Background
Over the last three decades, agriculture has undergone rapid changes as a result of changing policies, urbanization, population growth, and the opening up of local, regional and international markets. These changes have brought with it the need for farming to be adaptable to changing market conditions and to do so profitably. Farming has become market oriented.
The desire to increase income by taking advantage of market opportunities and to compete in this new environment requires farmers to become better decision-makers. To be more competitive they need to have better marketing and farm management skills. While farm management as a discipline may not have been a consideration in dealing with traditional farmers, over the last two decades as farming has become more market- and profit-oriented, farm management has rapidly gained importance.
In response to these changes, agricultural extension has taken on new roles. It is not only concerned with technology transfer, but how to promote farm commercialization and enterprise diversification. This implies that farmers need to be more responsive to the changing market conditions and the challenges and risks that this creates. As a result extension services have also had to change. Public sector extension is not the only source of information and advice and increasingly the private sector and civil society are offering an alternative. The content of extension has also changed becoming more market oriented. Farmers now require advice in a host of new subject areas such as post harvest handling, product quality certification, farm business management, contracting, market and financial linkages, farmer organization and market and business information. This is what is meant by market oriented extension.
Workshop objectives
1) To raise awareness among Heads of Agricultural Extension of the changes those are occurring in extension service organization and its content.
2) To raise awareness of the work that FAO has done in market oriented extension and training in supporting national extension agencies
3) To share experiences among participants of the changes that have taken place in extension service provision in light of greater market liberalization.
4) To identify gaps and propose actions that requires FAO assistance.
Delegates
Participation for this workshop is based on invitation only. The workshop will be represented by two senior staffs from each of 16 countries in Asia - India, China, Mongolia, Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Myanmar, Cambodia, Nepal, Laos, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Bhutan. They are one from the agricultural extension service or an affiliated body (e.g. the national Head of Extension) and one from the government unite dealing with Marketing or Agribusiness).
FAO will be represented by Senior Marketing Office from Rome Head Quarter and Senior Agribusiness and Infrastructure Officer and Senior Extension, Education & Communications Officer from Regional office for Asia and the Pacific.
Important dates
1 February 2010 Invitation out
21 February 2010 Deadline for confirming of participation
21 March 2010 Deadline for submission of country paper
12 April 2010 Deadline for all travelling arrangement
13-14 April 2010 AFMA and FAO regional office’s holiday
Organizing committee
1. Mr. David Kahan, Senior Agribusiness and Infrastructure Officer, FAO
2. Ms. Juejan Tangtermthong, Executive Director, AFMA
3. Mr. Malcolm Hazelman, Senior Extension, Education & Communications Officer, FAO
4. Mr. Andrew Shepherd, Senior Marketing Economist, FAO
Enquiry
Ms. Articha Taychapipranai, Program Assistant
Tel: 662-6974350
Fax: 662-6974406
E-mail: Articha.Taychapipranai@afmaasia.org |
