Literature Review

Traditionally, extension in Africa was focused on increasing production, improving yields, training farmers, and transferring technology. Today extension is going beyond simple "transfer to facilitation, beyond training to learning, and includes assisting farmer groups to form, dealing with marketing issues and partnering with a broad range of service providers and other agencies" (Davis 2008).

Many countries have Agricultural Advisory Services run by the government, but these are often inefficient and rife with waste because extension agents are not well trained and dissemination of information is slow and nonhomogenous (Davis 2008).

There are issues with measuring the impact of extension efforts, especially in linking cause and effect quantitatively (Davis 2008).

At the same time, extension has been shown to have significant positive effects on knowledge, adoption of techniques and skills, and productivity (Birkhaeuser et al. 1991).

The magnitude of extension impacts is highest in countries where farmers have access to schooling, technology, and extension (Evenson 1997).

In the 1970's, Integrated Rural Development Projects (IRDPs) were established in multiple African nations. These programs included extension and research efforts but often neglected training, linkages with research, and proper management (Anderson 2002; Davis 2008).

IRDPs were also ineffective because they tried to apply a standard model to a myriad of local situations. These inefficiencies led to the development of multiple models of extension including (but not limited to) training and visits (T&V), participatory approaches, farming systems research, farmer technical schools, and farmer field schools (Davis 2008). These models of extension allow for adaptation of extension efforts to local conditions and allow for flexibility in program modalities and administrations.

The farmer field school (FFS) approach is an especially intriguing recent development in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). FFS are generally composed of 20-25 farmers who meet informally and regularly (viz. once a week) with an expert facilitator. Learning activities include discovery learning, farmer experimentation, and group action (Davis 2008). FFS are geared toward a variety of agricultural subjects, ranging from food security to animal husbandry (Davis 2008) and such schools can be found in at least 27 SSA countries, including Malawi (Braun et al. 2005). To date, there has been little research conducted examining the impact of FFS on economy, productivity or learning (Davis 2008).

The School of Agriculture for Family Independence (SAFI) in Malawi is a hybrid of a modified FFS model and a technical trade school model. Students at SAFI participate in a formal classroom and "lab"-based curriculum on campus for 1 year and then return to their farms for a second year. The "on-farm" portion of the program is essentially a FFS situation, where under the guidance of expert facilitators, farmers apply the knowledge and skills gained in their first year.