Predisposition for Conservation Agriculture in North West Ghana

The adoption of Conservation Agriculture (CA) practices is not only dependent upon the suitability of the land and crop, but also upon the farmer him/herself. Changing the perspectives or technological frames of farmers is a necessary first step in implementing CA. The purpose of this research is to determine the local perspectives of farm men and women in the North West Province of Ghana and to identify any relationships between the extension services they received (gender of agent, level of contact) and those perspectives. Two hundred men and 157 women were interviewed in 2010 concerning their level of agreement with 20 agricultural perspectives and their level of contact with their local extension agent. Although more analysis is needed, current results suggest that neither farm men or women's technological frames are dependent upon extension agent contact, and a significant proportion of farm men and women who are considered "Risk Averse" would be most open to CA practices.