The Development of Cattle in Langkat Regency

Oct 13, 2025 by magicalceylontours.com 0 views

The Relationship Between the Characteristics of Cattle Farmers and the Performance of Extension Workers: A Case Study in Ara Condong Village, Stabat District, Langkat Regency

Introduction

The development of the livestock sector is a crucial aspect of supporting local economies, particularly in rural areas. In Langkat Regency, the growth of beef cattle has shown a significant increase over the past five years, reflecting the potential and interest among farmers in raising cattle. However, the performance of extension workers in the area has been suboptimal, with a value of 38.2 and a percentage of achievement of 61.06%. This study aims to analyze the relationship between the characteristics of cattle farmers and the performance of extension workers in Ara Condong Village, Stabat District, Langkat Regency.

The Development of Cattle in Langkat Regency

The development of beef cattle in Langkat Regency has shown a significant increase over the past five years, with an average growth rate of 26% per year. This reflects the potential and interest among farmers in raising cattle, which can be linked to the increase in awareness of the importance of the livestock sector in supporting the local economy. The growth of the cattle industry has also created new opportunities for farmers to increase their income and improve their livelihoods.

Characteristics of Cattle Farmers

The characteristics of cattle farmers in the study area are as follows:

Age: The average age of farmers is 42 years, which is still classified in the category of productive age.
Education: The majority of farmers have a junior high school (SMP) education level, which shows that there are challenges in the aspect of education that might affect their ways in managing livestock.
Breeding Experience: The average breeding experience is 4 years, and each breeder has around 3 livestock with a family dependency of four people.
Number of Livestock: The number of livestock owned by farmers is an important factor in determining their income and livelihoods.
Family Dependency: The number of family dependents that rely on the farm is also an important factor in determining the success of farmers in managing their livestock.

Extension Performance in the Study Area

The performance of counseling in Ara Condong Village received a value of 38.2, with a percentage of achievement of 61.06%. This value shows that the implementation of farmer group performance in the study area is not good. Counseling performance that is not optimal may be caused by lack of communication between extension workers and farmers, as well as limited resources available to support the extension process.

The Relationship Between Farmers' Characteristics and Counseling Performance

From the analysis conducted with the Spearman rank test, it was found that there was a significant relationship between the characteristics of farmers, such as the number of livestock and the number of family dependents, with the performance of counseling. That is, the more the number of livestock owned and the more the dependents of the family that depend on the farm, the greater the attention and involvement of farmers in following the extension program.

However, other characteristics such as age, long raising livestock, and the level of education of breeders do not show a significant effect on extension performance. This indicates that these aspects may not contribute directly to the expected results of counseling, even though they remain important in the context of overall livestock development.

Conclusion

In conclusion, this study shows that an increase in the number of beef cattle and farmers' attention to the extension program is very important to improve the performance of livestock in Ara Condong Village. Good extension performance will directly affect the success of farmers in managing their livestock. Therefore, there needs to be more efforts to improve the implementation of counseling by actively involving farmers and targeting the characteristics related to success in raising cattle. This will certainly support local economic growth and the welfare of the community in Langkat Regency.

Recommendations

Based on the findings of this study, the following recommendations are made:

Improving Communication: Extension workers should improve their communication with farmers to increase their understanding and involvement in the extension program.
Targeting Characteristics: Extension workers should target the characteristics of farmers that are related to success in raising cattle, such as the number of livestock and the number of family dependents.
Increasing Resources: The government and other stakeholders should increase the resources available to support the extension process, such as training and equipment.
Education and Training: Farmers should receive education and training on best practices in cattle management to improve their skills and knowledge.

By implementing these recommendations, the performance of extension workers in Ara Condong Village can be improved, and the success of farmers in managing their livestock can be increased. This will certainly support local economic growth and the welfare of the community in Langkat Regency.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About the Relationship Between Cattle Farmers' Characteristics and Extension Workers' Performance

Q: What is the main objective of this study? A: The main objective of this study is to analyze the relationship between the characteristics of cattle farmers and the performance of extension workers in Ara Condong Village, Stabat District, Langkat Regency.

Q: What are the key findings of this study? A: The key findings of this study are:

The development of beef cattle in Langkat Regency has shown a significant increase over the past five years.
The characteristics of cattle farmers, such as the number of livestock and the number of family dependents, have a significant relationship with the performance of counseling.
Other characteristics, such as age, long raising livestock, and the level of education of breeders, do not show a significant effect on extension performance.

Q: What are the implications of this study? A: The implications of this study are:

The increase in the number of beef cattle and farmers' attention to the extension program is very important to improve the performance of livestock in Ara Condong Village.
Good extension performance will directly affect the success of farmers in managing their livestock.
There needs to be more efforts to improve the implementation of counseling by actively involving farmers and targeting the characteristics related to success in raising cattle.

Q: What are the recommendations of this study? A: The recommendations of this study are:

Improving communication between extension workers and farmers to increase their understanding and involvement in the extension program.
Targeting the characteristics of farmers that are related to success in raising cattle, such as the number of livestock and the number of family dependents.
Increasing the resources available to support the extension process, such as training and equipment.
Providing education and training to farmers on best practices in cattle management to improve their skills and knowledge.

Q: What are the limitations of this study? A: The limitations of this study are:

The study was conducted in a specific area, Ara Condong Village, Stabat District, Langkat Regency, and may not be generalizable to other areas.
The study only analyzed the relationship between the characteristics of cattle farmers and the performance of extension workers, and did not consider other factors that may affect the performance of extension workers.

Q: What are the future research directions? A: The future research directions are:

Conducting a study to analyze the relationship between the characteristics of cattle farmers and the performance of extension workers in other areas.
Conducting a study to analyze the effect of other factors, such as climate change and market trends, on the performance of extension workers.
Conducting a study to evaluate the effectiveness of different extension programs and strategies in improving the performance of extension workers.

Q: What are the practical implications of this study? A: The practical implications of this study are:

Extension workers should improve their communication with farmers to increase their understanding and involvement in the extension program.
Extension workers should target the characteristics of farmers that are related to success in raising cattle, such as the number of livestock and the number of family dependents.
Farmers should receive education and training on best practices in cattle management to improve their skills and knowledge.

Q: What are the policy implications of this study? A: The policy implications of this study are:

The government and other stakeholders should increase the resources available to support the extension process, such as training and equipment.
The government and other stakeholders should provide education and training to farmers on best practices in cattle management to improve their skills and knowledge.
The government and other stakeholders should develop and implement policies to support the development of the livestock sector in Langkat Regency.