13 Pages, This research was conducted to assess socio-economic factors influencing adoption of conservation agriculture in Moroto District of Uganda. The socio-economic factors, the level of conservation agriculture, and the constraints faced by the farmers were assessed. A cross-sectional research design was utilised to collect data from 80 farmers (adopters and non-adopters of conservation agriculture). Purposive random sampling was applied to select seven key informants in the two sub-counties of Katikekile and Nadunget, and four villages of Nakodet, Nakwanga, Napudes and Komare. Data were collected through personal observation, interviews, focus group discussions, and structured questionnaires. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to generate descriptive and inferential statistics for quantitative data analysis. The binary probit model was used to determine the socio-economic factors influencing adoption of conservation agriculture. The findings indicate that there was a significant influence for gender (p<0.01), but a statistically significant influence for credit and extension services (p<0.05). Finally, the adoption rate of conservation agriculture is still low given the size of land dedicated to it by most farmers. Therefore, this study recommends that government and other institutions should strengthen the agricultural extension system, provide financial support and incentives, and sensitize farmers on conservation agriculture.
15 pages, The novel Corona virus pandemic has been extremely overwhelming at all levels causing massive economic setbacks for many countries including South Africa. The country witnessed an unprecedented scaling-down of its national economic activities, which called for an emergency response from the government. Several Covid-19 relief schemes were instituted by the government to ensure that farms of all sizes would survive. A support fund of R1.2 billion was allocated to the agriculture and food sector through the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD). The fund was primarily meant to assist financially distressed small-scale farmers to ensure continued production and food security for the country. This study collated the conditions for financial Covid-19 stimulus support required from smallholders and analysed several factors that prevented some members of this vulnerable group from benefitting from the relief funds. These factors include complexities associated with satisfactorily categorizing smallholder producers, productivity, marketing and policy challenges, glitches in formalising smallholder producer operations, the farm-business record keeping pitfall, and the exclusion of subsistent producers. The paper suggests some possible corrective measures that could allow for more inclusive support to these categories of farmers; some of which includes a simple but robust financial traceability system for the farmers, and a need to continue to push for the completion of national registration process of smallholder producers.
James F. Evans Collection, The current wind of change sweeping across in South Africa provides a unique opportunity for the new unified agricultural extension system in the country to be set up to address the needs of not only large (i.e., commercialized) farmers but also those of the numerous small (i.e., usually less commercialized) farmers, in a way that is effective, equitable and efficient. This article reviews experiences with agricultural extension during the last few decades both inside and outside Africa. Based on this review lessons are extracted that will be important to take into account in designing the appropriate agricultural extension system for South Africa. It is important for an effective agricultural extension service to have effective, interactive linkages with the other "actors" in the agricultural development process (i.e., not only farmers, but also researchers and planners). Some specific suggestions are given on how the unified agricultural extension system might be organized and implemented in the South African situation. While recognized that it is not necessarily the ideal solution, it is proposed that public agricultural extension funds should be primarily concentrated on the smaller less commercialized farmers, while the larger farmers should be primarily catered for by the private sector. (original)
