Agrotechnology

Enhancing the entrepreneurial capabilities of small and marginal farmers thorough extension interventions

4^th International Conference on Agriculture & Horticulture

July 13-15, 2015 Beijing, China

J P Sharma, Reshma Gills and Tulsi Bhardwaj

Scientific Tracks Abstracts: Agrotechnol

Abstract:

In many of the developing nations, small and medium farms play an important role as life blood for the livelihood security of population and economic welfare of the country. This segment is believed to have important consequences for poverty alleviation in rural areas of developing countries due to their potential to increase incomes and create employment. But in many of these countries, small and medium level agriculture face a series of constraints that often limits their ability to participate competitively in production and marketing chains and there has been considerable concern that these producers are being excluded from important growth opportunities. Agri-preneurship among the small and medium farmers is identified as one of the vital solution to the above mentioned situation. It is a purposeful activity involves main economic deeds such as initiation, promotion and distribution of wealth and services and helps in rural development which contribute to overall creation of wealth in the country. The essence of the complete development of a country lies in the advancements in agribusiness as well as in hiking the contribution of agri-entrepreneurs towards its economy. But development of entrepreneurship in the areas of agriculture requires special skills like human development, knowledge of agriculture, knowledge of global agriculture market etc. When a farmer introduces a new enterprise into his farming system, there are different stages of development that the enterprise goes through like establishment, survival, early growth, rapid growth, maturity and a never ending progress for achieving new horizons day by day. The skills and competencies of the farmers also must need to change to meet the management demands of the hour. The entrepreneurial fortitude in the farmers must be alive always especially now when there are thousands of opportunities all around us in small and medium farming sector. In this competitive era of growth, investors from all over the world are making more and more investments into the agripreneurship for unleashing its existing potentialities as well as for exploring the untapped areas. But the specific and actual opportunities for different areas are not the same. Proper documentation and presentation of identified opportunities in different areas are lacking in our situation. In order to overcome these situations and developing a sustainable growth and economic independence among small and medium level farmers, extension and educational agencies need to help in developing human resources and capacities among them. Creation, documentation and replication of marketing innovation and marketing models by extension agencies may help in agripreneurship development. In this context extension need to play a pulsating responsibility by identifying opportunities and constraints facing Agri-rural sector in small and medium farming horizon providing affordable and appropriate solutions and technologies backed by research to exploring all the benefits of entrepreneurship in farming sector. This present paper deals with the challenges in agricultural sector, importance of necessitating entrepreneurship among small and medium level farmers, extension interventions and its role to enhance the entrepreneurial capabilitiesamong them.

Biography :

J P Sharma is currently Joint Director of Agricultural Extension, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, India.