Assessment of training needs of smallholder farmers in shifting cultivation areas

Abstract:

Shifting cultivation, or slash-and-burn, continues to be the main livelihood system for smallholder communities in the highland districts of southwestern Ethiopia, yet declining fallow periods and soil degradation are pushing yields downward. Targeted training can help these farmers adopt improved practices, but designing effective programmes requires a clear picture of what smallholder growers actually want to learn. This research assessed the training needs of 180 smallholder farmers practising shifting cultivation in three woredas of Jimma Zone, Oromia, during January-May 2024. A structured interview schedule covering six training domains—soil management, crop diversification, pest management, post-harvest handling, marketing, and organic certification—was administered, and training need intensity was scored on a 1-5 scale. Organic certification (mean score 4.27) and marketing linkages (4.03) emerged as the most pressing needs across all age groups, while post-harvest handling ranked highest among senior farmers (>50 years). On-farm demonstrations (82.4%) and farmer-to-farmer exchanges (76.1%) were the most preferred training methods. These findings suggest that extension agencies should prioritise market-linked, practice-oriented training delivered through demonstration plots and peer networks rather than lecture-based programmes.