Issues of human security and educational development in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria

Abstract

Drawing from documents, observation, interview and questionnaire, we highlighted the role of issues of human security and its impact on the educational development of the Niger Delta region as well as means of enhancing human security in Nigeria. This article is a conceptual and methodological breakthrough in Nigeria's academic land- scape where qualitative and quantitative experiences highlight issues that are pertinent to the educational development in The Niger Delta. Diverse statistical analyses were conducted using the Statistical Package of the Social Sciences version 18 to assess the study 's hypotheses. It was predicted that the region would be advanced educationally and on all other development indices if human security issues are resolved. This paper contends that the Niger Delta region has the potential to address the challenges currently faced by Nigeria including social disruption, poverty, hunger, disease, conflict, marginalisation, and the achievement of the movement for Education For All by 2015. This paper is of the opinion that the successful integration of the Niger Delta region into federal planning, structures and funding will enhance development, livelihoods, and human security not only for the region but also for Nigeria's educational development.     

Approaches for Effective Vocationalisation of Secondary School Agriculture in Nigeria: The Views of Agricultural Science Teachers in Delta State,Nigeria

Abstract

This paper describes a random sample of serving agricultural science teachers in Delta State, Nigeria, as a background to understanding their views on four selected approaches for effective vocationalisation of secondary school agriculture. These approaches were used to develop a 23-item questionnaire based on current literature. A five-point Likert-type scale was used to determine how well the views of the respondents corresponded with the items in the questionnaire. Results showed, among others, that the average teaching experience of the 322 sampled teachers was 12.9 years; 50.6 % of the respondents were BSc(Ed) degree holders; 38.8% had Nigerian Certificate in Education (NCE), while 10.6% were Higher National Diploma (HND) holders. The respondents agreed that the identified approaches were necessary for effective vocationalisation of secondary school agriculture. The paper therefore recommends that the identified approaches should be pursued by the Nigerian government to ensure that vocational agriculture in secondary schools achieves the goals of the National Policy on Education.     

The Role of Agricultural Consultants in New Zealand in Environmental Extension

Abstract

The aim of this study was to understand the role that agricultural consultants in New Zealand were undertaking in the Research, Development and Extension (RD&E) system—and in particular in relation to environmental extension. New Zealand does not have a public extension service and hence there is a strong reliance on consultants and regional councils for environmental management information and advice. As they are independent of the formal RD&E system there is no guarantee that RD&E outcomes are reaching farmers, nor that effective environmental extension is occurring. The study used a combination of case studies, phone interviews with informed persons and a national web survey to explore the role of the consultant. The study found that agricultural consultants are playing an important role in working with farmers to improve agricultural production. There are, however, indications that gaps have developed over time between agricultural consultants and the agricultural research sector which limit the effectiveness of the RD&E system. Agricultural consultants are playing a minimal role in proactive environmental extension because insufficient market forces are driving this role. The paper suggests that a national database of agricultural consultants could improve the flow of tailored information between research and agricultural consultants and also suggests mechanisms where consultants could be better integrated into the RD&E system and provide feedback to research programs. Market failure in the area of environmental extension could be addressed by publicly funded incentive programs.     

Factors Affecting Performance of Agricultural Extension: Evidence from Democratic Republic of Congo

Purpose: As part of the institutional reforms and agricultural restructuring in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), this paper provides an assessment of the performance of the agricultural extension system as well as factors explaining it.

Method: This paper involves key informants’ interviews and surveys of 107 extension organizations and 162 extension agents in randomly selected 156 villages, analyzed using qualitative and logistic regression methods.

Findings and Practical Implications: Results show that despite having one of the highest extension agent-to-farmer ratio and a pluralistic extension system, DRC fails to deliver knowledge and technologies to rural areas due to lack of coordination, no unified and clear policy and mandate, lack of funding, aging and low competencies of agents, and lack of mobility and interactions of agents with key actors. This paper complements findings by other studies that number of agents is not a sufficient indication of performance, but an effective system needs to focus on the enabling environment for agents to be motivated to work as mandated. In this paper, enabling conditions that are found to be statistically significant are external funding, enforcement of performance targets, systems of rewards and sanctions, mobility to foster linkages, and skills development.

Originality: This paper contributes by: (1) analyzing a cross-section of various organizations and agents to identify factors that explain variations in performance in a statistical and systematic approach; (2) providing insights on how to prioritize investments and options for a fragile state like DRC, with weak infrastructure and institutional capacity and with a long history of neglect for their national extension system; and (3) illustrating how a rich and well-cited conceptual framework can be implemented empirically to provide policy options for a country like DRC.     

