Perceptions of Vegetable Growers in Balqa and Mafraq Governorates in Jordan towards Their Training Needs in the areas of Production, Marketing and Management

The study aimed at assessing the extension educational needs as perceived by farmers in the areas of production, marketing and management and to determine whether these perceptions were associated by their socioeconomic characteristics. A random sample of 98 vegetable growers in Balqa and Mafraq Governorates in Jordan was used. Three 4-point Likert-type scales were used as instruments to gather primary data. Cronbach s alpha coefficients (0.88 to 0.91) indicated high internal consistency for the scales. Parametric and nonparametric methods were used to analyze the data based on approximations to normal distribution. Farmers in Mafraq as compared to Balqa were older, more experienced in agriculture, less educated, had less percentage of land owners and part timers and have more than 50% of their income from agriculture. Overall, higher ratings were observed for the need for training in marketing and production fields, and the rates were significantly higher for farmers in Mafraq, while ratings were low for the need of training on management for both governorates. Age, education, farming experience, type of holding, farm size and full time farming were important factors in explaining differences in the educational needs. The involvement of public extension staff in the survey adds to the applicability of needs-based extension programs as an ongoing situational analysis.