"Damage by rats cannot be tolerated any longer"

 

Experience with Rat Control Campaigns by Heimo Posamentier

Losses or damage caused by rats in Asia are well documented and run Into millions of dollars annually for many countries. National surveys show that Bangladesh is no exception and literally all crops suffer from losses to rats and damage to structures; much hardship is caused through diseases carried by rats. The overall annual losses have been estimated to exceed US$ 50 million and in many years two to three times that amount. These are conservative estimates.

The species responsible for most of the damage is the lesser Bandicoot Rat (Bandicota bengalensis), which occurs from Pakistan to Korea. In Bangladesh it is ubiquitous and found in all types of habitats affected by man, ranging from the heart of cities to pineapple orchards.

In spite of the familiarity of the problems with rats, little was known about them in Bangladesh. Therefore two projects were initiated in 1978 to throw light on the problem and its solution. One project was concerned primarily with applied research and was financed by USAID. The second project, financed by the Federal Ministry for Technical Cooperation through its agency the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) and administered by the Bangladesh German Plant Protection Programme (BGPPP), was integrated into the local plant protection service. Its major aims were the establishment of a rodent control section, development of control methods adapted to local condition sand requirements, and finally supporting the training of extension staff on rodents, their biology and control.

Initially both projects worked on the biology and ecology of rats in agricultural areas. Finally this work fed to workable recommendations, tested successfully under practical field conditions with farmers. Subsequently all plant protection and extension field staff were intensively trained on rats, their biology and control.

The shortest route to the farmers' level

In spite of the fact that a reasonably effective and cheap rodent control technology had been worked out and passed on to extension staff, it became apparent that rodent control at the farmers' level in Bangladesh was not adequate in terms of quality and quantity. Many farmers have learned to live with the rodent problem, others lack the awareness that rodents create serious, economic damage. The lack of interest is intensified by a lack of good rodenticide bait, considered the main and best form of rat control by 74 percent of all farmers.

From the above, it was realized that the spread of information and motivation through the extension channels, that is interpersonal communication, including demonstrations to farmers, though possibly very effective, would take a long time to reach a large number of farmers, and in particular the poorer farmers. It was therefore decided to plan and organize national information and motivation campaigns to reach many farmers over a short period of time, in order to motivate and educate them on the subject of rodent control.

Preparations for the campaigns

Two such national rat control campaigns were held, in 1983 and 1984. They were organized by the BGPPP and the Division of Plant Protection (Bangladesh) with assistance from the USAID Project and the UNDP/FAO project BGD/79/034. The latter project supplied assistance in the planning and designing for the multi-media campaign in 1983 including the drawing up of the evaluation study design. Most of the financial assistance came through the BGPPP.

Since the two campaigns were planned and organized along similar lines they will be described side by side. Some of the recommendations derived from the results of the evaluations following the first campaign (1983) were incorporated into the 1984 campaign.

For the greatest effect, also taking costs into account, it was decided to use a multi-media-mix consisting of the mass media- radio, newspapers and television- printed materials - posters, leaflets and brochures - songs, a logo, contests and interpersonal contacts (trained extension staff and respected persons). The central person in both campaigns was the lowest extension person in contact with farmers. This extension worker distributed the printed materials and organized farmers meetings and, in part, the contests.

It was realized that one of the critical factors has been and would be the availability of good rodenticide baits. Therefore the organizers found and motivated manufacturers to produce and distribute a readymade bait, formulated according to recommendations, which had been tested in Bangladesh with farmers and found useful. As an additional incentive to manufacturers about one third of the packets produced, according to production figures by manufacturers, were distributed through the government services in 1983. In 1984 the entire manufacture and distribution was in the hands of private enterprise.

For such multi-media campaigns to be effective they have to be conducted for a relatively short and specific period, and the activities have to be strategically preplanned, aimed at a specific target group. The 1983 campaign was aimed primarily at wheat farmers. This was extended to all farmers in 1984. In both cases the campaign started during mid January and ran till the end of March. Total costs for the 1983 campaign were about US $ 13,000,- and US $ 29,000,- for 1984, excluding all salaries and wages and travel allowances for head office staff. Preparations took four and two and a half months for 1983 and 1984 respectively.

Each campaign was thoroughly evaluated in terms of the organization at head office and in the field and of its impact by means of field damage assessments using wheat as an indicator and a survey of farmers' opinion.

