Introduction

The first Australian projects in the region were in Libya and they began in 1974. The overtures of the Libyan Government were welcomed in Australia because of the opportunity they provided for trade in agricultural machinery, and technical assistance was made available from within State Departments of Agriculture.

One of these projects was initiated and operated by the Jabel el Akhdar Authority in Eastern Libya and it used a demonstration farm to provide local farmers with a model to emulate. This chapter examines the way in which the demonstration farm operated and evaluates its role in persuading neighbouring farmers to adopt a medic/cereal rotation.

The Jabel el Akhdar Authority project

The Jabel el Akhdar Authority was set up as part of a policy of investment of the oil revenue that was then at its greatest. The Authority was invested with power to achieve a wholesale improvement in the facilities available to the communities within its scope. As far as farming was concerned, it was not only to improve the system being used but also to provide the resources needed by farmers to adopt new technology. The El Marj district has always been regarded as the most fertile part of Libya.