30 Teaching Agriculture In Tropical Africa: Understanding The Local Culture For The Design Of A Sustainable Curriculum Bruno Borsari Abstract For several decades Western agriculturists have been working in African countries to impart knowledge in a teaching capacity. This educational effort has been carried out, since then, to increase agricultural productivity and to improve the living conditions of the local populations. The final outcome of many of these development projects has not had the expected impact, although funding, equipment and human resources were readily available. As it was demonstrated later on, the knowledge transfer had taken place without understanding the real needs of the project recipients. This omission seems to have occurred due to a lack of knowledge of the local culture. This article examines the design of an effective agricultural curriculum, especially tempered for an educator working in a foreign country, and stresses the importance of learning local cultural parameters to insure program success. Introduction African countries have been the recipients of major development endeavors by the industrialized nations since the early 1960's and several institutions of the United Nations and many non- governmental organizations (NGOs) devoted their resources, over the years, to improve living conditions on the African continent. In this context, many agricultural projects were sponsored with the aim of eradicating famine, and the clear objective of promoting nutritional self-sufficiency in the new independent African nations. A review of the literature substantiates the widespread concept that much of the aid has done little to improve African agriculture or alleviate human suffering (Biguzzi, G., Tosolini, A., Ricci, A., Melandri, E., Cavalieri, R., Misuriello, R., Berton, G., Zarantonello, M., Squarcina, S., Turay, J., Kamara, A., Benzi, O. & Sheriff, F. 1995; Borsari, 1997b; Chiasson, 1987). In fact, some may even argue that some aid may have aggravated the situation and perpetuated the crisis (Lele, 1992). The nature of an agricultural project can be extremely diverse when it is part of a development endeavor. Technical support can be donated directly to farmers and rural communities through extension, or by imparting formal education, at various levels in schools and universities. A project of agricultural extension will involve the cooperation of the expatriate with local growers and, or trainers. An example of such a program is the Farming Systems Research methodology (FSR) which is being used to improve vegetable production in Swaziland. The focus of FSR (Figure 1) is