Raquel Laquiores
| Organization type | kellylaquiores |
|---|---|
| Country | Philippines |
This member participated in the following Forums
Forum Forum: "ICT and producer organizations" November, 2012
Question 4 (opens 20 Nov.)
I definitely agree, Arnel! We cannot expect women to be experts in ICT without proper training and the support that they need. Women have many roles to play, though it would be one new to them, as long as they are motivated with the benefits ICT could give them, they would welcome this new challenge for them.
Kelly
Hello Pierre, My readings led me to Tanzania where mobile phones prove to be the best answer to the problems of the small scale farmers. In their marketing, they use cellular phones instead of radio and print advertisements because their brochures, for example, are in English language to where not all of them can understand. Not only that, internet is also a problem as some of them do have difficulties in connecting and some villages don’t have electricity. Through phones, they can go straight to the buyers and hire vehicle to transport their goods directly. Though there are middlemen who take advantage of the farmers by breaking the system and under valuing the goods. But farmers are assisted by local government units so they can sustain the system and run the business on their own.
Reference:
http://www.anancy.net/documents/file_en/RRRP08-5e.pdf
Kelly
Deal All,
Women could be very much treated as partners in most of the ICT endeavors of producer organizations. They can become leaders and managers in most of the projects, but some consider them as lacking in training, time and education the reason why most of them are not valued and are still marginalized.
ICT-based initiatives are good activities to empower women. An overview on the best practices of e-commerce/e-retailing projects showed that it contributes to women’s empowerment and capacity building in numerous ways that is why in the areas where women were given training in management and business practices, they found success in their ICT ventures.
Below are some successful E-commerce projects by women:
- Village Pay Phones (VPPs) in Bangladesh – aside from leasing cellular phones to women members, where they sell the gadgets to villagers, the venture also facilitated savings on children’s education, clothing and health care and better access to emergency medical care.
- Computer Facility at Kasargod, Kerala, India – women below poverty line were requested to be part of the training on desktop publishing course to where they use it to be exposed to so many business opportunities, helped them make connections that led to business deals.
- E-Seva Centres in Andhra Pradesh, India – these centers are run by women that caters to bill payments, issuance of land/birth certificates, internet browsing, telemedicine and tele-agriculture, access to online auctions, filing of complaints and grievances, and matrimonial services. Through this, their savings increased significantly.
- Delivering IT @ School: Divine Computers of Vadakara, India – Women, who are below poverty line, were chosen to provide computer trainings to school aged children and other citizens in communities. With this, these women feel that they are valued, respected and satisfied in their roles. They also became self-reliant and acquired personal freedom as they travel and are given networking opportunities.
Readings from:
http://www.uncsd2012.org/index.php?page=view&type=1000&nr=307&menu=126
Thanks for this article Adrian. Truly that women could be empowered with this kind of program as they have passion and I know capable of manning projects. They just need support and proper training.
Kelly
Question 3 (opens 19 Nov.)
I agree, Harv! As these farmers only need the driving force to be efficient in their work. The support through ICT, infrastructures, trainings, etc. could be well welcomed provided that they would be supplied with the much assistance that they need in order to sustain the projects designed for them and for the agriculture.
Kelly
Hi, Fatima!
Your recommendations are good inputs for lawmakers especially to those under the agriculture and food committee of the lower house and of the senate. Though I think some of those are enacted already into laws though we have problems in the implementation stage. We also need to increase the will power to support endeavors that will benefit this agriculture sector.
Kelly
In the case of Tanzania, they consider it as the main pillar in agriculture sector, as it is its national priority sector, and they give high regards in the development of knowledge to generally improve food production and its logistics.
In the Philippines, Senator Ernesto Angara called to develop ICT applications in agriculture, as he said, "We need more of these innovative, ICT-driven and highly collaborative initiatives for our agricultural sector to boom," he added. Taken from news:
Angara said the Congressional Commission on Science, Technology and Engineering (COMSTE), which he also chairs, has lobbied for the deployment of an innovation cluster—a public-private partnership (PPP) in S&T—on precision farming and smart agriculture.
Some P90 million of the 2012 national budget is pending release from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) for this project.
“It is only through the synergy of these players can we provide meaningful technical support and extension services to our farmers,” he said
Allocating appropriate budget in the agriculture sector is always a priority, more so to increase its productivity with ICT in order to “increase its crop yields and make them more disaster-resilient, especially amid the growing population and an erratic climate”, Angara stressed.
There are exemplary practices outside the country in the developing the agriculture industry but as Flor says, “Development policies should not be imposed from the outside but conceptualized and formulated from the inside. No country has the right to dictate upon another country its “terms” for development. “
Readings from:
http://www.tzonline.org/pdf/ictsandnationalagriculturalresearchsystems.pdf
Kelly
Question 2 (opens 14 Nov.)
That's nice to hear Joyce but it is not much disseminated to high school students. I believe that they are exposed to other courses than agriculture, where they are promised of a better future and life. But in agriculture, I seldom see ads encouraging students to take up programs in agriculture for college education. In my years of going to different high schools for career talks, I don't hear them willingly say that they would be taking up Agriculture as their course. It is also in this reason why only few take this course inspite of the many jobs that await them after finishing courses related to this.
Kelly
TV and radio are unquestionably still in use and could still be maximized so long as it is working and with a good signal in the field. Other radio programs are interesting and though I am not directly involved I am encouraged to try techniques and methods in farming, fishing, etc. The other investments on ICT would what make the sector more efficient, reliable and timely. Considerations will just be made as it is part of a long term plan.
Kelly
I agree, Bry! Research-based information is still more reliable for a quality performance and produce. It has to be done and must be done rightfully.
Kelly