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STRENGTHENING THE PLURALISTIC AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION SYSTEM IN NEPAL A MEAS Rapid Scoping Mission carried out from December 1 to 21, 2011 March 2012 March 2012 Strengthening the Pluralistic Agricultural Extension System in Nepal © Tahseen Jafry and MEAS Project. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. Users are free: • To share — to copy, distribute and transmit the work. • To remix — to adapt the work. Under the following conditions: • Attribution — users must attribute the work to the authors but not in any way that suggests that the authors endorse the user or the user’s use of the work. Technical editing by Kathryn Heinz. Production by Andrea Bohn. This Discussion Paper was produced as part of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) project “Modernizing Extension and Advisory Services” (MEAS). www.meas-extension.org Leader with Associates Cooperative Agreement No. AID-OAA-L-10-00003. The report was made possible by the generous support of the American people through USAID. The contents are the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States government. Strengthening the Pluralistic Agricultural Extension System in Nepal STRENGTHENING THE PLURALISTIC AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION SYSTEM IN NEPAL Report on the MEAS Rapid Scoping Mission carried out from December 1 to 21, 2011 Final Version submitted to USAID/Nepal on March 20, 2012 Report prepared by: Dr. Murari Suvedi, Michigan State University Dr. Paul McNamara, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign Director, Modernizing Extension and Advisory Services (MEAS) Project www.meas-extension.org Leader with Associates Cooperative Agreement No. AID-OAA-L-10-00003 Disclaimer: The views and recommendations expressed in this report do not necessarily reflect those of USAID and make no implication for commitment to fund or in any way support them. Strengthening the Pluralistic Agricultural Extension System in Nepal TABLE OF CONTENTS Table of Contents .................................................................................................................................... i Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................... iv Executive Summary ................................................................................................................................ 1 Strengthening the Pluralistic Agricultural Extension System in Nepal ................................................... 8 Food and Agriculture Situation in Nepal .............................................................................................. 11 Historical Development of Agricultural Extension in Nepal ................................................................. 13 Agricultural Extension ............................................................................................................. 13 Agricultural Research .............................................................................................................. 18 Agricultural Education ............................................................................................................ 19 Council for Technical Education and Vocational Training (CTEVT) ......................................... 21 Himalayan College of Agricultural Science and Technology (HICAST) .................................... 21 Other Institutions ................................................................................................................... 21 Findings from Interviews, Observations, and Online Survey ............................................................... 22 Current Extension System: Organization, Participants, and Capacity .................................... 22 Agricultural Information and Communication Center (AICC) ................................................. 27 NGOs and Private Sector Involvement in Extension ............................................................... 28 Funding for Current Extension................................................................................................ 30 Information and Advisory Service Needs ............................................................................... 34 Social Capital Formation and Producer Groups ...................................................................... 37 Gender Equity ......................................................................................................................... 38 Extension Support Services and Training Centers .................................................................. 39 Decentralization of Extension Services ................................................................................... 42 Strategies to Improve Local Food Production ........................................................................ 43 Strategies to Improve Extension............................................................................................. 44 Overall Findings, Conclusions, and Recommendations ........................................................................ 47 i | Strengthening the Pluralistic Agricultural Extension System in Nepal Major Findings ........................................................................................................................ 47 Conclusions ............................................................................................................................. 49 Recommendations for Consideration ..................................................................................... 50 Recommendations for Capacity Building ............................................................................... 52 Recommendations for Implementation ................................................................................. 52 Annex A: Terms of Reference and Scope of Work .............................................................................. 54 Annex B: Visit Itinerary and Meeting Schedule .................................................................................... 56 Annex C: Key People Consulted with During the RSM ......................................................................... 58 Annex D: List of persons who participated in the online survey ......................................................... 62 Annex E: References Cited/Documents Reviewed ............................................................................... 65 Annex F: Online Survey Questionnaire ................................................................................................. 67 Annex G: Suggestions for Improving Extension Services ..................................................................... 75 Annex H: Information Relevant to Extension Service in Proposed FtF Project Districts ...................... 80 ii | Strengthening the Pluralistic Agricultural Extension System in Nepal ACRONYMS ADB Asian Development Bank AICL Agricultural Input Company Limited ANSAB Asia Network of Sustainable Agriculture and Bio-resources APP Agricultural Perspective Plan B.Sc. Ag. Bachelor of Science in Agriculture B.V.Sc. & A.H. Bachelor of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry CBS Central Bureau of Statistics CEAPRED Centre for Environmental Policy, Research, Extension and Development CTEVT Council for Technical Education and Vocational Training DADO District Agriculture Development Office DFTQC Department of Food Technology and Quality Control DLS Department of Livestock Services DLSO District Livestock Services Office DOA Department of Agriculture DATWG District Agriculture Technical Working Group FtF Feed the Future HICAST Himalayan College of Agriculture Sciences and Technology IAAS Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science ICT Information and Communication Technology I.Sc. Intermediate in Science JT Junior Technicians JTA Junior Technical Assistant M.Sc. Ag Masters in Science Agriculture M.V. Sc. Masters in Veterinary Science MOAC Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives NARC Nepal Agriculture Research Council NGO Non-Governmental Organization NPC National Planning Commission NTFP Non-Timber Forest Products RRN Rural Reconstruction Nepal SLC School Leaving Certificate SMS Subject Matter Specialist USAID United States Agency for International Development VAHW Village Animal Health Worker VDC Village Development Committee iii | Strengthening the Pluralistic Agricultural Extension System in Nepal ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The authors would like to thank all the individuals who gave freely of their time when we talked with them, and shared documents or information about agricultural extension services in Nepal. In particular, we benefitted tremendously from conversations with Kipp Sutton, Agriculture Officer at USAID/Nepal, who provided the link between USAID/Nepal’s Feed the Future team and Nepal’s Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives. We acknowledge feedback from members of USAID/Nepal’s Feed the Future team— Rave Aulakh, Luis Guzman, Amy Prevatt, and Navin Hada. John Stamm, Director of General Development Office, provided excellent feedback on the final presentation and report. We are grateful to many agricultural development professionals in Nepal for their time to meet with us and share their invaluable experience with us. Particularly, we are grateful to Mr. Dipendra Bahadur Kshetri, Honorable Vice-Chairman of National Planning Commission, Mr. Nathu Prasad Choudhary, Secretary of MOAC, Dr. Prabhakar Pathak, Joint Secretary of MOAC,