Volume 49, Issue 2, July 2020, Pages 266–278
Herve Alain Napi Wouapi1, Charles Arnaud Tchomkachue2, and Ann Degrande3
1 Department of Rural Socioeconomics and Agricultural Extension, Dschang School of Agronomy and Environmental Sciences, University of Dschang, P.O. Box 222, Cameroon
2 Department of Agricultural Extension and Rural Sociology, Dschang School of Agronomy and Environmental Sciences, University of Dschang (UDs), Cameroon
3 World Agroforestry Centre - ICRAF, West and Central Africa Regional Programme, Yaounde, Cameroon
Original language: English
Copyright © 2020 ISSR Journals. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Purpose: This paper aims to chart sustainability and transition plan for rural resource centres (RRCs) by mobilising resources to continue provide services in the context of limited or no external funds.Design/Methodology/Approach: We exemplify the role of networking to the sustainability of RRCs by conducting an ethnographic study of two RRCs in the West Region of Cameroon. Networking has become an increasingly popular approach that aims to provide grass-roots relay organisations new opportunities for securing uninterrupted provision of goods and services to farmers. Social network analysis is the research analytical tool used to make network theory operational into an applicable set of key variables needed to map the networks that can secure the sustainability of RRCs in Cameroon.Findings: Customer of seeds, institutional organisations including development partners, research centres and municipalities greatly influence RRCs’ organisational and financial sustainability.Practical implication: RRCs have been commended by farmers as a responsible, cost-effective, sustainable and complementary approach to other agricultural extension approaches. As the fulfilment of farmers’ needs determines the viability of RRCs, it is crucial that the latter are successful in transitioning to their new role as service providers.Originality/value: Current there is emergence of new private actors offering agricultural services in Cameroon, and this research sample is of interest for grassroot relay organisations for identifying the requisite conditions to become autonomous and less reliant on external funding in their efforts toward fulfilling farmer’s demand.
Author Keywords: Networking, ties, sustainability, rural resource centres.
Herve Alain Napi Wouapi1, Charles Arnaud Tchomkachue2, and Ann Degrande3
1 Department of Rural Socioeconomics and Agricultural Extension, Dschang School of Agronomy and Environmental Sciences, University of Dschang, P.O. Box 222, Cameroon
2 Department of Agricultural Extension and Rural Sociology, Dschang School of Agronomy and Environmental Sciences, University of Dschang (UDs), Cameroon
3 World Agroforestry Centre - ICRAF, West and Central Africa Regional Programme, Yaounde, Cameroon
Original language: English
Copyright © 2020 ISSR Journals. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Abstract
Purpose: This paper aims to chart sustainability and transition plan for rural resource centres (RRCs) by mobilising resources to continue provide services in the context of limited or no external funds.Design/Methodology/Approach: We exemplify the role of networking to the sustainability of RRCs by conducting an ethnographic study of two RRCs in the West Region of Cameroon. Networking has become an increasingly popular approach that aims to provide grass-roots relay organisations new opportunities for securing uninterrupted provision of goods and services to farmers. Social network analysis is the research analytical tool used to make network theory operational into an applicable set of key variables needed to map the networks that can secure the sustainability of RRCs in Cameroon.Findings: Customer of seeds, institutional organisations including development partners, research centres and municipalities greatly influence RRCs’ organisational and financial sustainability.Practical implication: RRCs have been commended by farmers as a responsible, cost-effective, sustainable and complementary approach to other agricultural extension approaches. As the fulfilment of farmers’ needs determines the viability of RRCs, it is crucial that the latter are successful in transitioning to their new role as service providers.Originality/value: Current there is emergence of new private actors offering agricultural services in Cameroon, and this research sample is of interest for grassroot relay organisations for identifying the requisite conditions to become autonomous and less reliant on external funding in their efforts toward fulfilling farmer’s demand.
Author Keywords: Networking, ties, sustainability, rural resource centres.
How to Cite this Article
Herve Alain Napi Wouapi, Charles Arnaud Tchomkachue, and Ann Degrande, “Networking and Sustainability of Grass-roots relay organisations in Western Cameroon: Case Study of CIEFAD and KUGWE Rural Resource Centres,” International Journal of Innovation and Scientific Research, vol. 49, no. 2, pp. 266–278, July 2020.