In order to develop the strategy it was necessary to establish the major reasons why farmers did not conduct rat control and to set objectives. These objectives were similar for the two years, such as:

- creating awareness of the serious problems caused by rats;

- motivating farmers to carry out rat control;

- informing them about effective

-control methods;

- familiarizing farmers and manufacturers with a cheap and effective rodenticides bait (1983 only);

- reducing the level of damage through rodents in standing crops.

Once the background information had been obtained and the objectives stated, the media and their contents could be selected and designed.

Making use of all the possibilities

Radio

Radio is widely accessible in Bangladesh and useful to create interest. Specific motivational and technical messages were developed including a short drama and a song. The song in the form of a signature tune was played on almost every occasion. The farmers's broadcast, which is free of charge, was used.

Television

This medium was used mainly to inform high-ranking officers not necessarily connected with the campaign about the activities and to obtain their good will.

Newspapers

Several advertisements were run particularly in 1984, providing information on campaign activities, rodent control and the incentives. In addition, journalists were invited to write articles.

Printed material

In both years motivational posters were printed and placed in public places. It turned out that the use of caricature was most suitable and that the rat in the poster should be presented as a robber of food or the crop. To attract attention an element of contradiction, the rat bigger than the farmer and an element of fear, the farmer caught in a trap (1983) or on a stick (1984) was introduced. Studies in indict had shown that bright orange was considered a striking colour and it was used in both years as a background, offset by a spot of dark blue.

In addition, an instructional poster containing information on mechanical and chemical control methods including safety precautions, was produced in 1983.

In both years leaflets for distribution to farmers were prepared. In comparison the 1983 leaflet, though specially designed and printed in blue, was not as attractive as the one in 1984. In the latter year it was printed on both sides using three colours, differently sized letters and headings, boxes and graphics. In addition, it was folded; apparently this was preferred to a simple sheet, as was established during a pretest. In 1983 leaflets were to be given to farmers directly or with every packet of poison bait, that is through pesticide dealers. In 1984 the extension staff was instructed to pass the leaflets to respected persons such as chairmen, village leaders and model farmers for further distribution.

In 1983 a comic strip stressing the need to co-operate in rat control was also produced and handed to schools for further distribution to schoolchildren. It was hoped that they would take them home to their parents.

Finally, an information brochure for all extension staff, detailing activities and duties regarding the campaign was produced for the 1984 campaign.

All materials included a 'logo' to tie them into the campaigns. The logo incorporated the slogan 'damage by rats cannot be tolerated any longer', which was used on every occasion possible for the same purpose. In addition, the same caricature for the farmer was used on both motivational posters and the comic strip.

Additional activities included articles in agricultural publications, an essay competition for schoolchildren (1983), a rat-tail collection scheme (1984) and information courses by head office to field staff (1983 only).

Materials were as far as possible pretested before production and in some cases alterations had to be made (i.e. the logo) or alternatives (i. e. the 1984 motivational poster) had to be used. The major problem in media production was a lack of understanding by the staff involved regarding the important points when designing messages and visual representations. However, the experience gained from the first campaign drastically reduced the time required for the preparation of the second campaign.

It was important to tailor all the media and their timing to the major campaign period in order to reinforce each other and produce a concentrated impact on the target audience. It was therefore necessary to have materials ready at a specific time and in the hands of the staff responsible for the final posting or distribution. In addition, newspaper articles and advertisements as well as radio broadcasts had to be available around the same time. This involved informing and organizing well over 15,000 people.

Results of the implementation

The organization of both campaigns went fairly smoothly. Deadlines were kept by most participants and staff participation, particularly at the lowest level, was very high. Bottlenecks occured at the medium extension level in 1984 probably because the information courses held in 1983 could not be repeated due to technical reasons. Field staff, when asked, indicated that the presence of head office staff in the field on such occasions raised the importance of an activity and thereby the motivation of staff. On the other hand, the distribution of leaflets functioned much better in 1984 than in 1983, mainly because of the improved instructions derived from the 1983 experience.

Newspapers had shown great interest in the 1984 campaign, by publishing numerous articles, editorials and caricatures. This great response by the papers and journals reflects the improved contact with the media and a growing interest by the public in rat control issues.

Impact in the field

The ultimate aim of the campaigns was to reduce the damage caused by rats to standing crops. Therefore the rat damage in wheat fields was surveyed and at the same time the owner was asked whether he conducted control and about the type of control. As an indicator of the effect of the campaign, i.e. the effectiveness of information transfer, the damage to the fields where the rodenticide formula mentioned earlier was used, was compared to the damage situation in fields with no control or control using other rodenticide baits.

