The Little We Know: An Exploratory Literature Review on the Utility of Mobile Phone‐Enabled Services for Smallholder Farmers

Baumüller, Heike

doi:10.1002/jid.3314

Cited by 129 publications

(121 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…Earlier reviews of the impacts of digital agricultural extension report mixed results and considerable context dependence (39)(40)(41)(42)(43). However, sufficient evidence is now emerging to begin quantitatively assessing the farmer-level impact of digital agricultural extension by meta-analysis.…”

Section: Impacts Of Digital Agriculture: Empirical Evidencementioning

confidence: 99%

Realizing the potential of digital development: The case of agricultural advice

Fabregas

Kremer

Schilbach

2019

Science

231

125

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The rapid spread of mobile phones creates potential for sustainably raising agricultural productivity for the 2 billion people living in smallholder farming households. Meta-analyses suggest that providing agricultural information via digital technologies increased yields by 4% and the odds of adopting recommended inputs by 22%. Benefits likely exceed the cost of information transmission by an order of magnitude. The spread of GPS-enabled smartphones could increase these benefits by enabling customized information, thus incentivizing farmers to contribute information to the system. Well-known distortions in markets for information limit the ability of such systems to reach the socially efficient scale through purely commercial means. There is a clear role for public support for digital agricultural extension, but messages designed by agricultural ministries are often difficult for farmers to understand and use. Realizing the potential of mobile communication systems requires feedback mechanisms to enable rigorous testing and continuous improvement.

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Section: Impacts Of Digital Agriculture: Empirical Evidencementioning

confidence: 99%

Realizing the potential of digital development: The case of agricultural advice

Fabregas

Kremer

Schilbach

2019

Science

231

125

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“…Yet, the evidence base for ICT and use of AGI to support adaptive capacity of smallholders is poorly documented [31]. Baumüller [32] argues that the potential use of ICTs, such as mobile services for smallholder agriculture remains largely unfulfilled. Consequently, here we review recent trends and approaches to utilising geographic information and ICTs for agriculture, and in particular, initiatives for communicating climate and other agriculture-related information to smallholder farmers for improved livelihood security, climate change adaptation and landscape resilience.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The World Bank [34] also produced a report on ICT in agriculture, but a similar critique to above could be applied. Baumüller [32] systematically analysed the impact of various mobile services for smallholder agriculture, offering useful lessons for future service developments and an assessment of current shortcomings, including a lack of useful empirical evidence and limitations to current methodologies for evaluating project impact. Our work differs in that it is not constrained to examining only mobile services, but includes a broader range of ICTs used in AGI initiatives, and specifically considers delivery of information of a geographic nature.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Geographic Information and Communication Technologies for Supporting Smallholder Agriculture and Climate Resilience

Haworth

Biggs

Duncan

et al. 2018

Climate

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Multiple factors constrain smallholder agriculture and farmers’ adaptive capacities under changing climates, including access to information to support context appropriate farm decision-making. Current approaches to geographic information dissemination to smallholders, such as the rural extension model, are limited, yet advancements in internet and communication technologies (ICTs) could help augment these processes through the provision of agricultural geographic information (AGI) directly to farmers. We analysed recent ICT initiatives for communicating climate and agriculture-related information to smallholders for improved livelihoods and climate change adaptation. Through the critical analysis of initiatives, we identified opportunities for the success of future AGI developments. We systematically examined 27 AGI initiatives reported in academic and grey literature (e.g., organisational databases). Important factors identified for the success of initiatives include affordability, language(s), community partnerships, user collaboration, high quality and locally-relevant information through low-tech platforms, organisational trust, clear business models, and adaptability. We propose initiatives should be better-targeted to deliver AGI to regions in most need of climate adaptation assistance, including SE Asia, the Pacific, and the Caribbean. Further assessment of the most effective technological approaches is needed. Initiatives should be independently assessed for evaluation of their uptake and success, and local communities should be better-incorporated into the development of AGI initiatives.

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“…Mobile phone enabled services are rising in demandincluding the use of videos -with benefits to smallholder farmers, although their potential remains poorly understood, particularly in the African context [32,33,34]. Videos on mobile phones have been effectively used to spread information on cowpea hermetic storage practices and other agricultural innovations in Niger [35].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Video on Mobile Phones as an Effective Way to Promote Sustainable Practices by Facilitating Innovation Uptake in Mali

Sousa¹

2019

IJSDR

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A challenge for researchers and other developers of new technologies in agriculture is to find ways of communicating their results and recommendations. This challenge is particularly acute in regions in which farmers have limited access to education and where illiteracy is widespread, such as in the rural areas of Mali. One approach that shows potential, yet remains largely unused by extension services, is the dissemination of educational videos on mobile phones with video and Bluetooth technology (3G mobile phones). It has been shown that the conditions are suitable for this approach to be used in Mali, with 3G mobile phones widely available in the region but there is little empirical evidence of its acceptance and potential impact. This article aims to explore the potential of video on mobile phones as a tool to facilitate the diffusion of new agricultural technologies in Western Africa. Three videos showing agricultural innovations for sustainable production were shown and shared with 200 farmers in twelve villages in Mali. The villages were revisited 10 months later and farmers were asked about their experiences with the videos that had been shared and their previous knowledge of the innovations shown in them. Of the farmers who had watched one of the videos (N=148), 60.1% had adopted at least one of the videos' innovations. Mobile-phone videos could be accessed by people who had previously received limited access to information sources, such as younger women, and video based information was found to be understandable for illiterate farmers. These results show that mobile-phone videos could enhance information transfer and thereby expand outreach. The use of video on mobile phones is a novel approach to farmer-to-farmer exchange and has tremendous potential for enhancing dissemination programs or specific research and development projects to enable more resilient, inclusive and democratic systems.

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The Little We Know: An Exploratory Literature Review on the Utility of Mobile Phone‐Enabled Services for Smallholder Farmers

Cited by 129 publications

References 40 publications

Realizing the potential of digital development: The case of agricultural advice

Realizing the potential of digital development: The case of agricultural advice

Geographic Information and Communication Technologies for Supporting Smallholder Agriculture and Climate Resilience

Video on Mobile Phones as an Effective Way to Promote Sustainable Practices by Facilitating Innovation Uptake in Mali

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