Impact of supervised enterprise projects component of Sokoine University of Agriculture BSc. Applied agricultural extension programme on farmers in Tanzania

Abstract

In response to inadequate knowledge, skills and attitudes by agricultural extension staff, the Midcareer BSc. Applied Agricultural extension was developed and implemented in 1998 by the Sokoine University of agriculture (SUA), in collaboration with Sasakawa Africa Fund for Extension Education (SAFE).The Supervised Enterprise Project (SEP) is an innovative component of the programme that employs experiential and action research principles. Since the implementation of the midcareer programme and its SEPs component in Tanzania, the programme impact on farmers has not been established and therefore the paper intends to fill the gap. Data were collected from 100 graduates and 105 farmers from selected regions in Tanzania. Focus group discussion and observations were used to supplement the collected information. The quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed by using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) and content analysis, respectively. The findings show that SEP introduced practices mainly related to livestock and crop production, post-harvest handling and agricultural marketing. Generally, SEP was identified as the strongest component within the BSc. AEE programme that has impact on farmers. This has been justified by the fact that farmers had positive perception and high expectations from practices implemented by SEP, which resulted to diffusion of implemented practices and their adoption by farmers. Farmers were assisted to improve their yield, food security, income and livelihood. Challenges that affected implementation of SEP include inadequate funds and time, low involvement of stakeholders and inadequate follow up by students after their graduation. This calls the need for allocation of adequate resources to the program, involving of important stakeholders as well as smooth hand over of the implemented SEP to the field extension staff for its sustainability.