Agriculture is also constrained by weak extension services. Agricultural extension is provided by the Agriculture Extension Department (AED). Extension staff is inadequate in number and quality. In 2011-12 AED included 428 field extension officers and 3,085 village managers. Field extensionists rotate quickly, and do not stay more than 3-4 years in one location. There is little orientation towards the problems of farmers, and insufficient budgetary resources prevent field visits and hinder sharing of knowledge. Extension is focusing on transfer of technologies aiming at increasing yields rather than maximizing return on farmers’ investments. Of particular concern is the lack of operational interaction between the Department of Agriculture Research (DAR) and extension, which contributes to the overall 40%-50% yield gap between research and farmers’ achievements. Most extension messages are centrally designed and mechanically implemented by field staff over a diverse range of agro-ecological and socio-economic conditions, without proper consideration of farmers’ needs and limitations, or market requirements.