Role of Agricultural Extension in Facilitating Biotechnology Adoption: A Review
Abstract
Biotechnology has tremendous opportunities of improving the productivity, sustainability and resiliency in agriculture by coming up with advancements like the genetically modified crops, biofertilizers and tissue culture based planting material. Even though these biotechnological innovations have been demonstrated to have certain technical benefits, the adoption rate of these innovations in the farm level has not been evenly distributed; this is mainly because of knowledge gaps, perceptions of risks, sociocultural issues, uncertainty in the regulations and institutional laggards. Agricultural extension is an important solution to such challenges as it is a mediator between scientific innovation and the farming community. The review is a synthesis of the available literature in studying the changing role of agricultural extension in adoption of biotechnologies among farmers. The paper was composed using a narrative review approach and examines major conceptual frameworks upon which technology adoption can be based, areas of biotechnology applied in extension practise, and how informed and participatory adoption can be supported using extension approaches. It focuses on participatory extension approaches, efficient communication approaches and application of online tools to increase awareness, trust and capacity of the farmers. Major constraints restricting Biotechnology adoption are also brought out in the review, and an extension-led facilitation framework has been suggested…
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