Challenges facing sub‐Saharan small‐scale farmers in accessing farming information through mobile phones: A systematic literature review

Abstract

The use of mobile phone technology has increasingly been advocated to assist smallscale farmers. Accordingly, numerous studies have been conducted on the impact, effectiveness, user's attitude, assessment, empowerment, and the potential use of mobile phone technology in agriculture. This study explores the challenges that small-scale farmers in sub-Saharan Africa face when using a mobile phone technology in crop farming projects and proposes areas for future improvement. The study used a systematic literature search conducted by authors at 3 levels, in which 134 studies initially identified were then narrowed to 11. These 11 studies generated 7 projects that use specialized applications in a farming value chain. The findings from the study indicate some of the challenges faced by small-scale farmers, including the lack of their involvement in the initial phase of the invention process. Other obstacles include low trust and transparency, inappropriate use of foreign language (English) in a local cultural context, bureaucracy, and theft of mobile phones. On the basis of these results, the authors conclude that there are generalized factors for understanding deficiencies experienced by small-scale farmers, which ought to be understood by all crop farming stakeholders. These factors can be used by software engineers to design future technologies beneficial to small-scale farmers. KEYWORDSchallenges, farming information, mobile phone, small-scale farmers, sub-Saharan Africa | INTRODUCTIONSeveral studies postulate that mobile phone technology use is important to farmers and supports crop production (Baumüller, 2013;CIARD, 2012;De Silva & Ratnadiwakara, 2008;Duncombe, 2016;Furuholt & Matotay, 2011;Gayi & Tsowou, 2016;Wellard, Rafanomezana, Nyirenda, Okotel, & Subbey, 2013). The use of mobile phone technology in the crop farming value chain enables small-scale farmers (SSFs) to access farming information that supports optimal decision-making and increases crop productivity. Consequently, it is envisaged that SSFs using mobile phone technology may have the potential to improve food security and reduce poverty in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Mungera and Karfakis (2013) describe SSFs as people who own between 0.1 and 10 hectares of land. Small-scale farmers commonly have access to less than 2 hectares of land (NEPAD, 2013;Vanlauwe et al., 2014). This study reiterates that SSFs are characterized by limited access to land, low skills, family labour, and subsistence farming practices based on rudimentary inputs and are rainfall dependent with low bargaining power.In Tanzania and Zambia, 75% of the total population derives their livelihoods from agriculture (Kalinda, Filson, & Shute, 2010;Misaki, Apiola, & Gaiani, 2016). Hence, an innovation that increases agricultural productivity cannot be ignored as it improves the livelihood of most farmers. Studies that address challenges facing SSFs may be pivotal in reversing a decline in food production and deserve attention (Kalinda et al., 2010). One of the many difficulties SS...

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