Investigate expectations and needs of female and male farmers of different age groups
Design a programme that fits the expectations and needs of female and male farmers of different age groups. This makes your programme interesting for your target group. You address the interests and needs, not only of men, but also of women, and both men and women of different age groups, including the youth. They will be eager to attend meetings and learn what they want to know. This will result in higher adoption rates. It also makes your programmes more to the point and less costly, in short more efficient.
I hold focussed group discussions with small groups of different farmers, such as (young) women, (young) men, to find out how they see their future, and how your intervention can fit into this. One focussed group discussion takes half a day to one day, so we take a number of days to have discussions with different groups at different locations. In the end I summarize the discussions into one group vision.
Often programmes for farmers are designed without consultation of these farmers, and in particular not women and male and female youth. This leads to repetition of what farmers already know, oversight of a large segment of your target population, namely women and young women and men. And skipping what farmers really want to know.
Your programme becomes efficient and inclusive (for women and youth).
This is a vision journey made with female and male farmers in South Sumatra in Indonesia. It contained many components that were in the project implementation. However, the farmers visualized their own future, instead of a trader of support organization doing it for them. Some of the constraints for farmers came out clearly, and the voice was women was included. This way, farmers feel heard, and are more committed.
Yes, I am interested.