Necessity Is the Mother of Invention for Research and Extension Agenda of Rubber Smallholders

: Researchers and extensionists would pursue their interests to develop new inventions and encourage rubber smallholders to adopt new technology and practices to increase production of their holdings. Three interrelated systems, research and development (R&D) system, extension/delivery system and client (smallholders) system, are responsible to make the rubber industry viable and dynamic. The extension system is also encouraged to identify and carry out related research activities besides its own core function to enhance clients’ understanding and to use the findings as basis to plan effective strategies for implementation. Knowledge acquisition among clients is critical in capacity building process. With knowledge, clients tend to develop favorable attitude and use it to develop specific skill to practice recommended technology and new practices. Necessity is the mother of invention in times of need, especially when rubber price is low. Researchers, extensionists and smallholders are “forced” to collaborate and become creative to find alternative ways and uses of natural rubber to increase demand of the commodity. When natural rubber price is low, funding for research needs to be maintained at current level, or in some cases, funding is increased to ensure that the industry is not void of new technology and new products. The main goal of the rubber industry is to ensure that new technology and practices are continuously being generated and developed by researchers to be adopted by rubber smallholders. The adoption of new technology and practices by smallholders ensures that production of natural rubber continues to increase, while income of smallholders is maintained or increased at an appreciative level to offset low rubber prices. There is an inclination in the rubber industry that when the commodity’s price is low, activities and programs related to research and dissemination of research results would follow to be reduced, resulting in stagnation and opportunities for future growth of the industry. The National Blue Ocean Strategy (NBOS) should be used to harness expertise in research among researchers of local universities, as well as to cooperate among extensionists from agencies at state and national levels to help disseminate research results. The NBOS can reduce cost, and has bigger impacts and wider applications of natural rubber for local and international markets.