The Knowledge Arena : Approaching agroforestry and competing knowledge systems - a challenge for agricultural extension

Sammanfattning: Agriculture in many African countries is characterised by large diversity in production and great variation in growing conditions, irrigation potential and access to markets. This variation has proved to be a difficult matter when adjusting national agricultural policies and development projects to local conditions. In the face of the recent trend of less support for agricultural extension services, it is argued that local agricultural knowledge, if better integrated in extension activities, will contribute to better planning for sustainable use of natural resources at the local level. New approaches that cope with heterogeneous conditions by acknowledgement of local knowledge systems are therefore an important priority for future agricultural development. The research approach developed in this study – the knowledge arena – challenges uni-directional extension approaches based on diffusion theory by arguing for pluralism and contextualisation of a spatially defined arena. This perspective is made operational by identifying processes of competition and complementarity in the local context. The approach is tried out in three rural villages in Babati District, Tanzania, by recording and analysing spatial patterns of knowledge production and social organisation. The knowledge arena approach suggests that while the visible features of the agricultural landscape help in understanding the conditions for and effects of different production strategies, alteration of strategies – to do something about occurring problems - will depend on the interpretation of different knowledge systems and their spatial organisation.