Extension Providers

Major Institutions Providing Extension/advisory Services in the Country

Public Sector

The Public Agricultural Sector is made up of  complementing agencies such  as  BANDESA  which gives agricultural  credit, DIGESA  which provides agricultural extension  services, INDECA which  sets  the prices  of  basic agricultural products and aids the marketing process, INAFOR which  deals with forestry, and  INTA which  is charged with implementing land reform. All of these institutions together form the Ministry of Agriculture Livestock and Food (MAGA).  In addition, public education institutions such as Guatemalan universities and research institution are involved in extension projects. These institutions provide extension services through various departments and institutes some of which are listed below:

Public Extension Institutions

• Ministry of Agriculture Livestock and Food (MAGA) 
  • Direccibn General  de  Servicios  Agricolas (DIGESA) General Agricultural Service  Bureau. 
  • Direcci6n  General  de  Servicios Pecuarios (DIGESEPE) General Animal Services Bureaux

Public Research and Education Institutions

• National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)
• Institute of Agricultural Science and technology (ICTA)
• Escuela Nacional Central de Agricultura (ENCA)University of San Carlos (USAC)
  • College of Agriculture

Non-Public Sector

Private Sector Firms

The engine of the Guatemalan economy is the private sector, which is historically one of the most conservative and intransigent business classes in Latin America. Generally, the private sector focuses on export crops, and provides extension and advisory services in the areas of input supply to farmers and technical advices to farmers’ associations and cooperatives. According to Stewart (1985), the private seed producers have contributed and supported the country’s National Agricultural Research System (NARS) by promoting the materials (varieties) and technologies developed through field days, publications and audio-visuals. Also, the leading private association of exporters of non-traditional products, “AGEXPORT,” has received USAID assistance and has been U.S. Government’s principal partner in promoting rural transformation of the Highlands in Guatemala. Other private companies like the Griffin Company partner with the public sector in the pluralistic extension system to address specific farmers’ agricultural needs. The Griffin Company was the company that showed most interest when the Guatemalan government invited several companies to participate in the vegetable export business. The company grows a kind of cantaloupe not currently grown, and provides the farmers with equipment, credit, inputs and technological assistance.

Non-Governmental Organizations and other Donors

The growth in NGOs in developing countries is justified by their increasing role in the development process. In Guatemala like in many other developing countries, NGOs are playing a pivotal role in participatory development by targeting the poor and vulnerable minorities and giving voice to women at all levels of society. In the aftermath of natural disaster and decades of internal conflict that destroyed the agricultural sector of the economy, the government through its public institutions has embarked in a series of measures to revamp the country’s agricultural system. The private sector and NGOs, both domestic and international are partnering with the department of agriculture at all levels. For example, a third group of players in the forest management field are a small number of NGOs, such as Fundación Defensores de la Naturaleza (FDN) and Fundación de 17 Ecología (FUNDAECO) whose contribution in providing technical assistance is noticeable (Future. 2011).

Farmer Based Organizations and Cooperatives

In Guatemala, there are two groups of farmers differentiable according to their vulnerability to food security issues. The first group comprises growers who need assistance producing enough food to maintain their families, and the second group includes growers who produce enough for their household and sell the surplus to the market. These farmers are organized into associations and cooperatives that develop relationships with local and international development organizations. Some farmer based-organizations in Guatemala receive assistance from the government and external institutions like the Central American Indigenous and Peasant Coordination Association (ACICAFOC, Spanish acronym): a community-based organization working with rural communities across Central America to exchange information and promote the sustainable use of natural and cultural resources.

According to Stewart (1985), Bottom-up development of farmer cooperatives is the key to many agricultural development strategies. Farmer cooperatives can operate in any one or all of the following areas: production, processing, marketing, consumption and credit and savings. One reason for the lack of success of many cooperatives in Guatemala is that autonomous farmer organizations were not allowed to develop and cooperatives were usually controlled by the government. Some of the farmers associations and cooperatives are listed below

• Cuatro Pinos Cooperative, focuses on exporting fresh vegetables
• El Limon Cooperative, its main product is dehydrated lemon for export
• LeStansa, Association of Growers
• National Coffee Growers Association (ANACAFE)

List of Extension Providers

 The following list shows an excerpt from the GFRAS Directory of Extension Providers for Guatemala. Some of these entries may be specially marked for having more detailed information in the database of the Worldwide Extension Study WWES.

