ICT and agricultural sector performance: empirical evidence from sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract

ICT infrastructure is considered crucial to performance and overall development of many sectors in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Yet, there exists insufficient evidence on the effect of ICT on agriculture real output and export performance in the African continent. This study investigates the effect of ICT infrastructure on agriculture sector performances in SSA using panel autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) approach. Panel data were collected over the period of twenty-three (23) years (1995–2017) in 39 SSA countries. Two models were specified using agricultural value addition and agriculture products as a percentage of total merchandise export as dependent variables. Key independent variables include mobile-cellular telephone subscription and individual using the internet. The study also introduced important control variables such as livestock production index and crop production index. The results from the estimation provide substantial evidence to show that ICT infrastructure has positive externality on agricultural sector performances in the long run. However, there is no evidence to maintain this position in the short run. The study, therefore, recommends that there should be a cautious approach to increasing investment in ICT infrastructure. Provision of in ICT infrastructure alone may not automatically improve agricultural output. Thus, there is a need for extension services to propagate and educate farmers on the importance of continuous adoption of ICT infrastructure for agricultural practices in SSA.

Asymmetric impacts of ICT and energy intensity on agricultural productivity: Evidence from Asia‐Pacific region

“…Domguia and Asongu (2022) investigated the effect of ICTs on agricultural production in 18 Sub‐Saharan African (SSA) countries from 1990 to 2014 using the fully modified ordinary least square (FMOLS) estimator and reported the positive impact of ICTs (internet, mobile, and fixed‐line telephone penetration) on agricultural production. Further, using the panel autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model, Oyelami et al (2022) found that ICT accelerated agricultural value addition and export in 39 SSA countries during 1995–2017. Furthermore, Chandio et al (2022a) analyzed the impact of ICT on cereal production in seven Asian economies over the period 2000–2018 using Driscoll‐Kraay standard error and feasible generalized least square methods.…”

“…Several studies investigate the impact of ICT, energy consumption, urbanization, and inequality on the agriculture sector (Chavula, 2014; Chopra et al, 2022; Dogan et al, 2016; Domguia & Asongu, 2022; Oyelami et al, 2022; Zhong et al, 2020). However, hardly any literature examines the asymmetric impact of ICT, energy intensity, urbanization, and inequality on agricultural productivity, more so in the Asia‐Pacific countries, which creates a vacuum in the literature, and the present study is an effort to fill it.…”

Assessing the potential of ICT to increase land and labour productivity in agriculture: Global and regional perspectives

“…Chavula (2014) demonstrates a positive association between the spread of ICT and agricultural productivity in Africa between the years 2000 and 2011, utilising data from 34 African countries. Similarly, using data from 39 sub-Saharan African countries from 1995 to 2017, Oyelami et al (2022) found positive effects of ICT infrastructure on agricultural sector performance, albeit only in the long run. The authors caution, however, that these effects are not automatic, but need to be accompanied by supporting measures, such as investments in extension services for farmers.…”

“…In particular, labour productivity is closely linked to wages, and hence, to living standards (Heady et al, 2010;OECD, 2001). Third, assessing effects on land productivity allows us to compare our results to previous studies, which examined the impacts of ICT on agricultural growth in terms of value-added in agriculture (Chandio et al, 2022;Evans, 2018;Lio & Liu, 2006;Oyelami et al, 2022;Suroso et al, 2022), while adding to the existing literature by expanding the analysis to include labour productivity. Fourth, breaking down agricultural productivity into land and labour components, allows us to identify the effect of ICT at a disaggregate level, enabling the identification of specific bottlenecks or areas that need improvement.…”

Impact of information and communication technologies on fertilizer and pesticide use efficiency of China's grain production

“…For instance, Ogutu et al (2014) found that ICT-based market information services enhance agricultural labor productivity in Kenya. Using evidence from sub-Saharan Africa, Oyelami et al (2022) demonstrated that ICT infrastructure had positive externality on agricultural sector performances in the long run, facilitated by extension services for farmer education. Ma et al (2020) and Zhu et al (2022) both showed that ICTs promoted the growth of household income and off-farm income in rural areas of China.…”