Extension Education and Society Topic Three: Extension Education and Society

Extension and Information Technology development The continuing rapid development of telecommunications and computer-based information technology (IT) is probably the biggest factor for change in extension, one which will facilitate and reinforce other changes. IT will bring new information services to rural areas over which farmers, as users, will have much greater control than over current information channels.

Even if every farmer does not have a computer terminal, these could become readily available at local information resource centers with computers. Extension workers can be trained to help farmers access computers individually and in small groups. The future will call for more able, independent, client-oriented extension workers. The emphasis will be on the quality of interaction between agent and client rather than on the movement of "messages" through a hierarchical system.

Recognition of the locale-specific nature of farming systems and the agricultural information systems support the decentralization and devolution of extension services. This recognition also implies that extension workers and farmers be jointly involved in the verification and adaptation of new technology, and thus that the extension workers respect farmers as experimenters, developers, and adapters of technology and devote more energy on communication within their local areas

ICT is abroad terminology which is used to the exchange of data through interaction or transmission. It ranges from radio to satellite, mobile phone. The accessibility and affordability of ICT tools have reaching to small holder farmer today.

The ICT enabled extension services are useful to improving the capacity and livelihoods of poor smallholders. One of the best examples of these services is the use of mobile phones SMS to provide livestock price information in Ethiopia. This can be expanded in to providing information to farmers about commodity prices, and other advisory services from a database with information ICT-enabled extension services can be a tool to provide information on local weather forecasts for farmers and pastoralists.

ICT as a tool for Extension Developed world has well developed ICT infrastructure which contributed to agricultural information knowledge sharing and linkage. However in Ethiopia and similar countries ICT development in rural areas is at enfant stage to heavily depend on it for extension even if it is beginning thorough various capacity building programs.

ITC can be applied in extension by creating on line extension services for diagnosis of production problems, provide information on new technologies and marketing etc., continues learning for extension workers, creating networking, interactive communication and partnership among the extension and research system among the actors.