Farmer to farmer extension of livestock feed technologies in Rwanda: a survey of volunteer farmer trainers and organizations

This report presents the results of a study that was undertaken in Rwanda to determine the effectiveness of the volunteer farmer trainer (VFT) approach in the dissemination of livestock feed technologies in the East Africa Dairy Development (EADD) Project. This is in light of the fact that public sector extension services are no longer able to adequately provide extension services due to budgetary constraints facing most developing countries. As a result, new approaches and mechanisms are being developed to fill the gap. One such approach is the VFT approach. It is a form of farmer-to-farmer extension (FFE) where volunteer farmers are recruited, trained and they in turn train other farmers on improved agricultural practices. This approach has been in use by the EADD project in Rwanda since its inception in 2008; however scanty information has been documented about the performance of VFTs; hence this study which examined VFTs’ perceptions, motivations, dissemination activities, competence and challenges they face. The study was undertaken in three districts of Rwanda: Rwamagana, Gatsibo and Nyagatare. They are located in the eastern province. A total of 86 VFTs from 17 dairy farmer cooperative societies, a third of whom were women, were interviewed using a structured questionnaire.

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