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It is the current fashion to take a “participatory approach” and to organize “self-help groups” to support ongoing rural development projects. Prominent examples of self-help groups are groups of micro-credit projects, agricultural cooperatives, water users groups, groups for the poorest of the poor, and women’s groups. The direct beneficiaries are the members of the group, and in this sense, they are based on “egoism.” We should scrutinize the content of participation and reconsider a definition of “self-help” based on “altruism.” From this perspective, I am now seeking an alternative paradigm for rural development in Pakistan.

In the field of agricultural education, conventional agricultural practices are recognized as the target to be “improved.” There is a large gap between high-level agricultural research institutions and farmers, who lack the capacity to judge and adopt methods scientifically. As a result, people in villages are losing confidence in being farmers. To foster confident farmers who can make judgments about farming methods, Pakistani colleagues and I have started a project to establish an agriculture school through which “action research” is being conducted. Related studies are also being carried out.