LECTURE 1

Terminology, history of
development and future of
agricultural
extension

1
Extension term:
- Stretching out with new ideas and methods
- Additional method with new concepts & procedures in
the area (Agriculture, fishery, etc.)
- Introducing new better ideas and methods to overcome
the old problems
- Creating of new change/product and giving better return
- Improvement in economic status

2
 What is EXTENSION?

It is a non formal education with the intention of teaching out station (luar bandar)
people in increasing their life status by means of personal effort and using through
(new approaches) and with beneficial local sources in the agricultural, fishery &
livestock system and family development. 3
 EXTENSION CONCEPT
• As an advisory service for the farmers,
fishermen or livestock breeders by informing
/giving/distributing/disseminating important
information and methods which are useful,
beneficial and practical to the clients by
means of non formal educational process.
• It also gives/provides continuous guidance in
carrying out any project given.

4
 Definition of Extension Education
Extension Education is defined as not formal
education with the purpose of bringing a change of
knowledge, attitude and practices of clients according to
the guide lines of education through participation
approach where empowerment as the main focus of
Extension Education work before the clients make the
decision of accepting or rejecting new technology
besides putting up the effort for managing and personal
control of surrounding change for the increment of
industry productivity and their quality of life.

5
 EXTENSION EDUCATION
• A process of non formal education systematically
designed for abridging an individual in a society to
the knowledge centers/knowledge with the
intermediate personnel (Extension Agents) and the
main/specific receivers (community).
• Two main functions of Extension Education:
- Transfer of Technology [TOT]
- Human Resource Development [HRD}

6
 Definition:
• Agricultural extension can be defined as the
entire set of organizations that support and
facilitate people engaged in agricultural
production to solve problems and to obtain
information, skills, and technologies to
improve their livelihoods and well-being
(Birner, Davis, Pender, Nkonya,
Anandajayasekeram, Ekboir, et al., 2006).

7
 Definition:
• Extension has been recently defined as
systems that facilitate the access of farmers,
their organizations and other market actors to
knowledge, information and technologies;
facilitate their interaction with partners in
research, education, agribusiness, and other
relevant institutions; and assist them to
develop their own technical, organizational
and management skills and practices
(Christoplos, 2010) 8
UNIVERSAL & OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF
EXTENSION
“ Extension is a two-way communication process
which coordinate knowledge centre with
middleman receiver (Extension worker) and
end receiver (community/farmer members).
The main target/objective of extension is for
bringing change to Extension Workers and
finally to the community through the not
formal education so that the community is
able to upgrade to a better, peaceful and
complete life style.”
9
 Extension Philosophy
2. Permanent change
1. A person will change
can only be established
if he felt the need have
or achieved through
to be changed.
educational process.

3. Human being will

reach/achieve a higher 4. Extension began at
success if given the the clients stage.
opportunity to do so.

10
 Extension Philosophy
5. Democratic process is 6. Community need
the basis ofchange leadership to lead the
members/followers

7. The spirit of personal

success is the basis for
positive achievement

11
 PRINCPLES OF EXTENSION
1. Extension activities must be based on the
present condition at the local level.
2. Extension activities must be done with the
farmers and not for the farmers.
3. Extension programs must based on the need
and requirement of the farmers.
4. Extension programs must be done gradually and
graciously. Planned activities can be modified
based on the ability and capability of the clients.
12
5. Extension programs will not be based on
categories of receivers. It must be geared to all
even to the extend of all family members.
6. Leadership must exist in implementing
Extension Program. Local leadership can be used
in planning and implementing all activities for
the community because they are the potentials
for future generations.
7. Extension workers must work together with
Development Agencies for a locality project.

13
8. Evaluation is one of the important most
principle in developing a program. Evaluation
is for the purpose of knowing whether the
program is reaching its goal.
9. Extension program must be ‘in line’ with the
national development and not contradicting
with cultural, religious belief and solidarity of
community life.

14
 EXTENSION SERVICES BEFORE
THE INDEPENDENCE OF MALAYA
1905 Establishment of the Department of Agriculture but its
contribution to national development was not felt (not obvious).
- It was only dealing with all the functions in the development
of agricultural sector.
1931 Establishment of Agricultural Schools
- The schools were producing field staff for the Department of
Agriculture
- The staff are regulatory in nature and have to make sure that farmers
are following the orders/direction of the Department of
Agriculture.
1945 Formation of Extension and Research Branches (in the
Department of Agriculture).
- Extension is to guide and monitor the activities of projects of
the Department of Agriculture.
- Research Branches of the Department are looking for better and
easier ways of improving the practices carried out by the
Department of Agriculture
15
1948 Extension services renamed as
“Propaganda of Extension” in Malaya.
- Establishment of Agricultural Schools
- Gardening activities carried out in many ‘out
station/rural’ Schools
- Agricultural program broadcasted on radio
- Visiting & Learning for selected farmers to
Agricultural schools & Research areas by the
Department of Agriculture.

