Agricultural Service Delivery Through Mobile Phones: Local Innovation and Technological Opportunities in Kenya



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https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-25718-1_9
DOI: 
10.1007/978-3-319-25718-1_9
ISBN: 
978-3-319-25718-1
Provider: 
Licensing of resource: 
Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY)
Type: 
book chapter
Book Source: 
Technological and Institutional Innovations for Marginalized Smallholders in Agricultural Development
Author(s): 
Baumüller H.
Publisher(s): 
Description: 

Kenya has emerged as a frontrunner in information and communication technologies (ICT) in Sub-Saharan Africa. The government has been actively supporting the ICT sector as one of the key drivers of economic growth. In addition to large international firms that are setting up offices in Nairobi, such as Nokia, IBM and Google, local start-ups have also been expanding rapidly. Kenyan entrepreneurs have greatly benefited from the growth of the local innovation environment in recent years, including the establishment of several innovation hubs, a growing pool of human resources, and access to finance from private investors. An increasingly well-connected customer base and improving infrastructure are also helping entrepreneurs to market their services.This chapter outlines the key factors that have supported the growth of the Kenyan mobile services sector. It reviews the agricultural m-services currently available and presents a case study of one such service, M-Farm, which offers price information and marketing services to Kenyan farmers. The chapter concludes with a brief assessment of current mobile technology trends to provide an outlook on potential future applications in the agriculture sector

Publication year: 
2016