Using participatory radio and video to extend reach of agricultural extension activities

WorldAgInfo Project Solution Scenario 5: Technologies and Information Exchange Systems : Radios and Cell Phones. Based on the deliberations of participant groups in Workshop 1, the WorldAgInfo Design Team drafted a problems and solutions summary document (available within Section Three of the Final Report). This is one of several potential solution scenarios to emerge through that process. These were in turn used to inform proposed information projects generated by Workshop 2 participants in Livingstone, Zambia (available within Section Two of the Final Report).Solution Scenario Concept: Our concept is to advocate the use of locally recorded video and audio, dispersed through “mediated instruction”, integrated with existing extension systems. Because audio-visual formats are likely preferred to mostly illiterate, visually-oriented groups, the idea is to encourage the use of audio (radio) and video (using the combination of DVD players and TVs) to reach out to farmers. “Mediated instruction” is a particular use of video and audio in educational contexts, where a facilitator, who is not necessarily a subject matter expert, is present to pause playback, ask questions, encourage discussion, and otherwise provoke participation. It is known to be a very effective use of recorded media for education. Finally, by building on extension systems, we take advantage of existing social networks that farmers already have. It is a known sociological phenomenon, that uptake of new ideas happens through social networks, traveling between social connections. Thus, the idea is to use content generated with local farmers as subjects as a means of advocacy. Such a system could serve as a collaborative platform for exchanging locally relevant media using a digital pipeline comprised of cost-realistic technologies. Radio and video then becomes a mechanism to capitalize on natural social dynamics to amplify a single extension worker’s ability to evangelize agricultural practices

Using Radio to Deliver K-12 Agricultural Education

WorldAgInfo Project Solution Scenario 3: Developing Capacity at the Community Level. Based on the deliberations of participant groups in Workshop 1, the WorldAgInfo Design Team drafted a problems and solutions summary document (available within Section Three of the Final Report). This is one of several potential solution scenarios to emerge through that process. These were in turn used to inform proposed information projects generated by Workshop 2 participants in Livingstone, Zambia (available within Section Two of the Final Report).Solution Scenario Concept: Use radio and audio file technology to provide agricultural instruction and enhance access to agricultural information for rural farmers through delivering the content to their children in agriculturally oriented primary and secondary educatio

Metastructure for Agricultural Research and Development Projects

WorldAgInfo Project Solution Scenario 1: Policy Issues. Based on the deliberations of participant groups in Workshop 1, the WorldAgInfo Design Team drafted a problems and solutions summary document (available within Section Three of the Final Report). This is one of several potential solution scenarios to emerge through that process. These were in turn used to inform proposed information projects generated by Workshop 2 participants in Livingstone, Zambia (available within Section Two of the Final Report).Solution Scenario Concept: Create an overarching framework for strategic decision-making regarding the relationship between research, experimentation and development projects on technology and social solutions to smallholder information needs. This overarching framework – or “metastructure” – would ensure ways to 1) make transparent the relationships between projects, 2) extract and share information and learning that could benefit multiple projects, and 3) coordinate activities that would create efficiencies and/or enhance the impact of projects

Building African Support for Agricultural Biotechnology

WorldAgInfo Project Solution Scenario 1: Policy Issues. Based on the deliberations of participant groups in Workshop 1, the WorldAgInfo Design Team drafted a problems and solutions summary document (available within Section Three of the Final Report). This is one of several potential solution scenarios to emerge through that process. These were in turn used to inform proposed information projects generated by Workshop 2 participants in Livingstone, Zambia (available within Section Two of the Final Report).Solution Scenario Concept: In Asia smallholders are rapidly expanding the cultivation of GM (Genetically Modified) crops while smallholders in 50 of the 51 countries in Africa are not currently growing GM crops. The “biotechnology divide” between African and Asian smallholders is attributed to fears over food safety and environmental issues and a general lack of knowledge and outreach capacity to inform African political leaders, farmers and consumers about the complex issues surrounding biotech crops. Using biotechnology as a core issue and emerging opportunity, this project will help build biotechnology educational and outreach capacity at 25 agricultural universities and Faculties of Agriculture in Africa and 25 in South Asia which can then be scaled up to include several hundred universities by drawing on the resource-base and experiences of these pilot universities. The full range of information technology will be used to inform smallholder farmers and urban consumers about the Asian and global experience with growing GM crops

