Investigating the Effectiveness of Informal Technical and Vocational Training Courses on Livelihood of Livestock Farmers: (the case of Iran - West Azerbaijan)

This study mainly aimed to investigate the effectiveness of technical and vocational training courses in sheep fattening in counties of West Azerbaijan Province in Iran. The statistical population of this retrogressive evaluation included ۹۹۸ livestock farmers who participated in these training courses and received certificates. Thus, a sample of ۹۱ participants was selected using Cochran’s formula, while ۹۱ untrained livestock farmers were also studied for comparison. After data collection using the questionnaire (the main instrument), SPSS was used for data analysis. The results of descriptive statistics demonstrate that the participants had ۳۸ years of age on average and ۵۱% (the highest frequency) were engaged in integrated crop-livestock systems. Comparing the average opinions of the trained ( =۲.۰۱) and untrained individuals ( ۱.۸۹) showed that the trained participants had a more open view towards job creation and careen stability and development than the untrained ones. Moreover, the T-test results indicated that the trained and untrained participants differed significantly in in livestock weight gain during a fattening period differed significantly in, the resulting income and quality of life improvement at the ۹۹% confidence interval. The Pearson correlation coefficient results also revealed a significant correlation between reduced livestock losses and participation in the training courses. The results of the Mann–Whitney U test also showed a significant difference in adopting innovation between the trained and untrained participants at the ۹۵% confidence interval.