A text message away: ICTs as a tool to improve food security

Abstract

The growing use of ICTs around the world, particularly cellular phone technology, provides a significant development opportunity. Under certain situations, ICTs can improve rural households’ agricultural production, farm profitability, job opportunities, adoption of healthier practices, and risk management. All these effects have the potential to increase wellbeing and food security in rural areas of developing countries. Several challenges to effectively scaling up the use of ICTs for development remain, however. Taking advantage of the opportunities provided by ICTs depends on increased connectivity of marginalized population groups, the content and usefulness of the information provided through ICTs, and the capacity of households in rural areas to understand and act on the information that they receive. We need innovative ways to bring together the public and private sectors to ensure that the three Cs (connectivity, content, and capacity) are addressed as a whole.

Agricultural Informatization and Technical Efficiency in Maize Production in Zambia

“…This guarantees improvement in farmers' knowledge on most issues regarding their farming tasks and prudent decision-making, which may increase farmers' technical efficiency. Fischer, et al [19] underscore that mobile phone use in agriculture should be accorded the same significance given to the biotechnology revolution because mobile technologies have significantly improved farmer's access to information [12,20], functioning of markets [21][22][23], marketing decisions [24], input and output prices [25], agricultural production patterns [26,27], household income [28,29], gender equality and nutrition [30], greater market participation [31] and diversification to high-value crops [32]. Eventually, it is predicted that the use of mobile phones will impact the behavior pattern of farmers, facilitating the adoption of improved practices leading to higher yields [33].…”

Can the Internet improve agricultural production? Evidence from Viet Nam

“…Muto and Yamano (2009) find that mobile phone coverage has increased market participation. As summarized in Nakasone, Torero, and Minten (2014) and Jensen (2010), the literature on ICT and agriculture is mostly concentrated on agricultural markets, and most of the interventions are based on mobile phone technology (Nakasone & Torero, 2016). While there are a number of findings related to increased market efficiency, heterogenous effects-for instance between crops-dominate.…”

Towards Auspicious Agricultural Informatization—Implication of Farmers’ Behavioral Intention Apropos of Mobile Phone Use in Agriculture

“…Consequently, the aftermath is economic and social sustainability on account of the achievement of most if not all the effects of mobile phone use in agriculture-improved functioning of markets via reducing other types of transaction costs [5,24,55], farmers' marketing decision [23], input and output prices [107], agricultural production patterns [108,109], household income [25,26], gender equality and nutrition [59], market participation [31], agricultural productivity [38] and diversification to high-value crops [1]. These outcomes ultimately lead to agricultural sustainability.…”