1.CTA Sponsored Case Study ofExtension and Advisory ServicesPoliciesJamaicaJoseph I. Lindsay Consultant & Al Powell CEO Rural Agricultural Development Authority

2. Map of the Caribbean Showing Jamaica 3. Overview Jamaica is the third largest island in theCaribbean Archipelago. It has a population of 2.7million and a GDP percapita of US$5,000 Large estates dominate sugar, citrus and to alesser extent banana and pastures. The bestlands are still in sugar and some have diversifiedinto fruit and tree crops Over 230,000 farmers are engaged in agricultureand over 40% of the population depends directlyor indirectly on agriculture 4. Farm Sizes JamaicaSize group of 2007Number of 1996 Number of Average Size in hafarms farmsfarms(hectares) 20071996Under 1 47,712159,040 43,459108,6480.3 0.41 to under 586,01145,269101,977 50,989 1.9 2.00.4 50,7834,534 67,7236,04611.211.250 to under 25,449270 41,48442794.397.2200 200 115,854 140 152,791 369827.5 414.1All farms 325,000 209,213 407,4341.6 2.4 5. Major Issues Facing AgricultureSector (www.vision 2030.com) Declining competitiveness of agricultural production Inadequate financing for the agricultural sector Limited staffing and resources for the extensionservices Gaps in key agriculture infrastructure-roads, irrigation, grading and storage facilities Weaknesses in markets-informality inchannels, inadequate marketing information, poorlinkages to other sectors in the society Land degradation issues-soilerosion, agrochemicals, deforestation, fires, illegalsettlements Land tenure issues-informality, squatting, lack of 6. Data Collection Face to face interviews--Minister, senior management- RADA CEO/Staff Telephone interviews Email queries Questionnaire-training institutions Literature review-Planning Institute, Statistical Institute; Organizationalwebsites, publications 7. Major Policy InstrumentsJamaicaNo Major policy1Cattle Sector Policy Framework 2010- 20202Food Safety Policy3Sustainable Fisheries Development Policy4Plant Health Policy5Animal Health Policy6Banana Policy7Organic Agriculture Policy8Food and Nutrition Security Policy9Agricultural Land Utilization Policy10 National Seed Policy 8. Perspective on small scale andsubsistence farming The government is not encouraging subsistencefarming per se. In the case of small scalefarming, emphasis is being placed on commercialproduction. This is being supported by finance, marketing ,post harvest and generally managed by RADA 9. Extension policy environment Current Agriculture extension and advisorystructure Jamaica The advisory extension services in Jamaicadates back to 1895 when the major responsibilitywas vested in the farmer-based JamaicaAgriculture Society(JAS) (www.jas.org). The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries sincethe 1950s has had major responsibility for thepublic sector advisory and agriculture extensionservice in Jamaica Since 1990 the public extension advisoryservices have been vested in the RuralAgriculture Development Authority (RADA)(www.rada.gov.jm). 10. Current structure of extensionadvisory delivery in Jamaica RADA - dedicated de-centralized public sectorextension and advisory service Commodity based extension services sugarcane, banana, coffee, cocoa, coconut,fisheries/aquaculture, irrigation Private- Broiler chicken contractors -Agro-industrial input suppliers 11. Extension Agency RADAsMandate Provision of a channel for the free flow of policyinputs from farmers and for the implementation ofpolicy decisions taken by policy makers; To enhance the development of farming through aneffective, efficient and sustainable Extension Service. To supplement information to rural developmentagencies, thereby assisting to advance improvementsin rural infrastructure. To provide the supplemental social services requiredfor the improvement of the quality of life of farmfamilies. To provide technical advice to farmers of any size. To provide a reliable agricultural marketinginformation service. To assist in the implementation of specified ruraldevelopment projects 12. RADAs Mandates (contd) Development and operation of rural agriculturalservice centres at strategic locations in order to bringthe service closer to farmers; Implementation of selected projects which impact onthe farming and biological environments (watersheddevelopment, hillside agriculture) in order to stemenvironmental degradation and promote the use ofnatural resources; Liaising with agricultural research organizations inorder