The group approaches

• GON has adopted the farmers’ group approach of extension service delivery for reasons of cost-effectiveness, group learning, and joint decision-making.
• To access government services, farmers are required to be organized into such groups having persons of similar interest in enterprise types.
• Agriculture and livestock farmers’ groups are generally in separate groupings.
• They are advised by extension workers to conduct regular monthly meetings and to raise welfare funds.
• The JT/JTA contacts FGs to select candidates from among farmers to make use of available external training, conduct demonstrations, participate in agricultural tours, and other activities offered under government funding.
• These groups ultimately graduate into cooperatives as formal institutions and operate following business-like operations and for purposes of accessing benefits provided to cooperatives by the government.