Entrepreneurship

Many farmers need 
assistance 
to adapt to the 
changes in the 
economy and to 
develop their capacity 
as successful 
entrepreneurs
Entrepreneurial 
farmers need the skills 
to run their farms 
as a profit-making 
business, invest 
profits back into the 
business and seek 
long-term growth

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Farmers’ who decide 
to run their farm as a 
profitable enterprise 
will benefit from 
specialised training
24                                                  
Entrepreneurship in farming
 
Not  all  farmers  can  benefit  from  general 
programmes  designed  to  develop  entrepreneurship. 
Extension workers need to ask questions to clarify exactly 
what  training  the  farmers  need  and  what  strategy  and 
package of actions will work best. They need to be clear 
about where the farmers are along the entrepreneurial 
ladder so they can design programmes that match the 
farmers’ capacity and focus. 
 
Farmers  at  the  lower  end  of  the  ladder  –  who 
are struggling with basic survival – need a wide system 
of  support  just  to  secure  basic  needs  such  as  health, 
nutrition, education and so on. These farmers may also 
need  support  with  production  to  enable  them  to  move 
into a more independent economic position. 
 
Market-oriented  farmers  selling  surplus  produce 
may need help to improve business skills, but at a basic 
level. This may also need to be accompanied by literacy 
and numeracy training.
 
Farmers  who  have  made  a  conscious  decision 
to  run  their  farms  as  a  profit-making  business  and  to 
invest  profits  back  into  the  business  to  generate  long-
term growth will benefit from more specialised training 
in entrepreneurship. Such a training programme focuses 
entirely on business and entrepreneurial skills. 
*  *  *
Each of these challenges  
needs to be addressed if new entrepreneurs  
are to be able to survive the first stages  
of growth and beyond. 

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Chapter 2