Knowledge systems part 2

Back to work this week – although there is more admin to do than actual work. There’s one journal article to edit – about the factors that influence Ethiopian farmers decisions to adopt improved varieties of potatoes (IVs). The formal research system spends a lot of resources developing new higher yielding and disease resistant potatoes– but only 23% of farmers in the survey have adopted them – and only then on a small scale (on some 20% of the land that they use for growing potatoes). So why such a low adoption rate? The factors are complicated but they include the perception that the IVs require adopting more difficult management practices but mostly that there is more market demand for the local varieties, which have better stewing qualities. I have heard the same stories in relation to maize in east Africa – where farmers prefer the flavour texture and colour of traditional varieties. (With maize the issue of hybrid varieties – which need to be purchased every year - and the need to purchase more inputs also play a role).

So what are the implications of this? The Ethiopian Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation System (AKIS) is largely driven by the goals of food security – which means increasing yields and disease resistance. Farmers want a market for their produce – and the two sets of goals are not well-aligned. One solution to the problem suggested by the authors is to involve farmers more in the AKIS, making it more participatory than at present, so that farmers’ voices influence development objectives and research priorities. They also suggest that the AKIS makes more use of mobile phone technology (>66% of these farmers have a mobile!) to communicate their messages.