmes and Projects, District Assembly Common Fund (DACF), EDAIF, Private Companies, etc. ; The need to establish Regional and District Agric. Advisory Boards to oversee the planning and implementation research-extension activities at the regional and district levels, especially under Government decentralization process to speed up interaction among stakeholders within the RELC system; Monitoring teams comprising a select group from the regional and district Agricultural Advisory Board to monitor research-extension activities to ensure farmers needs are addressed.

15 BACK TO OFFICE REPORT INTERNATIONAL COURSE ON: THE INTEGRATION BETWEEN RESEARCH, EXTENSIONAND APPLIED AGRICULTURE SPONSORED BY MASHAV (ISRAEL S AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT COOPERATION) PRESENTED BY: EMMANUEL AGYEI ODAME MOFA/DAES MARCH, 2015