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ICT to Enhance Farm Extension Services in Africa Last updated November 2010
COMMON CHALLENGES vered via voice, an intermediary, or RESOURCES
All of these approaches to using ICT to via a system that accommodates ap-
enhance farm extension services face proximate spelling of key words. For good general information on exten-
some common challenges: • Impact. There is little if any informa- sion services, see:
• Converting the vast amounts of farm tion on the impact of such ICT- http://www.usaid.gov/our_work/agric
extension information available in pa- enabled farm extension services. ulture/extension_services.htm
per form to digital and searchable Do they increase the effectiveness
of farm extension services to in- Christoplos, Ian, “Mobilizing the po-
form. For just one of many exam-
crease farmers’ productivity and in- tential of rural and agricultural exten-
ples, the many farmer field school
come? Are they worth their cost sion”, (FAO, 2010)
manuals available from USAID
funded projects alone are rich given other alternatives? How best
Mucemi Gakuru, Kristen Winters &
sources of information on recom- can they be combined with other
Francois Stepman, “Inventory of In-
mended farming techniques and delivery channels? How can they be
novative Farmer Advisory Services
practical solutions to problems for designed to maximize impact? At
using ICTs”, The Forum for Agricultural
specific crops. Extracting this in- least two studies underway (in Research in Africa (2009).
formation and converting it to a 2010) may offer some answers: one
form that is digitally searchable by of the Reuters Market Light service Rivera, W.M. and M. Kalim Qamar,
crop, then symptom or problem in India and one of a SMS-based ser- “Agricultural Extension, Rural Devel-
category is an enormous task. Many vice to enhance a private farm ex- opment, and the Food Security Chal-
ICT-enabled farm extension projects tension agent network in sugar cane lenge,” (FAO, 2003)
are trying to tackle this formidable in Kenya.
challenge alone. • Who pays? Without sustainable Rikin Gandhi, et al, “Digital Green:
• Reaching the right information fast. business models, ICT-enhanced farm Participatory Video and Mediated In-
Even if all information is in digital extension services will not scale to struction for Agricultural Extension,”
and searchable form, the inquirer millions of farmers. How can gov- Information Technologies and Interna-
ernment and other resources be tional Development, Vol. 5, No. 1 (USC
(whether a farmer, extension work-
combined to offer effective ICT- Annenberg School for Communica-
er or call center agent) must be able
enabled farm extension services? If, tion, Spring 2009)
to search the information quickly
and receive a correct and useful an- and if so, how, can private sponsors
be used without reducing the trust- Rivera, W.M. and V.R. Suliaman. “Ex-
swer. This means search techniques tension: object of reform, engine for
must be intuitive or well taught. If a worthiness of the information pro-
innovation,” Outlook on Agriculture. 38:
search results in an unhelpful (or no) vided? How can cell phone service
267-273 (2009).
answer, the user must take more providers be involved in “win-win”
time (and, often, pay more) to try models of service delivery? Such Rivera, W.M. and G. Alex. “The con-
again or give up in frustration. win-win models include service pro- tinuing role of government in pluralis-
• Local languages. Farmers in sub- viders being able to gain customers tic extension systems,” Proceedings of
Saharan Africa speak dozens of lan- or reduce their “churn” (the num- the 20th Annual Conference of the
guages. The farm extension infor- ber of customers jumping from net- AIAEE, Dublin, Ireland (2004).
mation provided to them must be in work to network), while delivering
a language they understand—or the service to customers discounted
translated by an intermediary. rates.
• Digitized Information. How can the DISCLAIMER
• Literacy. Many farmers in sub-
Saharan Africa are illiterate or, if li- challenge of converting the vast The views expressed in this publi-
terate, may have trouble spelling amount of information to digital cation do not necessarily reflect
correctly. ICT-enabled farm exten- form be tackled collectively? the views of the U.S. Agency for
sion services may need to be deli- International Development or the
U.S. Government.
This series of papers is supported by USAID’s Fostering Agriculture Competitiveness Employing Information Communica-
tion Technologies (FACET) project under the Financial Integration, Economic Leveraging, Broad-Based Dissemination and
Support Leaders with Associates award (FIELD-Support LWA). This paper was written by Judy Payne of USAID, Josh
Woodard of AED, and the IRIS Center at the University of Maryland. FACET offers on-demand field support to help mis-
sions with the challenges of using these ICT interventions in agricultural development. To learn more about field support
options, contact Judy Payne, ICT Advisor, (jpayne@usaid.gov).
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ICT to Enhance Farm Extension Services in Africa Last updated November 2010