1993 Thailand restructuring and production system plan for agriculture: Project outcomes and farmers' perceptions in southern Thailand
1999
Aroon Sungsing | Jitpaka Tanapanyarachwong | Kriengsak Pattamarakha
Restructuring and Production System Plan for Agriculture was launched in 1993 in order to reduce the cultivated area of some economic crops as there was intense competition in world markets. This study aimed to evaluate farmers' perceptions of outcomes of the projects under the Plan. Simple random sampling was assigned for sample selection and personal interviews were employed as a method of data collection. One hundred and seventy one farmers were interviewed. The findings revealed that most farmers received most of their farm information from the mass media, with a second major source being close contact with farm extension officers. Spouses, children, relatives, sub-district officer and village headmen were mentioned as having a medium level of influence in the decision-making process for project application. In participation at all stages of farm operation, "family head" was mentioned to have the major influence on obtaining credit and seeking farm inputs, "family head" and "spouse" for selling farm produce, and "all" for maintaining cultural practices and harvesting farm produce. They followed government recommendations for plant protection, especially mechanical and chemical methods. They were satisfied with the projects and perceived that the plan as a whole was useful. Those projects had a positive direct impact on family incomes and length of working days. The results of the study indicated that the project was regarded as valuable and useful. A reduction of unsuitable land used for rice was remarkable although it was minimal. The project should be expanded to provide more opportunities for more people to join.
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