000 02951nam a22003137a 4500
001 68326
003 MX-TxCIM
005 20241218112404.0
008 241210s2024 za ||||| |||| 00| 0 eng d
040 _aMX-TxCIM
041 _aeng
100 0 _aSubakanya Mitelo
_8001713985
_gFormerly Sustainable Agrifood Systems
_920491
245 1 0 _aMega demonstrations as a tool for experiential learning :
_binsights from Malawi and Zambia
260 _aZambia :
_bCIMMYT,
_c2024.
300 _a14 pages
500 _aOpen Access
520 _aMega demonstrations embody the proverb "seeing is believing". They are central in creating demand and raising awareness for new technologies in international development. However, evidence of their effectiveness remains context-specific and scarce at best. We interviewed nearly 2,000 farmers in Malawi and Zambia who had attended mega demonstration events, hosted by partners of the ‘Southern Africa Accelerated Innovation Delivery Initiative (AID-I) Rapid Delivery Hub’, to assess learnings, intent to adopt, and actual adoption. The first round, conducted in June 2023, assessed learnings and intent to adopt, while the second round was undertaken around March 2024 to evaluate actual adoption. More than 80% of farmers who attended events at mega demonstrations learnt something new, with more than 50% highlighting new drought-tolerant maize varieties as their preferred choice. Mega demonstrations as a tool for experiential learning: Insights from Malawi and Zambia AID-I 1 Overall, we found a difference of 1- 4 percentage points between intent to adopt and the actual adoption of various technologies. The main drivers of adoption included yield potential, and easy and low cost of implementation. Over 65% of the farmers interviewed went on to adopt drought-tolerant maize varieties during the El-Niño-affected 2023/2024 season. The uptake of other innovations was lower but comparable to the intent to adopt figures. These results suggest a close correlation between the intent to adopt and the actual adoption, and suggest that mega demonstrations play a vital role in facilitating technology uptake. Several areas for improvement were identified, including the need to incorporate organic fertilizer and soil health, bundle demonstrations with other innovations such as advisories, and learning visits to enhance farmer knowledge and adoption.
546 _aText in English
650 7 _aAgricultural demonstration
_2AGROVOC
_910894
650 7 _aInnovation adoption
_2AGROVOC
_91160
650 7 _aTechnology adoption
_2AGROVOC
_91287
650 7 _aFarmers
_2AGROVOC
_91654
651 7 _aMalawi
_2AGROVOC
_91319
651 7 _aZambia
_94309
_2AGROVOC
700 1 _aMulungu, K.H.
_8001714131
_gSustainable Agrifood Systems
_933325
700 1 _aNgoma, H.
_8001712572
_gSustainable Agrifood Systems
_915771
856 4 _yOpen Access through DSpace
942 _2ddc
_cRE
_n0
999 _c68326
_d68318