New research from Ripple Effect has revealed that the organization’s peer farmer trainer model is helping to plug gaps in extension services for rural communities in Western Kenya.
The research from Ripple Effect - a grantee of the Implementer-Led Design, Evidence, Analysis and Learning (IDEAL) Activity Small Grants Program funded by the United States Agency for International Development's Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance - is due to be published in April.
The reporter for Citizen TV claims that there is currently just one extension worker for every 5,000 small farmers in Kenya, far below the government target of one for every 400. Peer Farmer Trainers (PFTs) can help plug that gap.
PFTs are project participants who show particular talent when adopting Ripple Effect’s sustainable farming techniques and are subsequently trained to become community volunteers.
They hold training sessions and run demonstration farms to show others in their community how to improve soil fertility, crop yields, animal management, and post-harvest handling of crops.
Alfred Juma, Programme Support Officer for Ripple Effect Kenya, features in the report, saying that PFTs also improve the sustainability of Ripple Effect’s projects, especially when linked with other government services. Once the project ends, PFTs can provide support that helps embed positive change in rural communities.
“Even when we phase out, because most of our projects are two to five years, these community trainers remain as a resource.” - Alfred Juma, Programme Support Officer for Ripple Effect Kenya
For example, Ripple Effect determined that 87% of smallholder farmers from its Wealth Creation Project (2013 – 2017) in Western and Nyanza Provinces of Kenya continued to receive training from PFTs five years after the end of the project.
The IDEAL Small Grants Program funded research is helping inform knowledge gaps on the sustainability of the PFT approach in helping smallholder farmers grow their own way out of poverty.
PFTs have been an essential part of Ripple Effect projects for decades, and their impact is tangible: for every one family taking part in a project, three more benefit. And those extra three families often achieve similar results to families directly contacted by Ripple Effect, demonstrating the power of peer-to-peer learning.
Watch the full report below.
Get in touch to receive an invite to our webinar where we will share the research findings in more detail and have a lively panel debate.
Ripple Effect is a grantee of the Implementer-Led Design, Evidence, Analysis and Learning (IDEAL) Activity Small Grants Program funded by the United States Agency for International Development's Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance.
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