Agricultural Extension Activities: A Study on the Possibilities of Rural Women. Case Study in Konya, Turkey

Abstract

In many parts of the world, potentially arable land reserves face the problem of meetingfood requirements along with the population growth. Many parts of the world are experiencing rapidpopulation growth, which increases pressure on the available agricultural land to meet increasing foodneeds. Therefore, farmers should be more educated and skilled in carrying out their agriculturalpractices such as raising livestock. In this study, the contribution of rural women, who have animportant position in agricultural practices, to the agricultural production will be examined. The studywas conducted in the town of Ovakavağı, which is within city borders of Konya. The questionsselected for the questionnaire according to certain criteria (age, education, land tenure, sources ofinformation, their household life, etc.) reveal the current situation of women, access to resources,involvement of women in agricultural activities, the possibility for them to be a source of agriculturalextension, opportunities for women to be represented in a particular organization, their ability torepresent himself in rural areas and perform analysis to improve their own. Recommendations aregiven in the conclusion section. Data obtained from the research and application materials are the dataobtained from a group of women. Opportunities for rural women to benefit from agriculturalpublications were also investigated. As the method of sampling, that of random sampling was usedand applied to 64 participants. Provision of more opportunities for women in terms of sustainabledevelopment, investment in education for women should be carried out by giving women direct accessto agricultural know-how and making them engaged in decision-making process.