Professor M Zahidul Haque
In developing countries whose mainstay is agriculture, technology generation and diffusion is a crucial factor to eradicate hunger and poverty through attainment of food security and increase of farm income. Small farming, particularly in countries where resources are limited needs to be sustainable, economical and intensive so that durable, dependable and long-term support can be ensured for the farming people. Small farmers must have access to sustainable agricultural technologies that are appropriate for their socio-economic and agro-ecological environment.Innovation is any new idea or technique. Innovations are vital for improving agricultural productivity. While adoption of innovation takes place in the laboratory of the field of an individual farmer, diffusion of innovation denotes spreading of the same in a social setting which is influenced by its culture and custom. A new book “GENERATION AND DIFFUSION OF AGRICULTURAL INNOVATION” by Professor Mohammad Hossain Bhuiyan describes how an agricultural innovation is generated and diffused in a social system. The important content of the book is presented in twelve chapters in an easy language with appropriate examples.
In the Introductory first chapter the author focusses on basics of innovation adoption and diffusion process. Referring E.M. Rogers, the author stresses that an innovation should have five important attributes – relative advantages, compatibility, complexity, trialability, and observability. The first two attributes are keenly judged by the farmers. Because they try to fit the innovation to their economic and social settings and if they find the innovation compatible then they go for adoption. Rapid or slow adoption and ultimate diffusion of an innovation largely depends on the above mentioned attributes of the innovation.
In other chapters Prof. Mohammad Hossain Bhuiyan has prudently described and discussed innovation-decision process with factors that influence the generation and diffusion of agricultural innovation.
Among the important chapters, the author describes the measurement procedure of Adoption of Innovation in Chapter VIII. An additional chapter presenting a short list of technologies generated by different research institutes and universities of Bangladesh has been included in the book which has further added to its usefulness.
With his long teaching and research experience, Professor Mohammad Hossain Bhuiyan has presented an excellent text and reference book which should be prove very useful to agricultural students, rural sociologists and extension specialists.
The book in white print contains 199 pages which can be collected from the publisher, Gurpukur, Hashem Mansion. 48, Kazi Nazrul Islam Avenue, Karwan Bazar, Dhaka.The price is:Tk. 350/
(Reviewer is a Professor in the Department of Agricultural Extension & Information System, Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Dhaka)
