Smallholder Women Participation in to Farmers Training Centers (FTC) in Buno Bedele Zone

Abstract

The main objective of this study is to assess the smallholder women participation in FTC at Buno Bedele zone, southwestern Ethiopia. The researcher has forwarded three research questions and formulated three research objectives. What status of participation of women in FTC? What were the major challenges women faced to participating in FTC?, what is factors that affecting the women farmers’ to participating in FTC?. Multi stage random sampling techniques were employed to select a total of 72 respondents from nine Kebeles. Data were collected from both secondary and primary sources. Finally the data were analyzed by descriptive and econometrics methods. According to the finding of the research hiring and transfer practice, social barriers such as house hold activities and family care contributed in limiting the participation of women in FTC. The logit estimation technique was estimating the factors that affecting women participation in to FTC. Specifically, women participation in to FTC is significantly influenced by the levels of education, membership to cooperative, extension contact frequencies, and family size. Therefore, policy aimed to accelerate agricultural development in the area could be successful if these factors and problems are taken into consideration to participating women farmers in to FTC. The absence of proper implementation of government policies such as affirmative action and gender quota should be resolved.