Title: Kenya’s agriculture minister opens Africa Agriculture Geospatial Week
Author: Nadia Manning-Thomas
Source: ICT-KM
Publisher: CGIAR
Date (published): 11/06/2010
Date (accessed): 15/06/2010
Type of information: blog post
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML)
Abstract:
Kenya’s agriculture minister opens Africa Agriculture Geospatial Week and calls for efforts to take geospatial information to the ‘last mile’

While addressing the 2nd Africa Agriculture Geospatial Week (AAGW) that opened this week at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) campus in Nairobi; Kenya’s Minister for Agriculture, Hon Dr Sally Kosgei, challenged researchers and GIS practitioners to ‘discuss steps towards the development of delivery mechanisms for making geospatial information accessible to poor smallholders in the villages across Sub-Saharan Africa.

Title: Mobile Telephony in Rural Areas: The Latin American perspective
Authors: Lisa M Cespedes and Franz J Martin
Source: i4d (Information For Development), January - March 2010
Publisher: Centre for Science, Development and Media Studies
Date (accessed): 02/06/2010
Type of information: article
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML)
Abstract:
Mobile phones offer individuals in rural populations the ability to access and interact with information services and databases.
Consider the numerous ways in which mobile telephony facilitates every day endeavours in addition to offering phone calls and text messaging. The technologies and applications vary from the developed areas to the developing regions, however, people in the most remote and marginalised places of the world are also benefiting greatly from the opportunities that the technology offers to improve their social and economic conditions.
There are 179 million people using mobile phones in Latin America; 82% of those users browse the Internet, 73% send text messages, and 55% are transferring data in different ways1. As a result of the expansion of mobile infrastructure and relatively affordable prices, the use of mobile telephony increasingly takes part of the everyday life of many rural families. As an example, in countries such as Peru, only 0.01% of rural households have access to the Internet while 36.5% have a mobile phone. In Chile, the penetration of mobile telephony is 94.7%.

Title: ICT for Development in Francophone Africa
Author: Lova Rakotomalala
Source: Global Voices Online
Date (published): 25/04/2010
Date (accessed): 26/04/2010
Type of information: blog post
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML)
Abstract:
Although there is undoubtedly a strong push to grow information and communication technology (ICT) initiatives for development in francophone Africa, the region is still somewhat lagging behind their English-speaking neighbors. The recognition of this lag is discussed by many Francophone bloggers and aggregated at the Franco Techno Gap blog.

The cause of the lag is unclear but a few reasons are often proposed: 1) broadband internet was made available by governments of English speaking nations such as (South Africa, Mauritius, Egypt) first (fr). Consequently, cost of internet access is on average higher as further explained on l'atelier des medias (RFI) (fr). 2) Related to the previous reason: “English speaking countries seem to be doing better than the French speaking countries” as Miquel points out 3) The English language is still the default language globally when one discusses ICT.

In this post, current grass roots development projects in francophone Africa with an important ICT component will be discussed in further details...

Title: Smallholder farmers and ICT-KM
Author: Enrica Porcari
Source: 4d Magazine
Publisher: Centre for Science, Development and Media Studies
Date (published): January-March 2010
Date (accessed): 21/04/2010
Type of information: article
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML)
Abstract:
ICTs can help smallholder farmers maximise the return on agricultural inputs, provided timely and relevant information is made available to them.

Research organisations like the CGIAR (Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research) cannot be satisfied just knowing they have produced high quality science. It is essential that the outputs of their research are communicated and put to use in the village, on the ground, in the lab, or across the negotiating table.

This is where the ICT-KM Programme of the CGIAR plays a role in helping to get vital research results out to the people who need it the most. The Programme recognises that scientific research organisations are becoming more and more information intensive, multi-disciplinary and partnership-based, requiring up-to-date communications infrastructure and knowledge sharing practices. As such, the Programme helps the CGIAR develop and sustain a culture of active information and knowledge sharing involving timely yet cost-effective multi-directional communications, the know-how to collaborate, and the tools to support multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural teams.

