It is tempting sometimes to jump to conclusions when you see something in rural areas which based on your perception of normality should be corrected.
You see biomass eg. straw being wasted. You see growth rate of animals being very low. You see low yielding grain varieties being grown. You have long calving intervals. Many people working in activities such as threshing, planting and harvesting of crops. What a waste of labour!
It is a fundamental error so often done by inexperienced "Western Experts" to come with immediate solution based on their perception of "normality".
It must be remembered that for any enterprise even a western enterprise if you want to improve it you must attend to the first constant not the 2nd , 3rd or 4th . This seems logical yet it is so often forgotten by western rural development experts in developing countries. It is not always easy to identify but it does require an understanding of the target group you want to support. In understanding the socio-economic circumstances gender issues etc. and their economic security. Poor people cannot take risks seems logical. If labour is not a problem labour saving devices provide no solution rather aggravate a problem. Seems logical. If the animal serves as a security or a banking system maximising growth rate provide not help (seems logical) if high yielding varieties require more input then the risk element maybe maybe to great if there is a crop failure due to draught. Seems logical. Farmers may be illiterate and accused of being traditional even sometimes ignorant. In our experienced however if you wish the help of the target group identified and have a solution to constraint no 1. I they respond much more rapidly to intervention than a well educated western society. There are no unique technologies. What is appropriate in one place is not appropriate or may not be appropriate in another. The good thing for agricultural scientist that the scientific principles are unique but how you use the principles or derived technologies are certainly not. We are not experts in rural development, we never can be, all we can say is that we have a lot of experience.
 Trashing rice in Vietnam. Labour consuming but labour is not the problem. |
 Village farmers keep cattle or goat as a bank for reserve. The animal can be sold for cash when needed. |
