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A wide range of factors are likely to influence effectiveness of agricultural extension services. According to Birner et al. (2012) effectiveness of the extension system in fostering capacity building, technological adoption and ultimately improved agricultural outcomes depends on key factors relating to the advisory method used, the governance, and capacity and management structures of the advisory method, types of training or technology transfer: demonstrations, field days, courses, farmer-to farmer diffusion, number of clientele, individual, group and mass communication approaches and involvement of clients in planning and problem solving.
Like others developing countries the economy of Pakistan is largely dependent on agriculture and directly or indirectly supports three quarter of the population and satisfies the hunger of 148.72 million people, with its present contribution to GDP at 21%. Further 42% of country’s workforce is employed in agriculture but also and 66% of the population living in rural areas is directly or indirectly linked with agriculture for their livelihood (GOP, 2010). In Pakistan, agricultural extension services are responsible to enhance the process of agricultural development to meet the food needs of a rapidly growing population. The aim of agricultural extension is to provide farmers with information that enables them to make good decisions in farming, to transfer appropriate technologies from research and other sources and ultimately to eliminate poverty and hunger by improving their production and food security (Subedi and Garforth, 1996).
Today, commercialization of agriculture is an inevitable reality throughout the world. There are a number of factors affecting the commercialization process in agriculture. Some of them could be named as the rapid growth of economies in the both developing and developed countries, the introduction of new technologies, market expansion, market liberalization, urbanization, rapid increase of demand for food, decreasing of farming population, liberalized and open economic policies, bilateral and multilateral economic agreements, developed infrastructure facilities in farming areas, extension and government agricultural policies (Mahaliyanaarachchi and Bandara, 2006).
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