Ater e transição agroecológica na cadeia hortifrutícola : análise de resultados de ação realizada no território do Sertão do São Francisco, em Pernambuco, Brasil

Abstract

This paper was developed in the frame of the research line “Rural Extension for the Local Development”, of the “Rural Extension and Local Development” postgraduate (Posmex) of the Federal Rural University of Pernambuco (UFRPE) in Brazil. The origin of this study was the author’s concern about the “Technical Assistance and Rural Extension (ATER)” achievements and limits, in the context of the new legislation in vigor since 2010 in the country. The general goal of the research is to analyze the effectiveness of ATER actions related to the agroecological transition that affected 2.7000 familiar agriculturists of the São Francisco “Sertão” territory. The analysis of this agroecological transition indicators improves the studies about technical assistance and rural extension, especially about rural extension with agroecological bases, immerse in a great operational challenge in a context of rural development that still priories credit and technology as progress factors. In order to attend to that purposes, this study is configured as a qualitative research. The empiric universe is constituted by the families beneficed by the technical assistance and the rural extension services through the Call SAF/ATER N°14/2020. After the data selection, we have considered the Rural Extension theoretical contributions, in order to orient the indicators we have obtained while trying to understand the agroecological transition level of the families involved. Concerning to the results, it’s particularly relevant the need of public politics tending to the technical assistance based in the Agroecological Principles, as much as the verification of the inefficacy of ATER’s execution model valid for the agroecological transition process and, consequently, for the suitable rural development.