Innovations in agricultural policy and services as a drive for successful extension

Abstract

In many parts of the world, agricultural policy is being restructured to promote changes which advance new 
mechanisms of financing knowledge-based services. In Bénin, a Project for Restructuring Agricultural 
Services (PRSA-Bénin) is achieved. This study considers this project journey and the recent changes in 
agricultural policy. A key concern of the Béninese government in advancing these changes, as argued in 
this article, is to make it a better policy instrument for more intensive involvement of farmers and other 
private sector organizations in funding arrangements. Semi-structured interviews and focus group 
discussions, and reconstruction ex-post of activities undertaken were used to investigate the project 
journey. Additionally, to support our analysis, we made use of the results of evaluative studies, documents 
and project reports, and findings of meetings of a specified forum designed for three days. Results show 
that the perspective and management of agricultural policy and knowledge-based services changed. 
Several private sector organizations have interests, including farmers’ organizations, NGOs, commercial 
companies and micro-finance institutions. New mechanisms of financing agricultural policy and services 
are institutionalized. Results also question the conventional understanding and practices of agricultural 
knowledge-based services.