Peer Farmer Trainers
Our training needs to reach more families than we can reach by direct enrolment in our projects, and must be embedded in communities to sustain results after funding for projects ends.
Our solution is: Farmers training other farmers
How we recruit peer farmer trainers
Farmers in community-run Self Help Groups who have shown particular aptitude for learning new principles and techniques for sustainable farming are nominated to become the group’s volunteer peer farmer trainers.
With further mentoring they support other members of their group, and also share their knowledge with the wider community, becoming mentors themselves, and agents of change.
“Before joining the self help group I had low self-esteem. I could not speak. When a project facilitator from Ripple Effect staff praised my efforts on push-pull weed control at our farmers’ meeting that’s when my confidence started growing. Now, other farmers come me to learn how I am doing things differently and I am happy to help them.”
William, Kyotera, Uganda
How peer farmers extend the ripple effect
Peer farmers teach by example, and also organise farm demonstration days and training sessions on:
- soil fertility
- improving crop yields
- animal management
- post-harvest handling of crops
Peer farmer trainers are effective
We know this because they have been an essential part of our project implementation for more than two decades. Research by our programmes team shows that peer farmer trainers are helping to plug gaps in extension services for rural communities, with many farmers continuing to receive training from them for up to five years after a project ends.
The value of their work has recently been endorsed by IDEAL-funded research.
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