Enabling Environment

Enabling (or Disabling) Environment                                                 

Guatemala is recognized as a leader in the development of non-traditional agricultural exports (snow peas, green beans, and mini-vegetables) in Central America. The country’s abundant natural resources, micro-climates and labor force offer tremendous potential for developing a competitive advantage in many agricultural commodities including horticulture and coffee.   Yet, agricultural production has not lived up to the national demand and a large percentage of the population is food insecure especially rural populations.  A combination of social and environmental challenges compounds the problems of poverty. Despite being a multi-ethnic country, Guatemala has a long history of social discrimination and inequality. Indigenous groups have traditionally been excluded from the social, economic and political mainstream. This situation has been exacerbated by Guatemala’s complex topography. The rugged terrain and lack of roads have kept rural communities remote from the rest of the country, and centuries of isolation and neglect have resulted in chronic poverty.  The limited infrastructure, poor access to rural finance, incipient market organizations and research and extension constrain the rural economy from reaching its full potential and from generating sufficient jobs and income to reduce poverty for the rural poor (Future, 2010). Additionally, the degradation of natural resources in the country is intense, particularly as a result of the illegal exploitation of forests and slash-and-burn subsistence agriculture.  The extended internal conflict has destroyed the agricultural system that is expected to play a key role in boosting agricultural production. However, there are plenty of opportunities for the department of agriculture and existing higher educational institutions and research institutes to collaborate in rebuilding a strong and productive agricultural and extension system that will cater for the needs of farmers in Guatemala.

ICT

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for Agriculture and Extension

The world is moving beyond agricultural age and industrial age into the information age and the main engine of this age is information and communications technology (ITC). ITC allows information to flow efficiently from research stations to farmers’ fields, and for this reason, ICT could be the key driver for future agricultural growth. Internet service and mobile phones have been introduced and spread rapidly in many parts of the Guatemala including rural areas. However, the potential role of key ICT applications like the telephone and the Internet in agricultural extension is severely challenged as long as rural areas are with limited access to the basic telecommunications services. Any resulting programs and projects remain totally dependent on access to these services. In the absence of national policy that lays down the vision for ICT contribution to the general development of the country, extension cannot take full advantage of the new technology. In Guatemala, the Center for National Economic Research and the Guatemalan Entrepreneurial Chamber provided targeted support to the effort to translate the concept of universal access into appropriate legislation. As a result, access to the telecommunications infrastructure in rural areas increased substantially, and ICT could be used as a means for enhancing extension programs in Guatemala.

Training

Training for Extension Professionals

The new agricultural extension system in Guatemala relies on the staff of the department of agriculture to provide extension services to farmers. The majority of extension agents are young men and women with considerable enthusiasm but very little management or technical experience. Extension agents need training in the technical aspects of their jobs as well as orientation in managing programs. Much of the experience and expertise needed to train extension agents in technical aspects of agricultural extension and rural development probably already exist in Guatemala. Many individuals have received training and gained experience over the years with a range of government, non-government and international organizations in practical aspects of food security and rural development, such as the production of family gardens, production of organic fertilizer, basic nutrition. Guatemalan universities are involved in extension projects, but do not have a formal role in the extension service. In collaboration with MAGA, the Escuela Nacional Central de Agricultura (ENCA) and the Agronomy faculty at the Universidad San Carlos (USAC) could contribute to the institutionalization of the extension service by developing curricula designed to train extension and rural development professionals. They could also offer training programs that combine hands-on training with orientation in program management and social science aspects of working with rural communities.

References

References

Future. 2011. Guatemala Feed the Future Multi-Year Strategy. April 2011

Smith, H. A. 2011. Report: Trip to Guatemala on behalf of MEAS program to attend Second National Workshop on Agricultural Extension in Guatemala.  April 7-8 2011, Guatemala City. University of Florida, Gulf Coast Research and Education Center, Wimauma, FL

Stewart, R. 1985. Guatemala and the CGIAR Centers: A study of their collaboration in agricultural research. Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). Study Paper Number 5. The World Bank. 1985.

More documents

• FAO-informa-de-politica-Guatemala.pdf
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Statistics

Statistical Indicators                                                                                               

Source: The World Bank, *Food and Agriculture Organization FAO

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