Evaluates project to upgrade the agricultural research and extension capabilities of the Government of Zambia”s (GOZ) Ministry of Agriculture and Water Development (MAWD). PES covers the period l/82-9/83 and is based on document review and interviews with project personnel. The project is off to a good start. Contractor inputs to MAWD”s commodity research teams (CRT”s) have been satisfactory; in particular, the maize team member has helped MAWD begin work with open-pollinated lines. Work by the soybean and sunflower CRT”s has also been good, although the former lacks access to technical and genetic resources. Farming systems research (FSR) by MAWD”s adaptive research planning teams (ARPT”s) has been greatly strengthened by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) since the project began but ARPT”s have not yet identified basic small farmer constraints in the target area (Mkushi and Serenje Districts) and seem to rely too much on information gathered from surveys. Also, better integration with CRT”s is needed to avoid reduplicating efforts and to take full advantage of basic research, and the use of Extension Service (ES) personnel as ARPT functionaries may lead to loss of interest by extensionists in FSR. The ES itself is well supplied with people, but its efforts are impeded by low morale and shortages of technical and logistic support resources and personnel. Participant training is on track, with 33 candidates already scheduled for the long- and short-term scientist training, but further discussion is needed to resolve MAWD/contractor differences on how to approach in-country training. Given Zambia”s huge dependence on expatriates for agricultural research, long-term training should be increased. In other areas, the contractor”s research associates are due to arrive by the end of l983, while social studies – the area for the five special studies to be undertaken by University of Zambia – seem only marginally related to the project. Two management problems were identified: inadequate de facto delegation of authority by USAID/Z to the contractor and inadequate direct communication between USAID/Z and the GOZ in key matters (forcing the contractor to act as a go-between).