The last poster from a sequence of advertisements to motivate "by anticipation". It appeared on the front page of a major daily newspaper.

Comparing these groups of fields, it was established that in 1983 the damage reduction using this formula was 56 per cent, close to the accepted maximum for acute rodenticides and 41 per cent for 1984. The lower figure for 1984 was brought about by the late availability of the bait in the markets, as for that year the total distribution was in the hands of private enterprise. Information received indicated that distribution was not effective until about a week after major rat infestation started.

Overall though the results indicate that information regarding the use of this formula has reached the farmer and the motivational effect has been strong enough to prompt farmers into action.

Savings of standing wheats and due to the bait formula mentioned alone amounted to about US $ 400,000 in 1983 and US $ 550,000 in 1984. If the savings to other crops, stored produce and reduced structural damage are included, the savings would run into several million dollars.

Effectiveness of communication support

After each campaign the opinion of over one thousand farmers distributed over 9 districts of the country was surveyed; there were a total of 21 districts in Bangladesh in 1983.

In each year a surprisingly large number of farmers had been reached by campaign activities - 43 percent in 1983 and 67 percent in 1984. While in 1983 the main contact was radio, undoubtedly because of its wide accessibility, in 1984 most farmers had contact with the extension worker and printed materials. This switch is also reflected in the results when differences between smalI and large farmers are considered. While in 1983 small farmers relied mainly on the mass media, their contact rate with extension increased from 1983 to 1984 much more than for large farmers.

There were many indications that the information contained in the campaign reached farmers. For example it has already been mentioned that information regarding the application of the new formula must have been understood fairly well to be so effectively applied by farmers. The rate of the co-operative control practiced - a major message of the first campaign - has increased between the two years, and a recall test on the content of the instructional poster showed that printed materials were not only looked at, but also read, often by others due to the high illiteracy rate.

Some of these better results for the second campaign are a result of the greater activity by extension at the lowest level. When asked about the quality of information on rodent control received from extension, the answers by farmers indicated a fivefold improvement, and the absolute figures for 1984 were much higher than for extension activities regarding other agricultural information.

It is believed that the greater participation by staff is due to their own greater confidence. This confidence was boosted firstly by good training; they therefore have a good background knowledge on the subject. In most cases, this staff unfortunately know less than the farmers. Secondly, the printed materials, i.e. the brochure and leaflets, supported their interaction with farmers, and they were able actually to give something to the farmer, rather support materials, not even materials for their own use such as writing paper.

Impact on the farmer

These results, indicating a high contact rate between farmers and the campaign, and that information and messages have reached the farmer, are reflected in the impact on the farmer.

While the increase in the number of farmers conducting control in 1983 was mainly among large farmers, the relative increase from 1983 to 1984 was much larger for small than large farmers. In fact, the difference in percentage of farmers controlling rats in 1984 between small (63%) and large farmers (72%) can be explained mainly by the fact that large farmers owning more land are more prone to problems with rats and therefore more likely to control them than small farmers. If one considers that on average, only about 70 per cent of all fields are infested with rats, it can be stated that almost the maximum number of farmers was involved in rat control in 1984. Further improvements will be derived mainly from improved rat control in terms of quality.

Normal experience with campaigns or information transfer show that the gap between rich and poor increases, even if poorer sections also benefit. This is mainly due to the fact that richer farmers have greater access to media, finance and facilities. For the campaigns described, the same idea was repeated by the second campaign and the information became redundant for the larger farmers, while the poorer section still benefited. Thus the gap was closed due to the ceiling of relevant information which had been received by large farmers.

Lessons learnt

From the results discussed and others not mentioned here, suggestions as to why these campaigns were successful can be made. However, only the major points are listed:

The topic or idea of the campaign was relevant to most farmers. Most farmers were aware of the problems caused by rats and many of the need to control rats.

The technology suggested through the campaign was simple, cheap and easy to understand. Furthermore, for many farmers good facilities (i.e. rodenticide bait) were available.

The target group, farmers, benefited directly from their own action (i.e. rat control).

The information/motivation con tinued for two years, therefore becoming redundant to large farmers, effectively eliminating the knowledge gap between large and small farmers.

