ASSESSING PROFESSIONAL CAPABILTIES OF AGRICULTURE OFFICERS FOR WEED CONTROL: A CASE STUDY OF KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA-PAKISTAN

Professionally competent Agriculture Officers (AOs) can play an important role in increasing the crop production through communicating new findings about the yield losses due to weeds in crops. Survey was conducted to find out the professional capability of AOs to cope with the weed problem in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa., Pakistan. Study was initiated during January, 2007 where 112 questionnaires were distributed among the AOs across the province. One hundred and eleven AOs returned the questionnaires and the data were analyzed using SPSS. Analysis revealed that all the officers had basic understanding of weed science. However, only 19% of AOs had the required knowledge related to weeds. Majority of the respondents were unable to describe the weeds of major and minor crops and their impact on crop production. Same was the case regarding lack of farmers’ guidance in herbicide application. The study showed that there were significant differences in the professional capabilities of the agriculture officials classified by their attendance in training programs provided, family background and professional qualifications. Professional qualifications, family background and regular trainings were found to be highly and significantly related to professional capability in weeds. The present findings suggest that the AOs are supposed to be trained in weed related problems, so that they can cope with the weed management issues of the farming community for increasing quality and quantity of agricultural commodities and to raise the socio-economic status of rural people in the province.