Articles
Indigenous
technology for off-farm rural activitites
Joseph G.M. Massaquoi
In rural technology development for off-farm activities, it is
usually assumed that local people have nothing to offer. Thus
they are expected to be passive recipients of technology that
is normally handed down to them from various agencies. This
article argues that indigenous technology can sometimes play a
key role in technology development. It can be the source of
data on technology software such as product quality, process
steps and raw materials. It can also provide the basis
of design concepts that could easily be adopted and
diffused.
Removing ropes,
attaching strings: institutional arrangements to provide
water
Arun Agrawal
The case of Dodopani (India) illustrates that
governments often attempt sweeping technically oriented
changes to improve standards of living without paying adequate
attention to the political and institutional context that
defines rural power dynamics, interactions and realities. The
article argues that the manner in which the government chose
to supplement the water supply in Dodopani discouraged
villagers from acting together to create collective solutions,
spurred the breakdown of indigenous participatory institutions
and worsened the drinking water supply for many of the
villagers. The primary conclusion of the article is that
development projects cannot be successful unless they
comprehend issues from the perspective of people influenced by
the projects and pay attention to local institutional
realities.
'Recommendation
domain' and a farmers' upland rice technology
S. Fujisaka
E. Jayson
A. Dapusala
Recommendation domains of farmers' innovations like
researcher-developed technologies require careful attention
prior to possible transfer to other farmers. Upland rice
farmers in Batangas, Philippines, developed a labour-saving
crop establishment and weed control system. Farmers in another
part of the country successfully modified the key implement--
used for furrow opening and inter-row cultivation--to adapt
the system to slightly heavier soils. Scientists working at
another upland rice research site thought that the technology
was suitable for permanent plow-based upland rice culture and
facilitated farmer-to-farmer transfer of the technology for
further farmer testing and adaptation. Although the technology
reduced crop labour, this article details reasons--mostly
related to even heavier soils--why Claveria farmers were
forced to return to the use of the plow and seed drilling.
Indigenous
knowledge, national IK resource centres and sustainable
development
Rohana Ulluwishewa
Development experience in the Third World countries
demonstrates that the conventional approach to development has
failed. A new view of development which is termed 'sustainable
development' has emerged as an alternative to the conventional
view. It is argued here that indigenous knowledge can be the
basis of sustainable development as well as that the national
indigenous knowledge resource centres can play a very
important role in sustainable development.
Traditional
pastoralists as guardians of biological diversity
Ilse Köhler-Rollefson
Traditional pastoral societies are fascinating to
social anthropologists, but animal scientists and economists
despair over them because these groups subscribe to supposedly
outmoded means of animal production. Neither social nor
natural scientists appear to be aware of the crucial role of
pastoralists in preserving biodiversity in domestic livestock
breeds and in making the continued human exploitation of arid
and other difficult environments possible.
The Mossi indigenous
soil classification in Burkina Faso
Basga Dialla
A growing number of field studies has focussed on the
importance and usefulness of indigenous soil taxonomies as
they relate to agricultural production. Drawing upon a
dissertation on indigenous soil taxonomies and conservation,
this article describes the Mossi indigenous soil
classification system. Different soil types identified by
local farmers are based on soil characteristics such as
texture, colour, consistency, geographical location, drainage
and fertility. Four major classes of soil related to the
suitability of specific crop production are also
distinguished.
Indigenous
folk-practices among Nilgiri Irulas
S. Rajan
M. Sethuraman
This article presents ethnobotanical and ethnomedical
knowledge of the Irulas. The use of plants to treat the common
ailments by Irulas is summarized. These observations are
useful to workers involved in health-related developmental
activities in tribal areas.
A framework
incorporating indigenous knowledge systems into agricultural
extension
B. Rajasekaran
R.A. Martin
D.M. Warren
A study in three villages of the Union Territory of
Pondicherry (India) revealed that indigenous knowledge systems
can provide a frame of reference for strengthening
agricultural extension programmes. The findings of the study
have led the researchers to develop a framework for
incorporating indigenous knowledge systems into agricultural
extension organizations. This article presents their
methodological framework to incorporate indigenous knowledge
systems into agricultural extension organizations for
sustainable agricultural development in India.
For more information, please contact the editor:
Ms Akke W. Tick
Nuffic-CIRAN
P.O. Box 29777
2502 LT The Hague
The Netherlands
Tel: +31-70-4260324
Fax: +31-70-4260329/4260399
E-mail: ikdm@nuffic.nl