Mapping and Categorizing Self-Help Agricultural Training Centers (SARTC) in South Sulawesi, Indonesia

Farmer institutions are known to play a strategic role in fostering agribusiness systems in rural areas [1, 2]. The activities of these institutions are focused on addressing the basic resources needed by farmers [3] in various contexts of vulnerability [4, 5]. Furthermore, institutionalism is a comprehensive concept associated with structure, comprising patterns of activity stemming from norms to meet human needs [6] and organizational patterns required for their execution [7, 8]. The Self-Help Agricultural Training Centers (SARTC) is an institution established, owned, and managed by farmers independently, either individually or in groups. This organization plays an active role in agricultural development by enhancing resources through farmer-to-farmer training and engagement with rural communities [9, 10].

The concept has a significant impact on knowledge, including analytical skills, critical thinking, locality interaction, and the ability to make informed decisions within the agricultural ecosystem [11, 12]. This approach can be described as a concerted effort to facilitate knowledge exchange among individuals on agricultural cultivation, technology, the environment, and various social issues. SARTC was initiated by advanced farmers who intended to share their successful farming experiences to form a learning community [13]. This is achieved through learning-by-doing or apprenticeship methods based on factual conditions in the field [14].

SARTC is often distinguished by its unique superior commodity, thereby becoming a special characteristic in providing services. Meanwhile, government extension services are limited by various factors, including the availability of extension workers and the lack of resources in managing the organization [8, 15]. The gap between government extension services and the strategic potential of SARTC must be explored further to realize cooperation in an adaptive and sustainable system. The number of SARTC in South Sulawesi is 41 institutions. The presence of SARTC impacts alternative training places for farmers and rural residents outside of training places owned by the government and private institutions.

Farmers assuming the role of extension workers for their peers is an ultimate form of participation in agricultural development [16]. This approach, with or without external support is commonly referred to as farmer-to-farmer extension (FFE) [17, 18], which indirectly empowers individuals to be the pioneers of changes in mindset and behavior patterns towards more advanced conditions [19].

There are limited reports on SARTC, including the technical aspects [20], the influence of capacity building [21], interaction and communication [10, 22], economic and institutional performance [13], and motivation of self-help extension workers [23] in playing their role as trainers. Among these studies, none has focused on mapping the location distribution and status classification of the institutions. Knowledge of this can project a learning capacity driven from farmer-to-farmer extension. The research will also contribute to the literature on participatory training with a focus on the skill classes of the training institutions based on the spread of their locations. In this study, what is meant by the spread of SARTC is the existence of the SARTC agency presented on the map of South Sulawesi. Participatory training is a training service based on business excellence and product ownership. Therefore, this study aimed to analyze the location distribution of SARTC institutions at the provincial level and to classify SARTC based on the capability criteria. The ability of these organizations to function in extension services, technology applications, and learning platforms for farmers and rural communities was assessed. After this introductory section, the method was described, followed by the results and discussion, which were closed with a conclusion.

3.1 Distribution of SARTC in South Sulawesi Province

The results regarding the number of SARTC in each zone, as well as extension workers, districts, villages, and farmers in the regencies/cities, are presented in Table 2. The distribution of each SARTC in South Sulawesi Province is illustrated in Figure 2.

The results showed that there were 41 active SARTC in South Sulawesi Province, and among the 24 regencies, 17 (70.83%) have SARTC. Based on the regional zoning established by the SARTC Communication Forum of South Sulawesi Province, 14 (34.1%), 12(29.26%), 6 (14.63%), 6 (14.63%), and 3 (7.31%) were active in the South, North, Bosowa, Luwu Raya, and the Massenrengpulu Zone respectively. Regency without SARTC included Selayar Islands and Makassar City (South Zone), Barru and Pare-pare City (North Zone), Sinjai (Bosowa Zone), as well as Tana Toraja and North Toraja (Massenrengpulu Zone).

SARTC constitutes part of the learning process for farmers and rural communities. The number of farmers in the province in 2022 was estimated at 1,482,682 people, with 3,048 villages. Moreover, there were 2,852 agricultural extension workers widespread across the District Agricultural Extension Center, Regency Agriculture Office, Provincial Agriculture Office, and National Agricultural Technology Application Center. SARTC is a self-help learning institution for farmers and rural communities, while agricultural extension workers are facilitators of learning. Both work together to promote farmer and rural community learning

The large number of farmers in South Sulawesi requires a more adequate outreach learning system. This outreach relies not only on government extension workers but also on the participation of farming communities. SARTC was initiated by advanced farmers on a self-supporting basis, and it complemented the role of farmer groups rather than acting independently. However, Table 2 shows that seven regencies did not have a SARTC by 2022, indicating the initiative of advanced farmers for FFE remained weak.

Agricultural extension workers have been using farmer groups as a platform for learning, a vehicle for cooperation, and a production unit. However, several problems were faced in relation to their position as distributors of government assistance in the form of production inputs. These problems include free riders, blurred common goals, lack of communication, low access to markets and financial institutions, as well as low organizational management capacity [25-27].

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Figure 2. Zoning map of SARTC distribution in South Sulawesi

Table 2. Number of SARTC, extension workers, districts, villages, and farmers in each district/city by zone in South Sulawesi

3.2 Classification of SARTC classes in South Sulawesi Province

The assessment results for the classification of SARTC based on zones, regency, and training services carried out are presented in Table 3 and Figure 3.

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Figure 3. Class classification of SARTC institutions in South Sulawesi

The results showed that the classification of SARTC was more dominant in the Intermediate class, namely 19 (46.3%), followed by the Primary class of 14 (34.1%) and the Main class of eight SARTC (19.5%). The Intermediate class was more prevalent in the North Zone with seven SARTC (36.80%), while the Primary class was higher in the South Zone with eight (57.14%). Furthermore, the Main class was almost evenly distributed between zones, with three SARTC in the North, three in the South, and two in the Massenrengpulu Zone. In the Bosowa and Luwu Raya Zone, there were no SARTC in the Main class.

The criteria distinguishing the Main class from the Intermediate and Primary lies in the ability of SARTC to organize training/apprenticeships, conduct self-help extension, as well as access technology and funding sources independently. These capabilities are associated with the type of commodity cultivated so that it becomes a superior product of training services for strengthening the SARTC institutions. In the South and Massenrengpulu Zones, where the agroecology was highland, the commodities managed by Main-class SARTC included highland horticulture, corn, and chili. Meanwhile, in the North Zone, where the agroecology was rice and pasture, the commodities managed were farming systems, cattle, and rice. Training and internship services improved the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and experience of farmers as well as rural communities who learned about agroecological commodities advantageous to the specific location. The Main class SARTC, cannot be classified as an elite because it cannot yet independently mentor farmers and rural youth to realize creative and innovative products, establish technology development networks, and create markets.

The intermediate (46.30%) and primary (34.10%) SARTC represent potential strengths of self-help. In these two classes of SARTC, several advanced farmers have organized themselves to manage apprenticeships and develop cadres in the vicinity. Some of these advanced farmers have also received competency upgrades from the government regarding agricultural extension methods and apprenticeship management.

Table 3. Classification of SARTC classes by zone in South Sulawesi

Source: Data analysis 2022