Growth and Poverty Mailing List Archive

["Vinay Chand" <<address removed>>]

I better send this again with a subject or it will get rejected by spam mail 
protection systems
----- Original Message ----- 
From: Vinay Chand<mailto:<address removed>> 
To: 
Sent: Monday, April 26, 2004 16:03


I find Dick's comments on extension and cooperatives unsettling, I suppose 
because they question what I am sure for many of us are basic assumptions and 
it is always good to be so challenged.

Cooperatives are often misused in developing countries so it has become a knee 
jerk reaction to write them off. However, corruption and inefficiency that has 
brought this overall conclusion is unfortunately not restricted to 
cooperatives. By this token, we would have to avoid many of the Governments and 
bureaucracies and dare I say it some aid agencies we have to deal with since 
they are just as liable to catch the disease of poverty.

Farmers have to be organised in groups if we are to help them help themselves. 
Whether it takes the form of a cooperative, a self help group or service 
company, they all face similar risks. The costs of organisation and 
administration ultimately have to be lower than additional benefits, mainly 
income, generated. That means the intervention has to result in tangible 
benefits to be justified. There are very many instances of beneficial farmer 
organisations and although they be less important in industrialised countries 
today, they nevertheless played an important role in creating wealth.

As for extension, everybody appears to be seeking ways to avoid face to face 
work with farmers whether it be through computers or other mass media. All this 
despite the fact that many farmers are illiterate and do not enjoy access to 
computers. Of course, Dick is right about informal learning but does it not 
reflect the degree of knowledge of your neighbours and your situation. While it 
is advisable to pool extension to very small farmers living conveniently 
together, my strong gut instinct based on experience is that in order to change 
things we should actively court one to one contact with small farmers, the key 
factor being that we wish to effect change. If the public sector cannot provide 
it, by all means let us encourage agricultural graduates and other private 
sector parties to set up agriclinics or other vehicles. The extension workers 
can be given media to enhance their own learning and can be better equipped to 
allow them to increase their productivity but in my opinion it must be conveyed 
to the farmer through personal contact.

Best wishes,

Vinay Chand
<address removed><mailto:<address removed>>