Week II, second question, final question starting 26 November 2008
mobile telephony for rural farmers
27/11/2008
Dear all, Thanks for in touch of discussion. mobile telephony may be the new authentic information source for the rural farmers. it is a way to reach to the expert in a twinkle of eyes by a farmer. But it is a burning question that whether the farmer will become profited or not.If they not become profited ,they will not accept it. for this I cited my suggestions bellow, 1. The call charge should be reduced or a compensation scheme may be given to them. 2. The source of the information should be from authentic subject specialist. 3. The procedure should be easy and sophisticated. With hoping for a developed, poverty and hunger free global habitat Bulbul Ahmed Win Incorporate
Submitted by Andy Dearden on Wed, 11/26/2008 - 13:51
Bulbul I agree with your observations. In particular item 2 has been a major issue. Research findings on projects have suggested that farmers may not trust information they get from someone who they do not know. In our project (http://linux.odi.org.uk/eservblog) the advice is coming from an agricultural advisor who is employed by the farmer owned co-operative. This means that the farmer knows the person who is giving the advice and has more reason to trust him.
Submitted by Saripalli suryanarayana on Wed, 11/26/2008 - 17:28
Well said,an F.M,radio in the mobiles is an added advantage now.
Submitted by Sameera Wijerathna on Thu, 11/27/2008 - 13:21
Hi Mr. Bulbul Ahmed, I agree with your points except the first one. "1. The call charge should be reduced or a compensation scheme may be given to them." This will kill the sustainability; Telecom Operators mostly profit oriented private sector institutions, they need profits. If they do not see revenue they will not invest in rural areas giving mobile coverage to the rural poor. So let's let farmers to make more profits with timely information, then they can afford to pay the call charges. Sameera