Abstract:
Avocado farming faces numerous challenges including inadequate crop management,
climate fluctuations, market uncertainty, and a lack of value addition. Multi-stakeholder
platforms offer a promising space to tackle these issues collectively. This research
aims to assess how interactions within such platforms influence smallholder avocado
farming. Employing a participatory action design and mixed-method approach, data
was collected via questionnaires and focus group discussions. The study adopts an
innovation systems perspective, using information sharing and stakeholder roles as
indicators of communication. It highlights the platform’s role in providing access
to information, knowledge, and resources. Results emphasize the need to empower
stakeholders for inclusive innovation adoption, ensuring comprehensive access
to tools promoting avocado yield for food, industry, and climate resilience. The
study underscores the positive impact of multi-stakeholder platforms in fostering
collaboration, networking, and capabilities to integrate climate-smart avocado
practices, revealing farmers’ innovative potential. It recommends promoting
community-based platforms in extension services for increased productivity, income,
and positive changes in farming systems. Ultimately, this research contributes to
understanding agricultural innovation diffusion through a multi-stakeholder approach
within the agricultural innovation system.