Creating and Operating National Agricultural Information Exchange Points

WorldAgInfo Project Solution Scenario 4: Technologies and Information Exchange Systems. Based on the deliberations of participant groups in Workshop 1, the WorldAgInfo Design Team drafted a problems and solutions summary document (available within Section Three of the Final Report). This is one of several potential solution scenarios to emerge through that process. These were in turn used to inform proposed information projects generated by Workshop 2 participants in Livingstone, Zambia (available within Section Two of the Final Report).Solution Scenario Concept: Create and operate a national information exchange point (NIXP). This service would collect currently existing domestic agricultural information and help in the production additional agricultural content suited for the national audience. In countries where an IXP (Internet Exchange Point) exist, a hosting site connected to this national backbone would be created. In less advantaged nations, the content would be hosted at all the significant ISPs (Internet Service Providers)

Delivering Non-Academic Agricultural Content to Support Agricultural Extension Activities

WorldAgInfo Project Solution Scenario 4: Technologies and Information Exchange Systems. Based on the deliberations of participant groups in Workshop 1, the WorldAgInfo Design Team drafted a problems and solutions summary document (available within Section Three of the Final Report). This is one of several potential solution scenarios to emerge through that process. These were in turn used to inform proposed information projects generated by Workshop 2 participants in Livingstone, Zambia (available within Section Two of the Final Report).Solution Scenario Concept: Extension agents and NGO workers need access to reliable agricultural information if rural livelihoods of small-holder farmers in Africa and Asia are to improve. Information does exist, but it is typically in English-language scientific publications that are inaccessible to non- English speakers, and those who are not highly trained scientists. Further, these as well as extension publications are not easily or widely available. Thus, even trained personnel who might bridge the gap between knowledge creation and its local application by small-holder farmers do not have the information to effectively do this. A model is proposed that involves personnel with agricultural expertise working with agricultural program graduates to make scientific knowledge more accessible to such “bridge workers” in the agricultural sector. In addition, community-based findings of local significance and applicability would also be included for dissemination by extension and other agricultural sector workers. Such information would be organized on a website, but would also be available in a variety of formats, including other, non-internet formats (CDROM or hard drives), video/audio (via TV, radio, phone), and paper. The information needs to be regularly updated material that is location and need-specific, multi-lingual, and visual to accommodate the varying literacy levels of farmers. It needs to be accessible and relevant to women who are the majority of small-holder farmers in Africa and Asi

Expanding African Access to Global Scientific Literature in Agriculture, Environment and Health

WorldAgInfo Project Solution Scenario 4: Technologies and Information Exchange Systems. Based on the deliberations of participant groups in Workshop 1, the WorldAgInfo Design Team drafted a problems and solutions summary document (available within Section Three of the Final Report). This is one of several potential solution scenarios to emerge through that process. These were in turn used to inform proposed information projects generated by Workshop 2 participants in Livingstone, Zambia (available within Section Two of the Final Report).Since 1999, several free or low-cost electronic scientific journal delivery programs have been implemented to close the serious information gap in food, agriculture, health and medicine. They make available to teaching and research institutions in 114 of the world’s poorest nations the equivalent to a research library with the highest quality journal content. These inter-related programs include: 1) TEEAL (The Essential Electronic Agricultural Library) [www.teeal.org]; 2) AGORA (Access to Global Online Research in Agriculture) [www.aginternetwork.org]; 3) HINARI (Health Internetwork Access to Research Initiative) [www.who.int/hinari]; and 4) OARE (Online Access to Research in the Environment) [www.oaresciences.org]; aka (T/A/H/O). Where scientists have access, these programs are having a transformative impact on research and education.1 However, in most African countries, lack of Internet connectivity, inadequate bandwidth, no or reduced library budgets, and low information literacy skills among librarians, faculty and students limit full use. To increase access to and use of these powerful research and education tools, the current successful inter-agency model of T/A/H/O capacity building coordinated, by the South Africa-based Information Training and Outreach Centre for Africa (ITOCA), will be scaled up over five years with existing and new partners. Existing partners include FAO, WHO, UNEP, Cornell, Yale and Michigan State universities, CTA, INASP, ILRI and the publishers who provide the content. All training is carried out in partnership with local universities or institution. Major components would include: 1) Distribution of LanTEEAL sets (200-400 depending on funding) with necessary backstopping and peripherals; 2) Eight 3-day national Train-the-Trainers workshops per year in English, French and Portuguese depending on the country; 4) Equipping Regional Training Hubs in East and West Africa to carry out more tailored and advanced institutional training; 5) Higher level Agricultural Information Literacy training to expand the core of African library professionals able to teach digital literacy skills in agricultural sciences and assist in integrating information literacy into university curricula, with special reference to such initiatives as e-Agriculture, AGRIS, etc