16
1949 Advisory Services provided to farmers
(i) The former ‘regulatory’ function
changed to advisory concept where
farmers are told/guided/informed on
‘what is to be done’ in the right way.
(ii) Planning & direction came only from
the top management.

17
1950 Rural Industry Development Authority
(RIDA) was established.
 created for the purpose of developing
agriculture & rural development by means of
economic activities.
 RIDA found to be capable in development
such as road construction, electricity and water
supply to the east coat areas of Malaya.
1952 Extension activities to all farmers areas
carried out in bigger scales (areas) in all
states by the Department of Agriculture in
the form of non formal education.
18
 1955 Agricultural Policy of Malaya
• Towards the freedom of achieving ‘standing on own
two feet’ in food production.
• Towards improvement of quality and quantity of
agricultural product.
• Diversify agriculture based on different varieties of
crops.
• Improvement of agricultural marketing system in the
rural areas.
• Providing agricultural credit.
• Provide Extension education service to farmers in the
rural areas.

19
INDEPENDENCE OF MALAYA
1956 Establishment of Agricultural training centre
became the Rural Extension Training
Development Centre or “Pusat Latihan
Pengembangan & Pembangunan Luar
Bandar” at Bumbung Lima, Seberang Perai.
1957 Independence year of Malaya. Activities of
Agricultural Extension works converted as the
main function of the Department of Agriculture.
1958 Advance Farmers Program was introduced to
selected ‘hard working farmers’ by providing free
technical agricultural advise service.
20
CONTINUTION OF AGRICULTURAL
EXTENSION after Independence
1960 Agricultural Extension seminar held at the
College of Agriculture, Malaya (later named
as the former University of Agriculture
Malaysia/now as Universiti Putra Malaysia).
The resolution of the seminar has made
‘extension’ as one of the subjects taught by
the Faculty of Agriculture, University
Malaya and later carried over by the
University of Agriculture Malaysia and now
at the University Putra Malaysia till this day.
21
CONTINUTION OF AGRICULTURAL
EXTENSION
• 1960 Formation of Farmers Association/
”Persatuan Peladang”.
- The association is moving the farmers
systematically into the agricultural
development. Other activities are distributing
seeds/seedlings, padi planting twice a year,
usage of natural fertilizer, mechanical farm
operation and supplying of water to farmers
and marketing of farm produce.
22
con…
• 1971-1975 (RMK 2)
- The main function of Second Malayan
Development Program was to ‘repair’ & improve
the obstacles in the development policy.
- New economic policy was developed and
launched to bring a change in the development
policy towards a bigger perspectives on program
development to reduce poverty and famers can
stand on their feet

23
con…
• 1965 FAMA (Federal Agriculture Marketing Association)
- formed to develop strategy in marketing strategy,
promotion of sale and price control.

• 1966 FELCRA (Federal Land Consolidation Authority)formed

to reactivate/develop ‘unused’ land .
- Developing unused land by the land owner themselves.
- Allocation of people to land development as FELDA
(Federal Land Development Authority)
- Enrolling farmers/people from nearby areas to Land
Development Project.

24
 AGRICULTURAL GROWTH
IN THE YEARS OF 1970s AND 1980s
1969 – Formation of Malaysian Agricultural Bank
- Providing credit for farmers through Farmers
Association
1971-1975
- Creation & developing of Second Malaysia Plan
- New National Economic Policy formulated where
agricultural development based on the concept of
agricultural cooperativeness.
1971 - Formation of:-
MAJUIKAN/LKIM - Malaysian Fishing Development
Board, MARDEC – Corporation of Malaysian Rubber Board
25
 1970s and 1980s
• 1976 - System “2L” (Latihan & Lawatan)
pioneered by World Bank at the North
Kelantan project.
• 1941-71 - Advisory service of National
Agriculture of Malaya.
• 1980s - Advisory services in:-
(a) Agricultural development,
(b) Veterinary section
(c) Land & water cases,
(d) Agricultural sciences,
(e) Extension works,
(f) Agricultural business,
(g) Agricultural Research,
(h) courses and conferences.
26
 DESIGN CONCEPT
IKT
OF EXTENSION SYSTEM
RPN COMMUNITY
RESEARCH
STATION IMPLEMENTING
IKT AGENCIES IKT INDIVIDUAL GROUP
 HIGHER * BREEDER # ORGANIZATION
INSTITUTION * FISHERMEN # ASSOCIATION
RPN RPN * FARMERS # INSTITUTION
DEVELOPMENT EXTENSION * WOMEN # CLUB
AGENCIES WORKERS * YOUTH
* KIDS

RECEIVER
INFORMATION MIDDLEMEN END RECEVER

IKT - Information, Knowledge & Technology

RPN – Response, Problem & Need 27
TWO PERSPECTIVES OF EXTENSION

I. As One Process
Extension is a process of disseminating
important documents (new technologies) to
the clients for the purpose of achieving
needed change.