Title: Agropedia: Revolutionising Indian Agriculture
Authors: Runa Sarkar, T. V. Prabhakar, Meeta Bagga Bhatia
Source: i4d Magazine
Publisher: Centre for Science, Development and Media Studies
Date (published): January-March 2010
Date (accessed): 21/04/2010
Type of information: article
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML)
Abstract:
An ICT initiative for agriculture in India and its potential impact on the livelihoods of farmers and agricultural extension workers.
Agropedia is an agriculture knowledge repository of universal meta models and localised content for a variety of users with appropriate interfaces built in collaborative mode in multiple languages. In other words, it aspires to be a one stop shop for any knowledge, pedagogic or practical related to Indian agriculture - an audiovisual encyclopaedia, to enhance, educate and transform the process of digital content creation and organisation completely. It aims to develop a comprehensive digital content framework, platform, and tools in support of agricultural extension and outreach.

Title: A Study of Prioritisation of Information Related Needs of Farmers. A Study of Prioritisation Plugging information gaps through ICTs
Author: Sapna A. Narula
Source: i4d Magazine
Publisher: Centre for Science, Development and Media Studies
Date (published): January-March 2010
Date (accessed): 21/04/2010
Type of information: article
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML)
Abstract:
ICTs offer great potential for economic growth and social empowerment of farmers by linking agricultural supply chains to national and global markets.

ICTs offer a promising potential for social and economic empowerment of rural people in India especially those involved in agriculture (Narula, 2010). However, the opportunities in this field are not limited to agriculture, but are extended to health, education and e-governance as well. Most of the ICT models including both private sector as well as public sector have been launched with agricultural applications as their prime focus. These models are providing a range of services to fulfill the information deficit our farmers are facing in agricultural production, input-supply, agricultural extension, market information/intelligence and price discovery(Narula and Sharma, 2008; Narula, 2009). Inspite of all these initiatives, it has been felt that there is a huge gap existing between what is being offered and what is being demanded.(Cecchini and Raina, 2004; Chetley, 2006; Parmar, 2007; Narula, 2008, Narula, 2009b, Saith and Vijaybhaskar, 2008). The information modules which are too generalised irrespective of the region, crop, farmer, agro-climatic zone can not really fulfill the strategic objectives of these ICT interventions. (Jain et al, 2008; Parmar et al, 2007). Hence, a strong need has been felt to explore important issues pertaining to this gap such as assessing the information-supply gap, finding out the impact assessment of information modules, design and development of client-centric initiatives and enhancing adoption and use of ICT services by target beneficiaries. This article is a part of a larger study conducted in district of Udham Singh Nagar of Uttarakhand, India pertaining to the use of ICTs by farmers. In this article, an effort has been made to address issues related to the prioritisation of informational needs of the farmers in the district and the possession level of ICTs among the target group so as to further explore the potential of ICTs such as computers, the Internet and mobile phones among the rural folk/farmers.

Title: ITC e-Choupal to quintuple reach
Author: Anuradha Himatsingka
Source: The Economic Times
Publisher: Bennett Coleman & Co. Ltd.
Date (published): 12/04/2010
Date (accessed): 12/04/2010
Type of information: news article
Language: English
On-line access: yes (HTML)
Abstract:
ITC’s e-Choupal network has reached out to over four million farmers growing a range of crops such as soyabean, coffee, wheat, rice and pulses in over 40,000 villages through 6,500 kiosks across 10 states including Madhya Pradesh , Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu...“Under the new version, ITC plans to offer personalised crop management advisory services to individual farmers, integrating mobile phones into the digital and physical network of e-Choupal .”

It will enable a farmer to provide information on the type of soil, crop variety, the date of sowing and details about crop condition on an ongoing basis to the company. Subsequently, this data will be processed to give farmers specific advice.

Title: Development Calling: The Use of Mobile Phones in Agriculture Development in Uganda
Authors: Brandie Martin and Dr. Eric Abbott
Pages: 13 pp.
Date (published): 11/03/2010
Date (accessed): 06/04/2010
Type of information: conference paper
Language: English
On-line access: yes (pdf)
Abstract:
This study examined the diffusion and perceived impact of agricultural-based mobile phone use among small- to medium-size limited-resource farm holders in Kamuli District, Uganda, where 42% of farm households now have a mobile phone. Interviews were conducted with 110 small- to medium-size farm holders – 56 men and 54 women. Respondents were chosen according to farm group (n=91) or non-farm group (n=19) membership status. Results showed more than half of the farmers were using their mobile phones for coordination for access to agricultural inputs, getting market information, monitoring financial transactions and agriculture emergency situations. Slightly less than half were consulting with experts via mobile phones. Men tended to adopt mobile phones earlier than women and those with more education were more likely to use SMS (short message service) text features. Women were less likely to use the calculator function, perhaps due to a lack of numerical literacy training. Those who were members of agricultural groups were more likely to use their mobile phones for a variety of purposes. The study identified a number of unique uses being made of mobile phones, including taking photos of agricultural demonstrations, using the loudspeaker function to permit a group of farmers to consult with an expert, recording group members pledging when they will repay loans, and storing data such as the date hens should start laying eggs. Diffusion of mobile phones is now in a “take-off” stage with rapid adoption. However, universal adoption would depend on both need and benefits.

