Farmers' participation in agricultural research and extension: Lessons from the last decade

This article is a conceptual review of a decade of work on Farmer Participation in Research and Extension (FPR/E). Though FPR/E does have an important role, it has generated over-optimistic expectations. This is caused by lack of clarity in the objectives of different kinds of participation; the way participatory approaches relate to other modes of client orientation; and the various roles of different organizations in promoting participation. A major unresolved issue is the need to complement depth of participation with breadth of coverage. Inter-agency collaboration may hold some, but not all of the solutions to this dilemma.