La demande croissante de denrées alimentaires, à la fois en quantité et en qualité, a accru la nécessité d'intensifier et d'industrialiser le secteur agricole. L'Internet des objets est une famille de technologies très prometteuse, capable d'offrir de nombreuses solutions pour la modernisation de l'agriculture.
The study assesses the farmers’ use of Global System for Mobile (GSM) for communication among farmers in agricultural extension programs in Taraba State, Nigeria. Specifically, the objectives include: identify key areas in which GSM are used for communication in agricultural extension programs activities, determine the frequency of usage of GSM for information exchange between farmers and extension personnel; and ascertain farmers’ satisfaction in the use of GSM in obtaining information in the various agricultural extension programs.
Integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) has been promoted by research and philanthropic organizations as well as governments in an attempt to increase crop yields and improve livelihoods of smallholder farmers in Africa. As this has largely been a continent-wide initiative, it is surprising that there is still scant information on its impact on crop yields and household income. This paper uses a counterfactual model to assess ISFM impact on yields and total household incomes using farm household data from Tamale (northern Ghana) and Kakamega (western Kenya).
This paper examines the impact of mobile phones on farmers’ marketing decisions and prices they receive based on household- and village-level information collected from rural Ethiopia. It explains the reason for the weak impact of mobile phones observed in this study as well as in previous studies in Africa. We argue that even though many farmers participate in information searching, the number of farmers who use mobile phones for information searching is very small.
Agricultural expansion areas in the Egyptian deserts are one of the main governmental inputs that increased during the last decade. Evaluation of such agricultural lands helps decision makers in strategic planning of future projects. The present review paper highlights recent research studies conducted to evaluate some of the newly agricultural expansion areas in the Egyptian deserts using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) integrated with Remote Sensing technologies considering the main evaluation criteria and constraints.
Sur la base de 16 études de cas, nous cherchons à comprendre comment l'usage des technologies de l'information et de la communication (TIC) transforme les dispositifs de conseil agricole au Burkina Faso. Si les outils employés et les thématiques du conseil sont diversifiés, les services demeurent récents et inaboutis. Les prestataires de conseil cherchent en effet à améliorer les outils et services, dont la durabilité n'est pas encore garantie. Ceci s'explique notamment par la complexité du travail inter-organisationnel pour développer ces services.
E‐KOKARI is an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) platform, developed in Niger, which enables farmers, breeders and buyers to access information, advice, warnings and market prices in the field of agriculture and livestock. When a user dials a short number from his phone he can access a voice menu in the main local languages (French, Hausa and Zarma) of the country, which guides him/her according to his/her needs. A prototype was developed and tested during a period of 10 months in the course of 2017, but the practice still needs to be implemented and evaluated in the field.
CABI and the Cereal Growers Association (CGA) have been sharing information with farmers in Kenya on how to effectively and safely manage the continuing threat of the invasive fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda). This was achieved thanks to a development communication campaign that combined video sharing through a network of lead farmers and social media.
Smallholder farmers in East Africa need information and knowledge on appropriate climate-smart agriculture (CSA) practices, technologies, and institutional innovations in order to effectively adapt to changing climatic conditions and cope with climate variability. This paper assesses farmer adoption of climate-smart agricultural practices and innovation after being exposed to Farms of the Future Approach (FotF). First; we explore and assess the various CSA technologies and practices; including institutional innovations farmers are adopting.
Monitoring animal performance is a challenge due to lack of systematic recording in the smallholder dairy sector in Malawi. A mobile recording system using short messaging service (SMS) was therefore trialled for data capturing and subsequent feedback provision to farmers following analyses and interpretation. This study aimed at drawing lessons regarding use of SMS recording system among dairy farmers. Of the 210 participants, 85% were farmers and 25% were other dairy value chain players.