Farmer field schools and training trainers in Southeast Asia: Impacts and activities

After the 2004 tsunami, AVRDC – The World Vegetable Center and its partners conducted an integrated crop management (ICM) project in Aceh, Indonesia to rehabilitate vegetable production in tsunami-affected areas. A training of trainers (ToT) was held to prepare 20 Farmer Field School (FFS) facilitators to train 1648 farmers on chili pepper ICM technologies, focusing on integrated pest management (IPM) and soil fertility interventions. Participatory approaches were emphasized in the ToT. Impacts of the FFSs were documented 1-2 months after FFSs were completed; therefore, the impacts reported here are only the short-term ones. “Before and after” methods of impact assessment and an ex ante evaluation approach were applied. The results indicate that FFSs have very favorably increased the participants’ vegetable farming capability; farmers’ knowledge on plant protection and soil fertility improvement nearly doubled. Farmers are now able to distinguish between insect pests and beneficial insects, as well as kinds of pesticides appropriate for targeted pests. Farmers reported that they could increase chili pepper yields with reduced use of chemical pesticides and other inputs because of attending the FFS. In summary, the FFSs have successfully delivered the improved knowledge and skills on chili pepper farming, and vegetable production in general, to the farming communities. In addition, the FFSs have strengthened group formation and social capital related to vegetable farming in communities that were devastated by the tsunami.