The Many Turnings of Agricultural Extension in Australia

Abstract

Purpose: This article outlines the development of extension as a discipline in Australia, its organization, and the ideological changes that have occurred from the second half of the nineteenth century through to the present.

Design/Methodology/Approach: It considers the evolution of extension across the different states of Australia from a national perspective and describes how the research development and extension (RD&E) complex has rotated through cycles of crises, highs, awakenings in thought and practice, and periods where achievements and institutions unravel.

Findings: Discussed is the tension between public and private sector extension, as well as the successes and failures of various paradigms. It considers the impacts of different agricultural policy on Australian agricultural RD&E across the decades. In particular it deals with the current ‘unravelling’ of the agricultural RD&E system in Australia, and tries to anticipate future demands on agricultural extension and how these services might be delivered into the future.

Practical Implications: The article challenges the reader to consider the discipline of extension as a subset of the greater society in which it exists. It provides an insight into how the agricultural research, development and extension capacity of a nation can be observed to ebb and flow over generations in accord with the rhythm of society.

Originality/Value: The article presents a perspective that has not been fully captured or understood until now.     

Thermal conductivity of soils with heavy metals concentration from the Niger Delta region of Nigeria

INTRODUCTION Knowledge of soil thermal properties is an im- portant factor in understanding mass and energy ex- change processes in the soil-atmosphere system. The chemical composition of the soils will therefore in- directly relate to their thermal conductivities. Ac- cording to Usowicz (1993), this knowledge can also help in controlling the thermal-moisture regime of soils. Soil properties often correlated with metal ad- sorption include soil pH (Christensen, 1984; Harter, 1983), soil …     

抗战前安徽农业技术推广浅析

全面抗战爆发前,安徽省政府组织成立了农业推广机构,设立了一些农业改良场,重视农业技术推广,推进了农村经济的发展。本文对这一时期安徽采取的农业技术推广措施、取得的成绩、存在的不足进行了梳理与分析。     

Barriers to Participatory Extension in Egypt: Agricultural Workers' Perspectives

Purpose: This paper examines extension practises of agricultural workers within the Egyptian government and the perceived barriers they face in implementing participatory approaches, identifying improvements required in research and extension processes to meet the real needs of Egyptian farming communities.

Design/Methodology/Approach: Key barriers for engaging in participatory extension were identified using content analysis of semi-structured interviews, surveys and focus group discussion of 37 government agricultural workers along with participant observation and review of existing literature.

Findings: The majority of workers surveyed understood basic participatory extension principles and desired to use these approaches. Changing from traditional ‘top down’ extension to systems that engage with farmers' needs at the community level is made difficult due to the aging and poorly functioning Village Extension Worker (VEW) network. Thus, it is far easier for the research driven extension programmes to use technology transfer models.

Practical Implications: Participatory extension relies on strong relationship building and open communication between farmers, extension workers, researchers, interest groups and policy-makers. The Egyptian government must properly establish and resource the pivotal role of VEWs within the extension system to meet its strategic aims of modernising agriculture, developing food security and improving the livelihoods of rural inhabitants.

Originality/Value: This paper captures the unique perspectives of government research, extension and education workers involved in agricultural development at a time directly after the 2010 revolution, when they were able to more openly reflect on the past and present situations.     

Private Agricultural Extension System in Kenya: Practice and Policy Lessons

Abstract

Private extension system has been at the centre of a debate triggered by inefficient public agricultural extension. The debate is anchored on the premise that the private sector is more efficient in extension service delivery. This study evaluates the private extension system in Kenya. It employs qualitative and quantitative methods. The results indicate that the private extension is skewed towards high potential regions because it is either driven by profits or quick results. The private system benefits from the public extension staff, thus some form of commercial contracting of public staff to serve the private systems is appropriate. Public extension should not overlap in the areas efficiently served by the private system. The government should consider contracting the private sector to deliver extension to neglected areas. The government has a role in extension services funding, quality control, arbitration, monitoring and in provision of quality infrastructure to lower private sector players’ costs.     

Digital divide in the utilization of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in counsellor education in Nigerian Universities

Abstract

This study investigated digital divide in the utilization of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in counsellor education in Nigerian universities. It had two research questions and two hypotheses tested at .05 level of significance. It adopted a survey design and used ICT Utilization Questionnaire (IUQ) in gathering data from the entire population of 142 counsellor-educators and trainee-counsellors in the five universities in the South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria who offered Guidance and Counselling as a course of study at the Master's degree level in the 2007/2008 session. This instrument was validated by five experts, and its reliability was established to be 0.9. A direct delivery technique was adopted for data collection. Data was analyzed using mean, standard deviation and t-test. Findings show that there is no digital divide based on gender but there is digital divide based on status of the population as counsellor educator or trainee-counsellors. Recommendations were made to different stakeholders on bridging this gap.     

