A study examined the nonformal extension education impacts of farming systems research in three prototype areas in rural Lesotho. The extension education programs that were carried out in Lesotho from 1979 through 1984 in conjunction with a farming systems research development strategy were found to have tentative, but indicative, impacts on farmer contact groups, chiefs, headmen and headwomen, and district-based extension workers and subject matter specialists. The farmer contact group members studied felt that the extension activities changed their knowledge, attitudes, skills, and aspiration levels. The extension program also appeared to result in higher crop yields, more income from farming, and an increased ability to acquire better farm inputs. The chiefs and village headmen and headwomen studied likewise found the extension program to have a number of positive impacts and were unanimous in their support for farming systems research as a development strategy. The district-based extension workers and subject matter specialists interviewed also indicated that the extension program had positive impacts in many subject areas taught. Farming systems research was found to be a useful development strategy in that it is interdisciplinary and engages the farmer directly in its dynamics. This does not mean, however, that the strategy should be viewed as a panacea for the low agricultural productivity that affects much of Africa. (A sample interview form is appended.) (MN)