Application of communities of practice in managing tacit knowledge in higher learning institutions: Sokoine University of Agriculture, Tanzania

Universities and other higher learning institutions are recognized to be in the knowledge business because they are involved in knowledge creation, dissemination and learning. However, in recent years knowledge has gained increasing economic importance and therefore the role of knowledge management and communities of practice for knowledge creation, sharing and utilization in higher learning institution is becoming crucial. This paper discusses the application of Communities of Practice (CoP) as a means of capturing and sharing organizational knowledge in higher learning institutions. CoPs are informal networks that enable professionals to develop a shared meaning, engage in knowledge building and help to stimulate knowledge flow among the members. Effectively cultivated CoPs can be an important strategy for tapping and harnessing tacit knowledge and facilitating knowledge sharing. This paper draws on an extensive literature review and on various case studies that deal with the concept of communities of practice. The paper discusses the postulation as to how CoPs can be used for harnessing tacit knowledge in higher learning institutions. Relevant theories with regard to CoPs are also highlighted, and applied in practice at the Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA) in Tanzania as a case study. Lastly, the paper give recommendations on how best CoPs can be implemented in managing tacit knowledge in higher learning institutions, especially in Africa

Managing Agricultural Indigenous And Exogenous Knowledge Through Information And Communication Technologies For Poverty Reduction In Tanzania

This article addresses the extent to which information and communication technologies (ICTs) may be used to manage agricultural indigenous knowledge (IK) to alleviate extreme poverty and halve hunger in the rural areas of Tanzania. It also discusses ways that ICTs can be used to introduce exogenous knowledge into the local communities in order to reduce hunger and poverty. The advent of ICTs provides a window of opportunity for developing countries to harness and utilize IK to their advantage. Access to, and use of, ICTs provides new and faster ways of delivering and accessing information and knowledge that may improve productivity in a wide range of sectors, including agriculture. Access to information and knowledge may give Tanzania the possibility to reduce poverty and increase agricultural productivity. The rural population of Tanzania is not only deprived from accessing global knowledge on agriculture, but it also lacks opportunities to share its own IK. Research shows that the use of exogenous knowledge together with IK systems may improve farming activities. Recommendations are given on how IK may be effectively managed through ICTs in Tanzani

Information And Communication Technologies (ICTs) And Environmental Conservation: Challenges For Developing Countries

Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) offer new ways for communicating and exchanging information and knowledge in various sectors including the environmental sector. The impact of environmental degradation in many developing countries include degrading agricultural lands, shrinking forests, diminishing supplies of clean water, declining fisheries, and the threat of growing social and ecological vulnerability from climate change and loss of biological diversity. ICTs have a potential for improving the accessibility of environmental information, and if appropriately applied, they can empower local people to make informed decisions regarding environmental issues, thus enhancing environmental conservation. However, the challenge is on how to define particular roles that environmental information can play and where ICTs can effectively be applied for environmental conservation. This paper addresses the role of ICTs in environmental conservation. This includes maintaining a delicate balance between the human needs to improve lifestyles and feeling of well-being on one hand, and preserving natural resources and ecosystems on the other hand. It also discusses challenges of using ICTs in improving the accessibility of environmental information in developing countries. Recommendations are also presented for proper integration of ICTs for the enhancement of environmental conservation in the developing world. University of Dar es Salaam Library Journal Vol. 9 (2) 2007: pp. 20-3

Information needs and information seeking behaviour of small-scale farmers in Tanzania

This article provides a review of the information needs and information seeking patterns of the rural farmers in selected districts of Tanzania. Focus group data was triangulated with interview data in order to validate, confirm and corroborate quantitative results with qualitative findings. The findings revealed that the information needs and information seeking patterns of farmers were location and gender specific to a certain extent. Farmers relied on interpersonal and face to face communication more than explicit sources of information. Constraints on information access included internal (personal) and external barriers (unavailability of the extension officers, distant locations for consultations with public extension officers, poor responses to information requests from the government and village leaders, lack of awareness of the available information sources, inability of some experts to solve problems, and poor knowledge sharing culture). It is thus important for the government to improve access to extension services, and equip them with necessary skills and adequate information resources. Further, the public and extension services, researchers, educators, information services and other agricultural actors should conduct regular studies on information needs, map communities’ knowledge and information sources, create awareness of information sources, and knowledge culture, and use multiple sources of information (such as print and ICTs) to deliver relevant information in the communities in order to meet the disparate farmers’ needs

Towards Holistic Mobile Climate Services for Farmers in Tambuu, Tanzania

Part 2: Digital Platforms for DevelopmentInternational audienceClimate change and changing climate variability are pressing problems that need urgent solutions, now! Climate change has global consequences, and is already being experienced, mainly by the most vulnerable groups of people in the global south. Research shows that farming activities in the global south are being complicated by added uncertainties in weather. To mitigate the effect of weather uncertainties, there is a need for holistic mobile climate services. We have taken the first step towards the service by finding out the local information needs and current mobile usage patterns in Tambuu village, Tanzania. The results show that climate change is already complicating farmers’ lives and therefore they have urgent need for information on how to prepare and adapt to changing conditions. From the technology perspective, the domination of voice calls and short messages in the current mobile usage limits the adoption of new services. However, modern uses of smart devices for farming activities were also found. Building on this ground, we propose designing climate service prototypes together with local farmers and other relevant stakeholders

Co-creating an ICT Artefact with Elderly Rural Women in Mafarafara: A Social Structuration Account

Part 2: Digital Platforms for DevelopmentInternational audienceIn South Africa, elderly rural women is the most socio-economically disadvantaged population group: their age, gender and rural location all contribute to their disempowerment. For this reason, an ICT4D project was undertaken by the CSIR with the aim of supporting elderly rural women in their livelihood activities. An ICT artefact was established and implemented in a women’s Community Centre in Mafarafara, a remote rural village in the Limpopo province of South Africa. The ICT artefact was a rugged information kiosk based on Digital Doorway technology, and was populated with information to assist the women in their farming activities. As part of the women’s empowerment, they were involved as co-creators of the ICT artefact and its contents. The study employed a Design Science Research Methodology (DSRM). During the project the strong influence of the local social dynamics on the design of the artefact became apparent. To this end, Giddens’ structuration theory was incorporated in the study, to make visible the social dynamics that influenced and in turn were influenced by the design process. In this paper, concepts from structuration theory are applied to qualitative data from the Mafarafara interviews and site visit reports. The value of using structuration theory alongside DSRM to acknowledge the social nature of design is demonstrated. Structuration theory also provides a means to show how the participating women were empowered