Malawi agricultural research and extension

The project, to be implemented by the MOA and a Title XII U.S. entity in cooperation with the World Bank, will institutionalize a training system in the MOA and strengthen its Departments of Research (DAR) and Extension (DOA). The project will establish an MOA Training Unit to serve domestic agricultural institutions and develop an inservice training program which will train 31 MOA trainers of trainers, 265 MOA managers, and 4,100 MOA technicians at the senior, middle, and lower levels, including extensionists who work directly with farmers. Some 82 DAR and DOA personnel will receive short- and long-term overseas training, including 4 Ph.D"s and 29 M.Sc"s. To support the DAR"s creation of an Agricultural Research Council (ARC) to gear research to small farmers" needs, a long-term advisor will be assigned to the ARC"s Agricultural Economics and Data Processing Unit. Also, the project will provide TA and training to: support multidisciplinary research by DAR Commodity Research Units in traditional and non-traditional crops (cereals, grain legumes, forage crops, agro-forestry, and horticulture); and increase the number of adaptive research teams (ART"s) from 3 to 8 - one for each Agricultural Development Division (ADD). The new ART"s will train some 250 support personnel at the ADD and Extension Planning Unit (EPA) levels and will initiate 550 on-farm technology testing trials. TA and training will also be provided to the national unit coordinating the research program. TA will help the DOA"s national-level Extension Aids Branch (EAB) develop a national communications strategy, train EAB and district-level EPA staff how to evaluate extension impact, and help EAB and EPA staff develop improved extension materials (including 200 radio programs). A pilot mass communications effort will support World Bank efforts in Mzuzu. Finally, the project will: provide TA to help the MOA"s Women"s Program Section clarify its strategy; conduct an agricultural production demonstration in every rural development project; and establish a fund to support women smallholders" use of new technologies.