Masters Thesis
Farmers field schools (FFSs) provide farmers with an opportunity to experiment new technologies which help them to make informed decisions that eventually lead to increased agricultural production and productivity. This study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of Farmer Field Schools (FFS) in terms of improving agricultural productivity in selected villages of Mvomero District, Morogoro region. Effectiveness was conceptualized as the performance of FFS graduates meeting the goal in terms of acquisition and utilization of improved rice production technologies, knowledge and/or practices resulting in increased production and productivity of rice. The specific objectives were to describe the socio-economic characteristics of smallholder FFS and non-FFS graduates on improved rice technologies; to describe the extent of utilization of acquired improved rice technologies, knowledge and/or practices between FFS and non-FFS graduates; to compare the levels of rice yields per hectare between FFS and non-FFS graduates; and to assess the perceptions of smallholder rice farmers on the effectiveness of FFS in terms of acquisition and utilization of improved rice technologies; and improved rice productivity. A cross-sectional research survey method was used and involved interviewing 120 respondents (FFS and NFFS graduate) selected through a multi-stage sampling technique. A sample of 60 FFS and 60 NFFS graduates was proportionately selected for the study. Structured questionnaires were used to collect primary data; and secondary data were collected from relevant reports and documents. Frequencies were run using The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20 to determine socio-economic characteristics of smallholder farmers. Additionally, independent t-test was used to test the mean difference of the two groups (FFS graduates and NFFS farmers) on crop yields. The significance level of α = 0.05 was employed in deciding whether there was significant difference among the variables. The findings of the study showed that for all the rice technologies, knowledge and or practices, FFS graduates did significantly well in terms of all the utilization of all the technologies. The results further show that the differences between the two groups (FFS and NFFS graduates) were statistically significant (p<0.000) in rice yield for the three years 2014 to 2016. The findings suggest that FFS as an extension approach is effective in improving agricultural productivity among smallholder rice farmers. However, challenges revolving around financial and labour constraints affected FFS graduates in making effective use of certain improved rice technologies/knowledge and or practices. It is therefore evident that FFS provide an effective and a good opportunity for the dissemination of improved rice production practices and others agricultural technologies and their use.
Smallholder Agricultural Productivity and Enhancement Project (SAPEC, MOA Liberia)