| Abstract: | This paper defines human resource development (HRD) as a functional process that involves learning interventions which are both determined by and have implications for public policy, public and private sector institutions, and the HRD specialists operating within the institutions that seek to implement these interventions. HRD is considered a force for optimizing human growth, organizational effectiveness, and national development through skills enhancement in the workforce. The agricultural workforce is broadly divided into four major segments, and these are related to three arenas of educational activity: in‐service training and development, non‐formal extension and extension‐type educational programmes, and school curricula. Following the definitions section, the paper takes up the question of basic needs of HRD in the agriculture sector (HRD/AG) at the policy, institutional and operational levels. Finally, there is a brief review of the global forces, both exogenous and endogenous, affecting HRD/AG. The conclusion calls for carefully diagnosed, systematically implemented HRD/AG policies to ensure for the development of profitable agriculture in a clean environment. |
