The “New Extensionist”: Roles, Strategies, and Capacities to Strengthen Extension and Advisory Services

Though research on communication and innovation during the last decade brought better understanding on the innovation process, this has not influenced the underlying paradigm and practice of Extension and Advisory Services (EAS) in most countries. At the same time there have been few initiatives that tried to experiment with new ways of developing capacities for extension and innovation. This paper builds on the new insights from communication and innovation research, lessons learned from extension experiences over the past decades, the current debates around Agricultural innovation system (AIS) and experiences with developing capacities for extension and innovation. The main intention of the paper is to clarify the role
of EAS in AIS and to discuss potential ways for development of capacities to better serve rural producers (including livestock keepers and fisherfolk), especially the large number of small farmers and entrepreneurs.