Question 1 (opens 17 Sept.)

Dear Dr. Saravanan and Others, 

Thanks for an opportunity to share few of the initiatives of e-Extension Centre of TNAU. 

Regarding saravanraj questions, 

01. Reaching the farmers with mobile platform and to provide dynamic technological farm advisory and input advisory etc.,

02. Demand based mobile advisory with multimedia will solve the problems of connectivity, cost and reach

03. We have also faced the software, content, language part of hardware and software issues. We analysed the open ware tools, systems and overcomes it. Farm technocrats have to study and understand the IT component or vice versa. Otherwise, it is difficult to come with outstanding outcome.

04. All most all the ICT-A approaches are piecemeal kind. We need a Global / National / Regional system to integrate and sustain the initiatives. 

05. Otherwise, it will be short term project of reporting and closing

06. On this occasion, I have to thank, Govt. of Tamil Nadu and Govt. of India, ICAR, TNAU are helping hand in terms of finance to sustain it. 

07. I request all the members in the discussion forum and facilitators to thing and have a two- three day work shop in TNAU and decide the future course of action. 

Looking forward to hear your all inputs,

Regards

N. Anandaraja

farmers in Zambia are now able to access extension advice services on any farming proble they are facing on their farms on questions ranging from production, processing, storage, marketing including climate change. This is an initiative ny the department of National Agricultural Information Services in the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock. The platform allows farmers to send their questions in form of SMS using their mobile phones and they receive answers to their questions within the shortest time possible. The system also helps us generate new radio broadcast topics from the questions raised by the farmers. So far the farmers are appreciating as it is now taking little time for feedback to and from the farmers.

  http://nais.smsize.com/users/nais-p?1418667681=1

Mr Kahilu, thank you for this interesting news about SMS based extension in Zambia.

Can you tell us how long this initiative has existed, and how many farmers it reaches?

Also, the URL at the end of your post says "access denied". Is there another site where we could learn more about this project?

Thank you!

Dear Mr. Riggs,

Thank you for your comments. Tha platform was officially launched in November last year and we are targeting all farmers with mobile phone access and currently subsribers to Aittel only. The platform will soon be available to MTN amd Zamtel subsribers. You can read more on this at http://iconnect-online.org/blogs/national-agricultural-information-services-use-smsize-internet-based-platform-improve-farmer-p.

Hello Dear dakahilu;

I thank you for sharing your idea the resource. However  it doesn't open so can you please put is accessible for all.

Amanuel

Ethiopia

Dear Emanuel, thank you for your comments. You can read more on this at http://iconnect-online.org/blogs/national-agricultural-information-services-use-smsize-internet-based-platform-improve-farmer-p

What an interesting read. I have a couple of questions: who is producing the content for the various services and how is content consumed?

Are the innovations only technological or also behavioural? Do we have hard evidence on change of power relationshiop between farmers, traders and consumers?

Roxy

Hello... as a field based social enterprise, we design our own training material but its foundation is grounded in established conservation farming practices.   We focus more on the use of language to ensure that farmers understand the technical tips.  Ideally training needs to be visual which is why we are advocating a transition from basic sms to a complete mobile application.   As our application matures, we plan to partner with other technologies to link community, suppliers and market.

Rachel

I am not very sure but the question seem to be focused at the ICT innovations used for the farmers by other NOT by the farmers them selves! Am I right and if not I always stand to be corrected.

Right, here in the rural communities of Uganda where my orgarnization opertates (www.krcdevorg.weebly.com), farmers have access to mobile phones but there is no content for agriculture that they can surelly access. May be, farmers use the mobile phones for calling to inquire about the agricultural produce prices. On the otherhand, most of the farmers do not know or have no skills to read sms sent on their phones and most of them find it had to dig far into their mobile phone platforms based on the fact that most of the mobile phones on their disposal are programed in foreign languages. Though the mobile internet (G3 NETWORK) can be accessible in most of the villages here in Uganda, computers are not accessible to majority of local farmers. Also, the mobile phones which can be able to browse internet, are still very expensive to majority of loacl farmers and very few who own such mobile phones, again they dont have the appropriate skills on how to utilize the same for information access on the internet.

Television and radio are also common in reaching to the local farmers but again most of them they dont own television sets based on the fact that most of the households of the local farmers lack electricity. Also, agricultural content on most of the television channels here in Uganda is so limited as most of the television media groups are for commecial purposes so they see no business to broadcast content which is of lower class people who cannot contribute much to their profits.

On the other hand, radios are so accessible to most of the rural farmers but again, the agricutural content is greatly missing. Further, expenses involved like battery replacement is still one of the hindering factors for for access to most of the local farmers.

Lastly, still deep in villages, mobile phone and mobile internet networks is still a very big problem. Phone companies mostly target communities where they feel they will be able to make profits.

Thank you

In this forum we will be looking at ICT from different perspectives. In the current question the focus is on the ICT no matter what direction the information is flowing.

In question 3, which will open Monday, we will look specifically at how ICT can support both farmers and their abiltity to innovate.