to provide the technology delivery link to ruralfarmers; Encouragement of agro-industrial development inorder to contribute to national food security andreduce the reliance on food imports; Assistance to rural women in identifying incomeearning opportunities and developing smallbusinesses through which they can earn a livelihood 13. Extension Delivery RADA structure is aligned with parishboundaries(Figure 1). Each parish is divided into extension areas which aremanned by extension offices forcrops, marketing, livestock, land husbandry The qualifications of extension officers range fromASc degrees to PhD/DVMSeveral approaches are used in the delivery oftechnology and information Social Services/Home economics-for womenempowerment and development of agro-processing value adding to products Ratio of RADA extension officers to farmers is about 14. Extension Areas 15. Complement of RADA ExtensionAdvisory Services StaffStaff category Number Core businessPrincipal Director 2Field Services/Operation/Technical servicesSenior Directors 2Zonal Directors2Zonal AdministrationParish Managers* 13 Parish AdministrationDeputy parish Managers 13 Extension AdministrationCrop Extension Officers98 Crops; General AgricultureExtension Assistants 60 Backstopping of extensionofficersMarketing Extension Officers 14 Market promotion/ intelligenceLivestock Extension Officers 14 Livestock traininganddevelopmentPlant Protection Officers4Plant Protection, Pest RiskLand Husbandry Officers4Livestock husbandryRegional Engineers 5Roads and WorksSub-Total231 16. ICT Tools in Operation at RADA1 Establishment and maintenance of RADA website (www.rada.gov.jm)2 Establishment and maintenance of Agricultural Business Information SystemWebsite (www.abisjamaica.com.jm) with data on all farmers, buyers etc3 Maintaining linkage to main Ministry of Agriculture website(www.moa.gov.jm) and related partner agencies4 Linkage of marketing officers to Jamaica Agriculture Marketing InformationSystem (www.ja-mis.com)5 Provision of internet access to extension staff6 Provision of desktop and laptop computers for dedicated use by extensionstaff7 Provision of GPS Units for extension districts8 Training of staff in MS Office and provision of relevant programmes licensedto the organization9 Training in GIS and GPS use/application10 Provision of blackberry or other cell phone and establishing of closed user group 17. RADA Budgetary and OtherResources Core budget from Government- salary, travel support, core activities Income earning projects Contract Services/Implementing Agency-Government sponsored projects-Bilateral projects-FAO, EU, USAID, IICA, CARDI-NGOs 18. Capacity Building Staff recruited from a number of institutions -Universities, Agriculture Colleges Mandatory lifelong learning completion ofminimum of 30 hours of in-service training forextension officers Provision of study leave support for specializedand graduate studies South/South visits to extension, research anddevelopment institutions 19. Challenges Linkage between extension and research Manpower/skills match Inadequate physical and human resources Conflicting demands on extension personnel Policy shifts with changes in administration Lack of mechanism for evaluation of the impact ofextension on producers and productivity of theagriculture sector Identification of the best methods for technologytransfer Lack of a local professional extension body 20. Summary The extension and advisory services in Jamaica consist ofa dedicated statutory organization (RADA) since August01, 1990, As a statutory body RADA is not stymied byGovernment bureaucracy RADA has mandates for modernizing extension servicefocusing on market driven commercial production withsupport for accessing finance, post-harvest management,marketing and use of the agriculture value chain Extension started in 1895 as a farmer managed advisoryservice Commodity boards and private sector service providersplay an important link in Several limitations including funding, human resources forsociology, rural development and matching personnel torequired skill sets The impact of the extension service on agriculture sectorand farmers needs to be documented 21. Acknowledgements CTA funding of the case study and myparticipation in the conference Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries Minister andstaff Rural Agricultural Development Authority CEOand staff Commodity organizations Private sector service and input suppliers 22. Thank you