Towards an appropriate extension approach for agricultural and rural development in South Africa

Recent paradigm shifts have seen an increase in the interest of new and more appropriate approaches in extension. This paper identifies some of the background reasons and discusses the myths or unfounded assumptions and constraints preventing the search, identification of evolvement of appropriate approaches. An overview is given by contrasting extreme approaches using dichotomies and then comparing in some detail the production technology approach and the more participatory and facilitative problem-solving approaches. Ultimately any approach has to be adapted to specific situations and in view of this a series of principles currently important for the South African context are identified and discussed

Pricing methods for American options

Bibliography: leaves 89-94.This thesis is about the comparison of Pricing models for the valuation of American Options. Three classes of numerical approaches are considered. These are Lattice Methods, Analytic Approximations and Monte Carlo Simulation. Methods will be contrasted in terms of accuracy and speed of the computed American option price. One particular method utilises regression when estimating the American option price. For this approach the impact of outliers and multicollinearity is examined and alternative regression models fitted. Monte Carlo Simulation is implemented to calculate early exercise probabilities of American options in the South African market. Results are compared for both call and put options. A test set of 3550 options is simulated with parameters mirroring the South African economy. On this set, the accuracy of all methods is assessed relative to a benchmark price, which is computed by a convergent lattice approach. Finally, American Symmetry is used to evaluate both put and call options

Some realities of extension management in South Africa

The article gives a glimpse into the management efficiency of extension in parts of South Africa by providing empirical data based on the opinions and perceptions of extension personnel of different ranks. The findings confirm that it is a myth to believe that all is well with extension management in South Africa. Evidence confirms that there is cause for concern at all management levels, but particularly among the more senior management levels. There is general agreement about the importance of extension management improving extension and valuable proposals are made in this regard

Towards a categorisation of behaviour determinants with a view to a more meaningful analysis, intervention and evaluation of adoption behaviour

This paper investigates the influence of some selected personal, environmental and intervening factors on the adoption behaviour and production efficiency of maize growers with the object of identifying the most important causes of behaviour and thus acquiring a better understanding of maize farmers' response to advice regarding maize production in the study area. A total of 200 farmers were randomly drawn form the two agro-ecological zones (lowland zone and intermediate zone) in the Shashemene district. This represents a sample of ten percent. In the analysis of data multiple regressions were employed to identify the most important determinants associated with behavioural change and to calculate their variance contribution. The results indicate that, in general, the intervening variables tend to have the highest prediction value. They were found to explain 87% of the variance of behaviour associated with the practice adoption and the resulting production efficiency, while the independent variables had R2 value of only 0.33 and 0.27 in the case of personal and environmental factors respectively. Amongst the intervening variables needs (need tension and need compatibility) were found to have the greatest effect on both of the dependent variables (p< 0.01) South African Journal of Agricultural Extension Vol.32 2003: 73-8

Extension staffs' perceptions of factors affecting co-ordination and partnerships in agricultural extension services in Rakai district, Uganda

In Uganda's Rakai District, (with a population of about 400,000) there are over a dozen organizations involved in delivery of agricultural extension services. To improve service delivery, a model for inter-organizational coordination of extension services is proposed. The model stipulates that coordination depends on ; (a) perception of need for coordination, (b) planning for coordination, (c) communication and information systems, and (d) organizational and societal structures. The model is used to design a survey instrument to determine factors affecting coordination of agricultural extension services in the District. All extension staff (N = 173) was requested to complete a questionnaire that was developed after discussions with selected extension staff, farmers, and extension and local leaders. Results, from 149 respondents (86% response rate) are summarised as follows: The most outstanding means of coordination that were used by extension organizations in the District include: (a) working with farmer development committees; (b) involving politicians in planning ; (c) strengthening relevant associations; and (d) coordination mechanisms at the District level. Various reasons why coordination was important were identified, notably the following: harmonisation of programmes to avoid duplication of services ; sharing of experiences for effective and efficient service delivery ; development of systematic procedures for delivery of services; and it minimises wastage of resources. Finally, the following recommendations for improving coordination were perceived as the most efficacious: harmonisation of plans among organisations to avoid contradictions, duplications, or conflicts ; establishing a common forum for exchange of information ; and establishing co-ordination mechanisms at District, sub-county and parish levels

Maize production efficiency in the Arsi Negele farming zone of Ethiopia: a gender prespective

The purpose of the study was to identify the major factors influencing the maize production of male-headed and female-headed households. The behavioural analysis and intervention model developed by D&#63685;vel, (1975, 1991) was used as the conceptual basis to guide the investigation, which involved a random sample of 120 male and 33 female heads of households. The differences in adoption behaviour can be attributed primarily to differences in the knowledge level and perceived production efficiency, which are closely associated with gender. The effect of gender becomes manifested in significant differences in education, draught power (number of oxen), and access to extension and to credit. South African Journal of Agricultural Extension Vol.32 2003: 60-7