Malawi agricultural research and extension project : mid-term evaluation report

External evaluation covers the period through 1/89. The project's integrated appraoch to TA has proven highly effective and performance by the contractor, the Consortium for International Development, has been outstanding. However, TA productivity was adversely affected by shortages of vehicles and operating funds early in the project. In future contracts of this nature, these expenses should be a part of the TA contract. Personnel turnover, made necessary by the training program, also made it more difficult to implement research, extension, and training activities. Management lapses have been evident in certain areas, but corrective action is being taken wherever possible. Financial management has been plagued by differences in accounting procedures between the MOA and the Mission. The posting of a USAID/M accountant in the MOA should help solve this problem. The Government of Malawi's Steering Committee has not fulfilled expectations in determining research, extension, and training priorities and improving linkages among the project components. While some progress has been made in developing links between research and extension, these links tend to be unsystematic, depending too much on individual initiatives rather than routine practice. Linkages are also stronger between adaptive research and certain parts of extension than between commodity research and extension, and those between adaptive research and commodity research are not as strong as they should be. Agroforestry research conducted under the project is vigorous, practical, and technically appropriate. Some significant results have been achieved with which preliminary extension messages and adaptive research can proceed.