Extension, Poverty and Vulnerability: The Scope for Policy Reform - Final Report of a Study for the Neuchâtel Initiative

This report is concerned with the ‘who?’ ‘what?’ and ‘how?’ of pro-poor extension. It builds on the analytical framework proposed in the Inception Report of the same study (Christoplos, Farrington and Kidd, 2001), taking it forward by fleshing out the analysis with empirical information gathered from several countries during the course of the study (from primary data in Bolivia, Colombia, Nicaragua, Uganda and Vietnam, and from secondary sources in a range of other countries, including India), and drawing conclusions on the scope for action by governments and donors in a range of contexts. The Inception Report addressed the prior question of whether extension had anything to offer therural poor – concluding that it did, providing that appropriate wider policies were in place, and that the poor were perceived not merely as producers, but also consumers and labourers.