Access to specialized information is a key element in the long-term development of small farmers. RAF and partner organizations propose a framework for testing, learning and adapting models of consulting services for farmers, as complementary means in an integrated support system for small farmers in the context of Romania.
CONTEXT
Romanian agriculture is going through a period of deep transformations and besides the challenge of increasing productivity and profitability, there are new issues caused by climate change but also new opportunities through innovative technologies or business models. To maximize their potential, farmers and agribusinesses need to constantly update their agribusiness and business management skills.
Compared to other E.U. countries with a strong agricultural potential, Romania has a very low percentage of farmers (less than 1%) who underwent a form of specialized training, compared to 38% in France or 26% in Poland (Eurostat, 2020). The vast majority learned agriculture from hands-on experience. Moreover, most farmers are disconnected, with little access to specialists, to scientifically validated practical information or to demonstration farms where they can see the latest advances in the field (new technologies, business models, development of high-value products, ecology and environment, etc.).
Farmers’ access to information is hampered by the lack of an infrastructure that facilitates their connection to the cores of specialized expertise, regardless of the geographical area, the size or the profile of the farm. The agricultural consultancy system is underdeveloped, fragmented and too little adapted to the development needs of small and medium-sized farmers and small businesses.
STRATEGY
Under the umbrella term of “extension services”, American universities provide agricultural extension services to farmers, businesses, and other interested residents. Taking on the mission of professionalizing the small rural entrepreneurs in agriculture but not only, these universities have developed functional models through which they connect the need for information with expertise, link research with grassroots practice, and pool funds from multiple sources to provide sustainable extension services.
Following a selection process administered by the Council on International Educational Exchange, University of Georgia Extension was designated as the host university for fellows in 2023–2029, in partnership with the Fulbright Commission.
The Fulbright-RAF Scholar Award for Agricultural Extension Services 2023–2029 is a nationwide program that gives faculty members and administrators from Romanian universities an experience at a U.S. university with agricultural extension services. It is open to people from agriculture, food science and engineering, environmental economics and related fields who are interested in rural development.
The American model can be a source of inspiration and learning. Building on this experience, Romanian universities can define their role and the model through which they can contribute to rural development and, through it, to Romania’s long-term development.
In August 2023, the first cohort of five Romanian faculty members began this experience at the University of Georgia, representing the University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Cluj-Napoca, Ovidius University of Constanța, and the Bucharest University of Economic Studies.
CAES Associate Professor Abigail Borron and Fulbright-RAF Scholars Mihai Șuteu, Daniyar Memedemin, Alina Zaharia, Andreea Ona and Daniel Chiciudean la UGArden. Photo by Dennis McDaniel
The article From Romania to Georgia and Back published in University of Georgia’s College for Agricultural and Environmental Studies (CAES) Almanac documents their experience.
Their experience was documented in the article From Romania to Georgia and Back, published in Almanac, the magazine of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES) at the University of Georgia.
The second cohort of five fellows arrived at the University of Georgia in August 2024. They represented the King Michael I University of Life Sciences in Timișoara, the National University of Science and Technology POLITEHNICA Bucharest, the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Bucharest, and the University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Cluj-Napoca.
The third cohort of five fellows arrived at the University of Georgia in August 2025, representing the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Bucharest, the National University of Science and Technology POLITEHNICA Bucharest, the University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Cluj-Napoca, and the Bucharest University of Economic Studies.
The fourth cohort of five fellows arrived at the University of Georgia in August 2026. They represent the “Ion Ionescu de la Brad” University of Life Sciences, Iași, the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Bucharest and the National University of Science and Technology POLITEHNICA Bucharest.
Each year, at the end of the residency, one administrator from each Romanian university represented in that cohort was invited to the University of Georgia for a one-week visit alongside the faculty fellows, to gain an understanding of the program.
By 2029, 30 fellows and 30 university administrators will have benefited from the program.
In parallel, Civitas and the University of Georgia piloted the university extension model with Universitatea de Științe Agricole și Medicină Veterinară din Cluj-Napoca, Universitatea de Științe Agronomice și Medicină Veterinară din București and Universitatea de Științele Vieții „Regele Mihai I” din Timișoara. The pilot confirmed strong interest and real openness to involvement from faculty and institutional leadership. It also showed that some organizational and administrative aspects need better alignment for the model to be integrated effectively into university activities.
The program will continue until 2029 and aims to build Romanian universities’ practical capacity to implement and adapt this model at the institutional level.