28
 FIVE Basic Stages of ‘a Process’
1. Understanding the situation and problem.
2. Identify the ways of solving the problem.
3. Developing Work Program
4. Carrying on the work and doing the evaluation
for revaluing of the program
5. Making a final evaluation based on a program
6. Designing a new work program with a new
design or modification of the old program.
29
II. As a Program

As a not formal educational program carried

out by government/government aided
agencies for the purpose of improving the
welfare of rural people.

30
Characteristics Of (Educational) Extension Program
1. One of the government policies formed based on
constitution.
2. Unlimited services (continuous or on-going)
3. One type of informal education.
4. Involvement with freedom (no enforcement for the
audient).
5. Valuing people more than material.
6. With the freedom of planning and developing program
at the local level.
7. Involving all family members for the cooperation
purposes.
31
DEVELOPMENT OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT
1. Infrastructures and Basic Facilities
- 1954 World Bank increased the basic facilities &
Infrastructure Development to speed up Rural
Development.
- In the first development century, high investment
allocated for:
- Roads & Railways building
- Water & Electricity Supply
- Public Facilities on health, education,
government service on postal service, security
and communication systems

32
2. Improvement on Agricultural Production
- High investment channeled to agricultural sector through
modernization of agriculture at the rice producing areas of
Muda, Kemumbu, Selangor, Besut and Krian/Sungai Manik.
- Investment also poured on replanting of rubber for higher
production
- Advisory service being upgraded for marketing and price
control for ‘small farmers’.
- Industries for food , rubber and wood processing also
increase for future development.
- Modern technology with minimal cost were introduced to
upgrade National Economy.

33
3. Land Development
- Another important strategy in Rural
Development Project.
- Strategy of land development through FELDA,
FELCRA, State Economic Development and
Agricultural Board of State Development.
- FELDA and FELCRA have changed/upgraded
the life style of farmers to better farmers
- Develop state land and consolidate the smaller
lands into more economic procedure of farming.

34
4. ‘In-Situ’ Development
- developing available agricultural land in the villages
areas by the Dept. of Agriculture, RISDA, Dept. of Animal
Health services, Dept of Fisheries, Dept. of Drainage &
Irrigation and FAMA.
- preparation of a more complete infrastructure with
agricultural technology and better planting materials,
introduction of different crops, extension services ,
advisory services and better marketing system.
- Improvised agricultural production by usage of modern
agricultural technologies and machineries in land clearing,
planting, maintaining, harvesting and marketing

35
5. Education, Research and Extension
- cover a large scope of disciplines.
- non formal education for rural farmers.
- findings and discovery of new technology and its
implementation must be applicable and will further
improve the livelihood of the farmers.
- These three components must not be separated
from one another because they are related to one
another

36
SITUATIONAL NEED FOR EXTENSION TOWARDS
THE MODERN ERA
a) Food production, food security and
intensification
- sufficient food production remains an important
condition for alleviating food insecurity.
- insufficient access to available food, economic
development outside agriculture, bad
governance, detrimental trade relations,
inadequate functioning of agricultural, fishery
and animal institutions & debt crisis.
- demand for food is likely to increase significantly
in the near future (especially by the higher
incomes groups in many countries) 37
- agricultural and animal breeding practices have to
be modified due to the limitation of suitable
agricultural land and so does fishery activities.
- the Green Revolution was found to be ill-
suited in technical and/or social-organization
terms.
- intensification of agriculture, more complex of
cropping system and additional external inputs
such as fertilizers, insecticides and pesticides can
improve the degrading situation.
- Fishery and animal breeders too have to upgrade
to face the changes trend in life.

38
b) Poverty alleviation, income generation
and future prospects
- farming, fishing and breeding animals rely on high
external input which has became human
beings livelihood problem .
- agriculture looked upon ‘old-timer farmers’ as
a ‘last resort’ and so does in fishing and animal
breeding
- with a new high value-added, labour intensive
emphasis and specialized training, agricultural
products such as fruits, vegetables, flowers and
processed food, fishing and animal breeding can
have a promising return.
39
c) Sustainability, ecosystems and natural
resource management
- agriculture was criticized as giving detrimental
effects such as soil degradation, erosion, waste of water,
decreasing water table, water pollution, excessive
chemical usage, destruction of natural habitats of wild
life onto natural environment and world ecology.
- sustainable agriculture and animal breeders means
agriculture with low external input, but in the long run,
agricultural land space is on the decreasing size for the
agricultural practice.
- integrated, ecological, organic, biological,
premaculture & precision agriculture and animal
breeding can represent the future challenges in
agriculture and so does in the field of fishing.
40
d) Multi-functional agriculture, animal
breeding and fishing
- farmers and animal breeders
i) preserve the landscape,
ii) maintain recreational spaces and
conservation contract,
iii) provide value-added marketing chains and
iv) improve animal welfare.
- Value-added products such as recreational services,
nature conservation and agro-health service has
became another way of ‘competing’ of land-use and sea
usage.
- for agriculture and animal breeding survival, the above factors
must be brought together to overcome the uprising problem
in agriculture.