- The campaigns were well planned and organized, a cost-effective and cost-efficient media mix utilized and the media and messages well designed and tested, the result being that they caught the attention of the target group.

Conclusion: The campaigns must be tailor-made

The results of the campaigns described here have shown that this type of strategy to bring information to farmers and to motivate them even in Third World countries is possible. Naturally, to achieve this success certain conditions and criteria must be satisfied. The idea, product or technology must be relevant to the target audience, which means it must be included in the planning; it must be simple and beneficial to the user. It is therefore necessary to have reasonable information on the target group, its problems and needs. It is equally important to have a technology which has been tested with the target group for efficiency and acceptance, and the extension service should be well trained in the technology. In certain cases it might be advisable to propagate a technology with a reduced efficiency in order to increase the acceptance. The effect on a national scale would be the same.

Finally, it should be mentioned that both campaigns were organized by local staff with only advisory input from the respective projects. Furthermore, all designs were carried out by local people and all materials produced in Bangladesh. The costs were kept sufficiently low, so that even the local institute/organization, here the Ministry of Agriculture, could afford it. Although many campaigns of this type are not quite so successful, the few that are meet . the criteria mentioned above. If these criteria are implemented, and in many instances they would apply, these campaigns are a very useful and perhaps in many cases, necessary tool to inform, motivate and induce farmers, including the poorer sections, to take action.

Table: Costs of the campaligns excluding staff salaries

Major items	1983 (US $)	1984 (US $)
Printed materials(incl. design, paper, printing)	8,168	16,326
Newspaper advertisements	234	1,451
Opening ceremonies	2,392	4,746
Incentives	1,386	4,304
Distribution costs	240	195
Surveys, evaluations	1,320	2,639
Miscellaneous	188	122
Total	13,928	33,186.

Abstract

Many farmers are aware of the losses to agricultural crops caused by rats, but undertake little to control them for traditional and practical reasons. Technical advice and motivation passes through the extension service to the farmer, but often too slowly. To overcome this shortcoming two national rat control campaigns using a media mix for communication and motivation were launched in 1983 and 1984. Both turned out to be successful in reaching a large percentage of farmers, including the poorer sections, and motivating almost a maximum number of them to become involved in rat control.

The media used and some of me results and reasons for the success are described.

Resumé

De nombreux agriculteurs sont conscients des pertes causées par les rats dans les cultures agricoles, mais ils n'entreprennent pratiquement aucune lutte contre ce fléau pour des raisons traditionelles et pratiques.

Les conseils techniques et les activités déployées par les services de vulgarisation pour motiver les agriculteurs parviennent souvent trop lentement jusqu'aux bénéficiaires. Pour surmonter cet obstacle, deux campagnes nationales de dératisation ont été lancées en 1983 et 1984 en faisant appel aux mass media. Ces deux campagnes ont obtenu un tres grand succès car elles ont atteint un grand nombre d'agriculteurs, y compris ceux des couches les plus pauvres et elles ont motivé pratiquement le plus grand nombre d'entre eux à participer à /a lutte contre les rats.

Les moyens utilisés et quelques résultats et raisons du succès obtenu sont décrits ci-dessous.

Extracto

A pesar de que muchos agricultores son conscientes de las pérdidas causadas por las ratas en los cultivos, se esfuerzan poco por combatirlas, ya sea por motivos tradicionales o prácticos.

La asesoria técnica y la motivación transmitidas a través de los servicios de extensión, frecuentemente demoran mucho en llegar al agricultor. Para supera resta deficiencia, seiniciaron dos campañas nacionales contra las ratas en 1983 y 1984, usando una combinación de medios pare ampliarla comunicación y proveer incentivos pare la participación de los grupos afectados. Ambas campañas tuvieron éxito ya que se logró alcanzar a un gran porcentaje de los agricultores, incluso en los sectores relativamente pobres. De esta manera se logró la participación de la gran mayoria de los agricultores en las campañas de erradicación de ratas. La colaboración alcanzó el máximo que se hubiese podido esperar.

El presente articulo describe los medios empleados, asi como algunos resultados y rezones que condujeron al éxito.

A full description of the strategy, planning, organization and the findings of the detailed surveys following each campaign, as well as relevant analyzes discussing the reasons behind the success of these campaigns will be published in book-form by GTZ in cooperation with Dr. Ronny Adhikarya of the FAO. It is hoped that this publication will be helpful to others besides those involved in rat control or the field of communication.