FAO launches training for Jordanian master trainers on EU-funded Farmer Field School approach

AMMAN — The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) on Monday launched an advanced Training of Trainers (ToT) programme on the Farmer Field School (FFS) approach.

The programme received funding from the European Union through its Regional Trust Fund in Response to the Syrian Crisis (the Madad Fund), and was carried out in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, according to a FAO statement.

This training comes as part of a series of advanced ToT trainings in many important topics such as Farm Business School – FBS, post and post-harvest facilities, pest control, modern agricultural technology, rural development, entrepreneurial projects and integrated animal production. 

The main objective of this training is to support the capacity of the Ministry of Agriculture’s master trainers to establish new Farmers' Field Schools in Jordan.

The master trainers will subsequently build the capacity of another 100 FFS facilitators from the ministry that will be able to reach 1,000 farmers through the FFS approach.

FAO Representative in Jordan Nabil Assaf said: “The Farmer Field School approach has been practised for many years in different parts of the world with considerable success. It was originally developed by the Food and Agriculture Organisation in the 1980s and is based on ‘learning by doing’ to help build the communities’ capacity for informed decision-making.

“It’s a ‘school without walls’ that provides a platform to the farming communities where they can share their experiences and knowledge to improve their existing practices through experiential learning processes leading towards sustainable agriculture production.”

This activity is within the framework of the EU-funded project “Enhancing resilient livelihoods and food security of host communities and Syrian refugees in Jordan and Lebanon through the promotion of sustainable agricultural development”. 

It is implemented by the FAO in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture, the World Food Programme and the International Fund for Agricultural Development.