Status of Job Motivation and Job Performance of Field Level Extension Agents in Ogun State: Implications for Agricultural Development

Abstract

The field level extension agents (FLEAs) are the lifeline of the agricultural extension system in Nigeria. Their motivation and job performance are therefore important to achieving faster agricultural development in Nigeria. The study identified the factors motivating the FLEAs working with Ogun State Agricultural development programme (OGADEP) and associates the motivation factors with their job performance level. Eighty of the 126 FLEAs working with OGADEP were selected randomly. The study reveals that financial incentives, remuneration and salary and mobility of staff were the factors rated as the most important motivation factors. The rating also revealed a general low status of FLEAs motivation and job performance. Of the 14 factors identified, boss–subordinate interaction was the only significant predictor of job performance. None of the FLEAs personal factors related significantly with job performance. Policy action needs to consider the adequacy of financing of agricultural extension work in Nigeria in order to achieve sustainable agricultural development over time.     

Improving Agricultural Extension Services through University Outreach Initiatives: A Case of Farmers in Model Villages in Ogun State,Nigeria

Abstract

University outreach is an educational and research-based information source enabling farmers to make decisions that improve the quality of their lives. This paper explores how collaborative efforts between the university and farmers have directly impacted in albeit Striga (‘noxious witch weed’) ravaged maize farms in rainforest farming systems in southwest Nigeria. Data were collected using pre-tested instruments from cross-section of 280 participating and non-participating farmers. Logistic regression results indicated that certain coefficient estimates such as gender, regularity of extension contact, membership of farmers’ group, female adult aged 16 and above, assistance in the provision of tractor-hiring services and improved crop yields were found to be statistically significant at p < 0.05. Furthermore, findings from sample statistics were reflections of peasantry as majority of the farmers had small mean farm size, large household size and low annual income from sales of maize crop. The major conclusion that could be drawn from the study is that the provision of extension by the university coupled with other factors have had significant positive influence on decision to adopt introduced cultural practices with attendant improvement on the well-being of participating farmers.     

新农村建设背景下的农业产业链区域延伸

促进农业产业链区域延伸的动力包括需求、供给、分工和技术等因素,在它们的系统作用下,农业产业链链环将顺次在地域内(尤其是农村地域)和地域间(尤其是城乡间)进行延伸。农业产业链区域延伸将沟通城乡两个地域、链接三次产业,能较好地打破城乡两套封闭体系独自运行局面,沟通三次产业的内在经济联系,进而成为推进社会主义新农村建设的重要途径。     

Sakai在农技推广人员远程培训中的应用

促使农业科研成果和实用技术尽快应用于农业生产,保障农业的发展,实现农业的现代化很大程度上取决于农技推广人员的科技水平。面对广大基层农技人员队伍知识结构和技能水平急需提高的现实需要,提出基于Sakai平台开展农技推广人员远程培训模式,以解决现有培训体制存在的时空限制、规模有限、互动性不强等问题。     

简析20世纪美国送教下乡运动

美国送教下乡运动始于19世纪后期,在20世纪前叶达于鼎盛,其目标在于"将从事现代农业的知识与技能传播至田间地头、村户农舍,将旧时代农民改造成为新职业群体",其主要形式包括农民讲习会与农科示范田两大部分。送教下乡运动的蓬勃兴起为美国现代农民培育体系的发展成熟奠定了基石,是美国农业现代化进程的重要推动力量。     

Neoliberalism,education and the integration of ICT in schools. A critical reading

This article explores a contemporary perspective of education that aims to radically re-construct schools through the integration of information and communication technologies (ICT). Through the analysis of key texts produced by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, leading ICT industries, and international educational researchers, the article looks at the apparently neutral and desirable regime of truth surrounding education, where concrete problems are created and certain solutions provided. The findings discuss how the integration of ICT in schools is embedded in a perspective of education based on: new modalities of soft government, the centrality of a self-regulated and entrepreneur learner, and the representation of schools as flexible, autonomous and non-hierarchical environments organised around non-standardised modalities of public ‘accountability’.     

连云港市现代农业科技推广体系中的问题与对策研究

分析了连云港市现代农业科技推广体系中推广体制、运行机制、推广人员专业素质、推广方式等四个方面存在的问题,并提出了相应的对策措施.