A majority of the farmers in Nebbi district practice subsistence farming which heavily rely heavily on indigenous knowledge and technologies (IKT). What was found during the Nebbi Development Area Network member organizations assessment that household members are have less than 50% adoption rate of improved agronomic and livestock management practices like wise only 50% are food secure. During a feedback meeting it was resolved that food security promotion should be high on the agenda for the network. In this vein, AFARD looks at food security from four angles: availability, access, affordability and adequacy of food at all times for the beneficiary household. The availability of food to the household is based, first on the capacity of the household to produce own food, then secondly, on the capacity to buy from external sources. The provision of improved crop seeds and animal breeds is one way of increasing food production. However, these new technologies have peculiarities about them that must be explained to the farmers if they are to get optimum yields. These explanations take place during training that are practical, organized on the farmer group fields and conducted at the time when the knowledge gained will be immediately transferred into the farmers’ fields. This manual lays down the technicalities of provision of such farmer-based extension services. We believe that:

1. Farmers know farming very well especially with regards to their technologies.

2. Farmers are still committed to farming and in the short-run will still be more actively engaged in farming.

3. The current practice of extension services delivery by government staffs especially is non-responsive to local needs because of compromised professional ethics and lean outreach pivoted in contact farmers.

4. Greater and effective outreach is best built on a group approach where already formed groups involved in farming (alone or with other activities) are partnered with. By working through the groups as Technology Development and Diffusion Sites (TDDS), more people will be reached at a lesser cost.

5. Technology Development and Diffusion (TDD) should build on what the people know and are willing to invest in. New innovations should therefore be adapted to suit such practices and diffused at a pace that the communities are able to handle.