Enhancing Real Time Information Delivery to Small-holder Farmers in Africa and South Asia through Community Knowledge Workers

WorldAgInfo Project Solution Scenario 3: Developing Capacity at the Community Level. Based on the deliberations of participant groups in Workshop 1, the WorldAgInfo Design Team drafted a problems and solutions summary document (available within Section Three of the Final Report). This is one of several potential solution scenarios to emerge through that process. These were in turn used to inform proposed information projects generated by Workshop 2 participants in Livingstone, Zambia (available within Section Two of the Final Report).Solution Scenario Concept: During the site visits to Asia and Africa regions, the WorldAgInfo project Design Team members observed that the information delivered by the government run extension system does not reach smallholders at the village level. This impacts the adoption (or non-adoption) of crop management practices by small holder farmers such as adoption of improved seeds, pest management practices and other farm management practices, etc. The concept presented here addresses this constraint by building a large cadre of “Community Knowledge Workers” to be placed at the “Village Knowledge Centers” to effectively work with smallholders in providing real-time information on production technologies/practices through the use of both conventional methods and through the emerging tools of ICTs

Communicating agricultural information via cell phones (World Ag Cell Phone)

WorldAgInfo Project Solution Scenario 5: Technologies and Information Exchange Systems : Radios and Cell Phones. Based on the deliberations of participant groups in Workshop 1, the WorldAgInfo Design Team drafted a problems and solutions summary document (available within Section Three of the Final Report). This is one of several potential solution scenarios to emerge through that process. These were in turn used to inform proposed information projects generated by Workshop 2 participants in Livingstone, Zambia (available within Section Two of the Final Report).Solution Scenario Concept: Communicate agricultural information via cell phones. Content would be collected from a variety of agricultural information sources and then distributed through local cell phone networks. Some of the possible services that could offer are: soil testing system, market information via SMS, automated agricultural answering system, and agricultural information audio and video downloads

Scaling Up the Farmer Field School Extension Model

WorldAgInfo Project Solution Scenario 2: Agricultural Extension. Based on the deliberations of participant groups in Workshop 1, the WorldAgInfo Design Team drafted a problems and solutions summary document (available within Section Three of the Final Report). This is one of several potential solution scenarios to emerge through that process. These were in turn used to inform proposed information projects generated by Workshop 2 participants in Livingstone, Zambia (available within Section Two of the Final Report).Solution Scenario Concept: Agricultural extension is back on the development agenda and two recent literature reviews on extension have agreed that the performance of the Farmer Field School Model is the central “extension question” in discussions in developing countries and among donor agencies (Anderson 2007; Eicher 2007). Proponents of the FFS Model claim that the model is used in projects or national systems in 50 to 70 countries However skeptics report that the number is inflated because the model has been used in a number of countries and then dropped because of three reasons: limited farmer to farmer (multiplier) impact; the lack of financial sustainability, and lack of tested ICT innovations that have been useful in scaling up FFSs in different countries. The parallels between the FFS and T&V (Training and Visit) models are instructive. After donors invested $3 billion in T&V projects in 70 countries over the 1975 – 95 perio, the World Bank concluded that the model was 25 percent more expensive than the traditional government extension model in Ministries of Agriculture. As a result, donors terminated their support to the T&V model. This helps explain why action research is needed now on process of institutionalizing FFS in different countries