Farmer's Organization - Chapter 1

At the conclusion of this unit, program participants will be able to know:

What is an Association of Farmer Friends (A.F.F.)

What is to be accomplished by organizing themselves into and Association of Farmer Friends.

Why organizing an Association is an effective way to adopt new technology.

 

Objectives

At the conclusion of this unit, program participants will be able to know:

1. What is an Association of Farmer Friends (A.F.F.)

2. What is to be accomplished by organizing themselves into and Association of Farmer Friends.

3. Why organizing an Association is an effective way to adopt new technology.

Lesson Preparation

1. Find an adequate place (school, community building, home, etc.) Where to hold a meeting.

2. Collect of find 20 small branches (about 2 inches in length and about 1/4 of an inch in diameter).

3. Supplies: chalk, paper, poster board, blackboard.

Concepts to be taught

1. What is an Association of Farmer Friends.

2. Definition of Association.

3. Why an Association of Friends?

4. Advantages of an Association.

5. Who can be a member.

6. Disadvantages of not having an Association.

Introduction

The Ezra Taft Benson Agriculture and Food Institute has a mission statement: “Improve the quality of life of people around the world by teaching and implementing enlightened agricultural practices.” This statement provides the backbone to almost every activity being developed and implemented with farmers in several countries.

The Benson Institute believes in five basic concepts when it teaches association organization.

1. Every participant is important.

2. Every participant deserves to maintain his/her dignity, and others should show respect.

3. Every participant is internally motivated to conduct his/her life based on his/her beliefs and ideals.

4. Every participant is special, unique, and able to offer solutions, ideas, suggestions for his/her own well-being and the association.

5. Every individual has the capacity to make decisions, offer alternatives, and critically analyze his/her own condition as a member of his/her family and association.

For many years, many developing counties have attempted to create new types of farming methods to increase agricultural production and save energy and money on service or products being purchased or required by small farmers. Group farming has been one of the most common organizations which has been encourages and supported by local, international, and government agencies in order to better the condition of the small farmer. Over the years, collective farms have become quite successful in many parts of the world.

The basic reasons for organizing a group are:

1. Economics

2. Potential for better use of resources

3. Marketing

4. Extension Services

Between 1986 and 1991, the Benson Institute has been involved in organizing several associations of farmer friends in several Latin American countries. The main areas where the Benson Institute has been working are poor areas where production is slow and where the conditions of the farmers are critical. The goal of the program is to promote a sustainable situation by which farmers in the AFF will adopt the new techniques and use them as part of their indigenous system. The organization of AFF functions on the following operating principles:

1. Participation

2. Group leadership

3. Responsibility

4. Hard work

5. Honesty

6. Mutual trust

New Technology Adoption

Facilitator

1. Be consciously aware to the available technology (indigenous.) Make the small farmer aware that new solutions have been developed.

2. Respect the indigenous know-how.

3. Consider your opinion and ideas in light of the knowledge farmers have developed. Invite farmers to express opinions and allow free flow of ideas during discussions.

4. Ask why something is done the way farmers do. Explain what they do and have them think of another method to do the same thing.

5. Never impose ideas or methods.

6. Think in terms of your desire to present techniques that are consistent. Ask what they consider wrong with your methodology.

7. Present ideas that have the potential for long term effect.

8. Encourage experimentation, make them see things in a different way. Suggest they try a new method in a small plot. Generally, farmers are willing to experiment.

9. Remember that many times “small” is better than “big”.

10. Select a site on each of the participants production unit that would be used for experimentation. Farmers like to do things according to their “normal pattern”, as they see their environment and as tradition dictates.

Concept #1

What is an Association of Farmer Friends?

An Association of Farmer Friends (AFF) is a group of farmer families which get together to:

1. Develop a sense of team-work.

2. Promote new ideas in food production.

3. Work together in the solution of common food production problems.

4. Adopt new agriculture technology and techniques.

5. Manage agricultural inputs, natural and human resources.

6. Apply newly acquired knowledge to improve the health, nutrition, and economic conditions of his/her family.

7. Contribute to the common good of his/her family, AFF, and the community.

Group discussion:

What does it mean?

Encourage the Association to develop an atmosphere of friendship and companionship. Accept all ideas and above all, listen to the conversation among the farmers regarding the principles being taught. Challenge them to answer the questions asked, do not confront them. Explain why it is necessary to work as a team. In many countries, soccer is a very popular sport that can be used to describe many of the concepts of working together. Ask what happens if the goalkeeper, for instance, decides to play in the field, and refuses to stand at the goal line. Most farmers throughout the world have been working the fields alone or with members of their family most of their lives. Many still distrust new techniques and people. The group provides a means by which farmers receives support for ideas, encouragement, and suggestions. Consider that many times he/she will feel challenged, but in company of peers, he/she feels much more comfortable expressing feelings and ideas.

Create an atmosphere of friendship and collaboration

New ideas

1. Present ideas, do not lecture. Remember that it is difficult at first for farmers to express themselves in front of unknown persons.

2. Make them feel that their ideas are important and useful. They may think his/her ideas are useless, not important, and that someone may ridicule him/her for expressing a new idea.