ICT and Development - Research Voices from Africa. International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP), Technical Commission 9 – Relationship Between Computers and Society. Workshop at Makerere University, Uganda. 22-23 March 2010

Title: Africa Development Research Series: Ghana Quantitative Survey Report
Author: Hannah Bowen
Pages: 112 pp.
Source: InterMedia AudienceScapes
Publisher: InterMedia Survey Institute

Date (published): 26/02/2010
Date (accessed): 13/03/2010
Type of information: research report
Language: English
On-line access: yes (pdf - 4,8 MB)
Abstract:
This report is based on a quantitative survey in Ghana and gives development practitioners a concise but rich description of the development information environment in Ghana. It offers insight into how information is gathered, shared and used at the grassroots level. In addition, it showcases the power of the AudienceScapes national survey instrument to help
the development community better target their communications and information efforts.

This unique dataset addresses some of the toughest questions in development program management: From which information sources do various segments of the population learn about development issues? How can we share critical information with target demographic groups efficiently and effectively? What sorts of information do people want, need or lack?
The nationally representative survey in Ghana was conducted over three weeks in July and August 2009 with a sample of 2,051 respondents selected from the adult population (15 and over) according to a probability-proportional-to-size (PPS) sampling plan
Key elements of the dataset include:
Descriptions of general media use, ICT use and communication habits.
In-depth sections on radio, TV, print, mobile phone and internet use.
In-depth sections on access to and use of information covering personal finance, health, and agriculture issues.
Demographic and socio-economic status information.
Respondents’ opinions about selected development issues.
Measures of trust in information sources and institutions.

Structure of This Report
The report summary provides a detailed rundown of the main findings.
Chapter 1 provides a brief overview of the development context in Ghana when the research took place.
Chapter 2 describes how Ghanaians gather and share information in general, while Chapter 3 focuses on the use of specific media and ICTs.
Chapter 4 discusses communication in the context of three important development sectors: health, personal finance and agriculture, including case studies that highlight ways the AudienceScapes data can inform development programs in each sector.
The appendices provide additional details on research methods, InterMedia and the AudienceScapes team.

Title: Africa Development Research Series: Kenya Quantitative Survey Report
Author: Hannah Bowen
Pages: 129 pp.
Source: InterMedia AudienceScapes
Publisher: InterMedia Survey Institute
Date (published): 26/02/2010
Date (accessed): 13/03/2010
Type of information: research report
Language: English
On-line access: yes (pdf - 4,8 MB)
Abstract:
This report is based on a quantitative survey in Kenya and gives development practitioners a
concise but rich description of the development information environment in Kenya. It offers
insight into how information is gathered, shared and used at the grassroots level. In
addition, it showcases the power of the AudienceScapes national survey instrument to help
the development community better target its communications and information efforts.
This unique dataset addresses some of the toughest questions in development program
management: How much and from which sources do various segments of the population
learn about development issues? How can we share critical information with target
demographic groups efficiently and effectively? What sorts of information do people want,
need or lack?

Structure of this Report
The report summary provides a detailed overview of the main findings.
Chapter 1 introduces the information and development context in which the survey was conducted.
Chapter 2 highlights findings about media and communication habits, with special attention to word-of-mouth networks and to the particular challenges of communicating with rural populations and women.
Chapter 3 details Kenyans’ access to and use of various media and ICTs, while Chapter 4 applies the AudienceScapes data to three key development sectors: health, personal finance and agriculture.
The appendices provide additional details on research methods, the AudienceScapes team and the AudienceScapes project research advisory board.

via http://www.onlineafrica.net/