The national extension policy of Malawi – lessons from implementation

The Government of Malawi put in place the National Extension Policy in 2000 to promote the provision of quality agricultural extension services. Fifteen years after its introduction, while action has been taken on some compo-nents, many key elements of the policy remain largely unimplemented. This n...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Ragasa, Catherine, Mazunda, John, Kadzamira, Mariam
Formato: Brief
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: International Food Policy Research Institute 2015
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/150399
_version_ 1855535385408438272
author Ragasa, Catherine
Mazunda, John
Kadzamira, Mariam
author_browse Kadzamira, Mariam
Mazunda, John
Ragasa, Catherine
author_facet Ragasa, Catherine
Mazunda, John
Kadzamira, Mariam
author_sort Ragasa, Catherine
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description The Government of Malawi put in place the National Extension Policy in 2000 to promote the provision of quality agricultural extension services. Fifteen years after its introduction, while action has been taken on some compo-nents, many key elements of the policy remain largely unimplemented. This note outlines the evidence on why much progress has not been achieved on coordination, stakeholder accountability, demand-focus, and pluralism within Malawi’s agricultural extension services. Over the past decade, public extension services have largely been under-funded while government has focused on implementing its flagship program in the agriculture sector, the Farm Input Subsidy Programme (FISP). The somewhat inconsistent impact of FISP suggests to some experts that inadequate provision of information to farmers on best agricultural production practices might account for this mixed perfor-mance. In early 2015, during extensive district-level consultations on the content of the draft National Agriculture Policy, extension services were highlighted by stakeholders as the most important priority area for increasing agri-cultural productivity in Malawi. However, tough decisions and bold actions, rather than complacency and minor fixes, will be required to transform the extension system to one that contributes significantly to improved agricultural development outcomes. This Policy Note proposes several priority areas for consideration.
format Brief
id CGSpace150399
institution CGIAR Consortium
language Inglés
publishDate 2015
publishDateRange 2015
publishDateSort 2015
publisher International Food Policy Research Institute
publisherStr International Food Policy Research Institute
record_format dspace
spelling CGSpace1503992025-11-06T07:15:38Z The national extension policy of Malawi – lessons from implementation Ragasa, Catherine Mazunda, John Kadzamira, Mariam fertilizers agricultural extension agricultural policies extension activities farm inputs The Government of Malawi put in place the National Extension Policy in 2000 to promote the provision of quality agricultural extension services. Fifteen years after its introduction, while action has been taken on some compo-nents, many key elements of the policy remain largely unimplemented. This note outlines the evidence on why much progress has not been achieved on coordination, stakeholder accountability, demand-focus, and pluralism within Malawi’s agricultural extension services. Over the past decade, public extension services have largely been under-funded while government has focused on implementing its flagship program in the agriculture sector, the Farm Input Subsidy Programme (FISP). The somewhat inconsistent impact of FISP suggests to some experts that inadequate provision of information to farmers on best agricultural production practices might account for this mixed perfor-mance. In early 2015, during extensive district-level consultations on the content of the draft National Agriculture Policy, extension services were highlighted by stakeholders as the most important priority area for increasing agri-cultural productivity in Malawi. However, tough decisions and bold actions, rather than complacency and minor fixes, will be required to transform the extension system to one that contributes significantly to improved agricultural development outcomes. This Policy Note proposes several priority areas for consideration. 2015-09-29 2024-08-01T02:51:42Z 2024-08-01T02:51:42Z Brief https://hdl.handle.net/10568/150399 en Open Access application/pdf International Food Policy Research Institute Ragasa, Catherine; Mazunda, John; and Kadzamira, Mariam. 2015. The national extension policy of Malawi – lessons from implementation. MaSSP Policy Note 23. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/150399
spellingShingle fertilizers
agricultural extension
agricultural policies
extension activities
farm inputs
Ragasa, Catherine
Mazunda, John
Kadzamira, Mariam
The national extension policy of Malawi – lessons from implementation
title The national extension policy of Malawi – lessons from implementation
title_full The national extension policy of Malawi – lessons from implementation
title_fullStr The national extension policy of Malawi – lessons from implementation
title_full_unstemmed The national extension policy of Malawi – lessons from implementation
title_short The national extension policy of Malawi – lessons from implementation
title_sort national extension policy of malawi lessons from implementation
topic fertilizers
agricultural extension
agricultural policies
extension activities
farm inputs
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/150399
work_keys_str_mv AT ragasacatherine thenationalextensionpolicyofmalawilessonsfromimplementation
AT mazundajohn thenationalextensionpolicyofmalawilessonsfromimplementation
AT kadzamiramariam thenationalextensionpolicyofmalawilessonsfromimplementation
AT ragasacatherine nationalextensionpolicyofmalawilessonsfromimplementation
AT mazundajohn nationalextensionpolicyofmalawilessonsfromimplementation
AT kadzamiramariam nationalextensionpolicyofmalawilessonsfromimplementation