Key components of a system for research-extension linkage in Nepal

A. Central level:

a) Tripartite meeting:

• Agencies involved in agriculture research and extension meet once a month to discuss various matters relating to agricultural research, development, and extension.

b) Technical panel meeting:

• Held at the central level at NARC to evaluate technical proposals of research projects to be carried out by the disciplinary division.

c) Agriculture Technical Working Group (ATWG):

• Ensure rapid technology development and dissemination through the participation of multiple actors including GO, NGOs, private sectors, and farmers.
• In the same line NARC has introduced the concept of participatory technology development (PTD) for the same purpose.
• The concept of ATWG is one of the major thrusts of the new strategy and is expected to be crucial in operationalizing the new strategy of PTD and linkage with multiple actors.

d) Seasonal crop and other technical workshop:

• National outreach research workshop, national summer crop research workshop, and national winter crop research workshop are some of the important workshops.

B. Regional level

a) Outreach research program (ORP):

• refers to adaptive on-farm research conducted with farming system perspectives in close coordination with the farmers and extension workers.
• It provides technology generator technology dissemination and the farmers to work together right from problem identification to program implementation and evaluation.

b) Outreach research planning and coordination meeting (ORPCM):

• It is held in each ARS after VLPRW or OR sites, the problems and issues are brought in the ARS to discuss various aspects of researchable problems.
• RDA and RLSO are also invited to the meeting. Regional Agriculture Technical Working Group (RATWG)

C. District level

a) District Agriculture Development Committee (DADC)

b) District Agriculture Development Program Implementation Committee (DAPDIC):

• The DDC chairperson is the chairperson of both the committees DADC and DAPIC. DADO acts as a chairperson of the committee.
• Issues of the research and extension can be discussed in the meeting.

c) Village-level planning and review workshop (VLPRW):

• VLPRW is organized in each OR site of ARS to identify the location-specific problems.
• Technical problems of the farming system are discussed and a review of past programs is done with representative farmers of sites.
• ASC/DLSC in charge, concerned DADO/DLSO, and SMS also participate in the workshop.