3. Make your presentation activity oriented (attention span is relatively short for farmers). Sometimes farmers like to use the ground as blackboard, or use sticks, or other indigenous method of communication. Pay close attention to these cultural cues in order to ensure acceptance of an idea or a thought. The most effective lesson can be presented in 30 minutes or less.

Application of newly acquired knowledge

1. Farmers are generally motivated by looking at their needs and personal interests.

2. Remember that for small farmers as the case with many adults in other societies, learning is a life-centered situation. Knowledge and culture has been passed by their father’s father. When applying new ideas, allow for personal experiences, comments, doubts, and criticism.

3. Experience has allowed many farmers to maintain a certain level of self-determination for many generations despite insurmountable odds and under the most critical conditions. They will seek experimentation if the ideas proposed will satisfy a need and will have easy application under existing conditions.

4. Learn about the solution-making process of the community. Remember that many times adults will not react positively to external pressure. One of the most valuable lessons to adults is what he/she can do when self-directed. (Consider that individual differences increase with age.) 5. Farmers will display different styles, modes, and learning pace as ideas are implemented. Facilitators must pay close attention to the best system to teach a particular group of farmers. Sometimes it can be in a formal setting (class, seminar, or formal discussion), or non-formal setting, in the field, on a one-to-one basis, small group discussion, and individual visits.

Contribute to Common Good of the Group

Concept #2

Definition of Association

1. An Association is an organization of farmer families with common interests, purpose, etc., that joins with the purpose of increasing food production, family income and quality of life.

2. The Association involves the idea of companionship, fellowship, and partnership in accepting new technologies, methodologies, ideas, and concepts regarding family food production.

Concept #3

Why an Association of Friends?

1. Individual farmers have accomplished and can accomplish a large measure of their tasks without much assistance. They know how much land they can crop, what crops demand more or less labor, and regulate their needs according to the availability of food and other available resources. The AFF does not take away their individual style or infringes in their personal desire to crop what they need to feed their families. The AFF is an organization that attends to common needs, seed, fertilizer, soil, analysis, and also promotes the concept of community, identity, etc.

2. The AFF is a group of farmers that gets together to organize themselves to share common challenges, to seek solution to their needs, to increase food production, to create an institution that will support and sustain economic growth, that is to say, be able to use financial resources better by purchasing fertilizer and other inputs which will cause a major impact in production practices.

3. Most agricultural activities carried by one individual affects others. Most farmer families in developing nations have created a network that remains in delicate balance with their environment, availability of resources and cultural ways. This network is many times supported by a delicate social and human resource structure. If one of the pieces is missing or altered, the entire system suffers the consequences. The classical examples are: water sharing, land ownership, family disputes over what considers rights over the others.

Group discussion

Investigate previous farmer organization in the area. Ask if members of the group have participated in other cooperatives or organizations. Discuss the level of success and failures and analyze openly why the farmers think that it has been successful and why it has failed.

1. The group provides and excellent vehicle to future activities, purchase of fertilizer, seeds, technical know-how, financing, etc.

2. An association is always much stronger than an individual or family.

Ask a member to come up front and break a small branch. Then make a bundle and with a string tie the 20 sticks and ask a member to try to break the bundle.

1. Some farmers in the group may have already participated in association, club, or cooperative. Their experience will be invaluable to promote the idea of unity and cooperation.

Concept #4

Advantages of an Association

1. Because the association is an informal group, farmers will feel comfortable and free to express ideas and to share concerns. They are not tied by legalities or under the supervision of a government or private agency.

2. Ideas can be better explained and developed as a group because of the different levels of experience and knowledge.

3. The group provides support and encouragement.

4. The association becomes and instrument for accountability, a source of strength and belonging.

5. The association is a self-managed unit, not directly linked to government agencies, which have the ability to make them dependant or be held to social or political obligations.

6. Associations are easy to set up.

Concept #5

Who can be a member?

1. Any head of household, male or female, married, can be a member of the AFF. It is preferred families with children, since the children are the main concern in the program.

2. Any head of household who farms at least one hectare of land (not necessarily in one tract).

3. Any farmer head of household who makes his/her livelihood from the land.

4. Any farmer head of household who willingly participates in the AFF to improve his/her agricultural practices adopting the small-scale agriculture program (SSAP).

5. Farmer families must live within the same radius or neighborhood with easy communication links and close geographical area.

How many farmer friends constitute an AFF?

1. A group no less than 15 and no more than 21 (odd number0, is the ideal number of participants, It is easy to manage; by keeping an odd number it offers a democratic balance in the decision making process (majority rule).

2. A group that surpasses the 21 member number, will be divided into two different associations: Association A, with 13 members and Association B with 8 members. This means that Association A can invite 8 more members, and Association B must invite 7 or more new members. The odd number is a requirement to maintain the balance.

Concept #6

Disadvantages of not having an association.

1. Many times individuals may not apply for loan or credit because they do not have collateral.

2. Small farmers offering relatively small amount of produce may not get a good price in the local market for their produce.

3. Input purchase becomes more expensive, retailers will offer little or no discount on seeds and fertilizer or other inputs.

4. Agencies generally offer training to groups rather than individuals. Large group training is cost effective.