Requirement of Extension of Integrated Rice-Fish Farming from the Gilan Agricultural Expert's Point of View

Rice-Fish aqua culture is practiced mainly to improve the income of small farmers. It requires very little input and provides off-season employment to farm labors. It has been observed that combination of rice and fish farming is mutually beneficial. Although, in implementation, it can be faced many challenges and it demands several requirements. This study was conducted to identify requirements of promoting integrated rice-fish farming in Gilan province. To achieve this aim, a theoretical framework is presented, based on previous research. The research population included all the experts in Gilan’s Department of Agriculture (N=272) using a census study. The initial and follow-up mailing generated 250 useable responses from experts. The factorial analysis classified the requirements into eight latent variables named: educational methods, culture, facilitating role, communication skills, human recourse development, economic, transfer of technology, infrastructure requirements.