41
e) System perspective, macro, institutional
factors for agricultural, animal breeding and
fishery growth
System perspective such as Management system by
the Ministry of Agriculture and normally handled
by the Department of Agriculture & Fishery and
other related agencies.
Macro factor depend on the Development Program
of agencies which varies through the government
projects.
Institutional allocation of fund has played a major
in all areas, either agriculture, fisheries, animal
husbandry (cattle, dear, goat, chicken, duck, etc)42
EXISTENCE OF MODERN EXTENSION SERVICES
A. Dealing with Collective Issues
- Coordinated action and cooperation among farmers, animal breeder
and fishermen on:-
i) management of collective natural resources,
ii) chain management, iii) collective input supply and marketing,
iv) organization building,
v) multi-functional agriculture and
vi) venturing into new markets.
- have collective dimensions (i.e. they require new forms of
interaction, organization and agreement between multiple actors) has
important implications for extension practice and extension theory.
- Pay more attention to issues like dealing with diverging interests,
different actor perspectives, and conflicts, and hence shift attention to
processes like conflict resolution, organization building, social learning
and negotiation.

43
B. Co-designing rather than Disseminating
Innovations
- complex solutions are adaptable and tailor-
made to local agro-ecological and social
conditions.
- play a more active role in the processes of
innovation design and adaptation
- play a role in innovation design and process
management towards innovation which break-
away from traditional forms of Extension.

44
C. Matching the Technical & Social dimensions
of an innovation
- must have a clear idea of what exactly constitutes an
‘innovation’ and what kind of process is needed to arrive
at it.
- known as new ideas, products or processes developed in
laboratories to be applied to everyday life.
- innovations means ‘a new way of doing things’ or doing
new things’ a balance between new technical devices
and novel social-organizational arrangement.
- complete innovation is an appropriate mix and balance
between new technical devices and novel social-
organization arrangements.

45
D. Catering for Diverse Farming, animal breeding, fishing
and Livelihood Strategies
- every farmer, fishermen and animal breeders is moving
to the ‘forward’ direction
- farms, animal breeding and fishing are characterized by
diverse attitudes of on layouts and household
composition
- diverse strategies and aspirations that they may have
regarding their social, natural environment and variation
of their way of livelihood - some based on small area of
popular crops while others on large scale of normal
demanded crops, fish or animal bred.

46
MODERN AND FUTURE EXTENSION SERVICES
A. Managing Complexity, Conflict and unpredictability
in an adoptive and flexible way
- make sense to formulate goals in advance, predict and
steered provided with adequate knowledge about the
causes and effects of societal problems
- human being often act in unexpected ways and
interactions between people have a dynamic on their
own & cannot be predicted.
- agro-ecological processes do not always ‘behave’ in
expected ways
- ‘personal chemistry’ played a major role causing
‘unpalatable’ phenomena such as accidental discoveries,
coincidence, ‘informal networking’, etc.
- messiness can be connected to tensions and conflicts.
47
B. Becoming Learning Organizations
- survival depends eventually on adaptability to
changing circumstances
- society and agro-ecological environment is
continuously changing
- must be able to change and adapt to the changing ‘
characteristics ‘and ‘demand ‘of the environment
- organizations often choose to ignore & avoid
threatening developments in the environment
- members must share both positive and negative
experiences and learn from them.

48
C. Being Brokers in an Era of Participation must be
further clarified to reduce tensions
- placed in difficult position in stimulating a particular
type of development, change or innovation AND
maintain credibility with immediate clients who May
have different priorities.
- ‘participation paradox’ – where people are capable &
knowledgeable BUT missing assumption ‘people can’t
do it by themselves’
- participatory trajectories – often far from smooth &
produce/cause disappointing result.

49
D. Coping with Dwindling Resources
- Government forced to cut budgets in economic
crisis but/while extension services must be
continued.
- Extension has to devise innovative ways with
limited resources and new sources of income.
- various recovery strategies (cooperation with
non-government organizations
- total privatization of the extension organization
can be a solution but the implication?

50
E. Changing Professional Identities
- conventional public extension organization on
decline
- some tasks & functions by public extension service
performed by commercial companies and non-
government organizations
- extension agents can become development
worker, marketing employee, communication
manager, public relation officer, process
facilitator, or an organization development
consultant.
- their work mainly to stimulate change.

51