White Paper on Improving Information Flows to the Rural Community

Description
Rural Community is set outside of the city and towns. Rural communities are often farm lands. However, a rural community can also be woodland forests, plains, deserts, and prairies. There are few buildings, businesses, and people in rural communities. In these communities people live far apart from one another. Rural communities are the farthest from urban communities or the city.

AGRICULTURAL MANAGEMENT, MARKETING AND FINANCE OCCASIONAL PAPER
Improving information flows
to the rural community
9
99
Information plays a key role in improving the livelihoods
of farm households and small-scale rural entrepreneurs,
and in accelerating rural development. Three of the papers
presented in this document explore the local dimensions
of farm household and community information sources and
flows in Eritrea, Ghana and Uganda. The four remaining
papers focus on opportunities to improve information flows
through utilizing technologies, institutions and methods
that lower the cost of information acquisition, processing
and delivery. In particular, FM radios and telecentres offer
potential as mechanisms for bridging the digital divide,
stimulating the development of local information flows
and linking communities to external information sources.
The main lessons learned are summarized under three
themes: the insights they provide about farmers’
information-seeking behaviour, limitations of existing
information networks and the opportunities identified
for improving information flows to rural communities.
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AGRICULTURAL MANAGEMENT,
MARKETING AND FINANCE
OCCASIONAL PAPER
Improving information flows
to the rural community
TC/D/A0287E/1/12.05/1000
IMPROVING INfORMATION fLOW5
TO THE RURAL COMMUNITY
Ldited by ]ohn Dixon, Horst Wattenbach and
Clare Bishop-Sambrook
fAO
(AgricuIturaI Management, Marketing and finance 5ervice)
Rome
October 2005
All rigLts reserveo. Eeproouction ano oissemination ol material in tLis inlormation proouct lor eoucational or
otLer non-commercial purposes are autLoriseo vitLout any prior vritten permission lrom tLe copyrigLt Loloers
provioeo tLe source is lully acknovleogeo. Eeproouction ol material in tLis inlormation proouct lor resale or
otLer commercial purposes is proLiliteo vitLout vritten permission ol tLe copyrigLt Loloers. Applications lor
sucL permission sLoulo le aooresseo to tLe CLiel, PullisLing ano Multimeoia Service, ¡nlormation Livision,
!AC, Viale oelle 1erme oi Caracalla, 00100 Eome, ¡taly or ly e-mail to [email protected]
© !AC 2005
1Le oesignations employeo ano tLe presentation ol tLe material in
tLis inlormation proouct oo not imply tLe expression ol any opinion
vLatsoever on tLe part ol tLe !ooo ano Agriculture Crganization ol
tLe Lniteo Þations concerning tLe legal status ol any country, territory,
city or area or ol its autLorities, or concerning tLe oelimitation ol its
lrontiers or lounoaries.
iii
Contents
Introduction 1
LocaI In!ormation 5ystems !or Community DeveIopment in Ghana 5
Ivy Dra!or ahd Ko!i AIIa-Agyepohg
AgricuIturaI KnovIedge and In!ormation 5ystems in Eritrea 19
Yadav KhaIiwada
In!ormation Asymmetry among Output Traders, Processors and 29
farmers in Uganda
Ldward KaIo ahd Lphraim Nkohya
ßringing Market In!ormation to farmers. Opportunities through 35
fM Radio
Ahdrew Shepherd
TeIecentre 5ustainabiIity. Myths and Opportunities 45
Frahcisco Proehza
RuraI KnovIedge Centres. An Experience !rom India 57
SehIhil Kumarah
The RoIe o! NGOs and farmer Organizations in Linking RuraI 65
In!ormation and KnovIedge 5ystem LeveIs
Dagmar Kuhze
Key Lessons Learned 75
1
ChapIer 1
Introduction
ßACKGROUND
¡nlormation plays a key role in improving tLe liveliLooos ol larm LouseLolos ano small-scale
rural entrepreneurs, ano accelerating rural oevelopment. 1Lere is extensive literature on tLe
value ol inlormation to improveo oecision-making. !arm ano lusiness managers require
timely inlormation on input ano proouce markets, proouction ano processing tecLnologies,
government policies ano regulations, activities ol oevelopment projects, oecisions ly
local councils, ano otLer practical matters sucL as LealtL ano eoucation. More ano letter
inlormation also Lelps community organizations to strengtLen local service provision ano
oevelop social capital.
1Le strategic importance ol increasing access to knovleoge ano inlormation is empLasiseo
in tLe Human Levelopment Eeport (LÞLP 2001), Worlo Summit lor Sustainalle
Levelopment Plan ol Action (LÞ 2002), ano tLe reviseo Worlo Bank Eural Levelopment
Strategy (Worlo Bank 2002). 1Le Millennium Levelopment Goals (MLGs) make specilic
relerence to inlormation ano communication tecLnologies (¡C1s). MLG 8 locuses on
oeveloping a glolal partnersLip lor oevelopment, committing tLe international community
'¡n cooperation vitL tLe private sector, [to| make availalle tLe lenelit ol nev tecLnologies,
especially inlormation ano communication tecLnologies`.
Eural inlormation systems exist at multiple levels, lrom rural LouseLolos ano communities to
local institutions ano national organizations involveo in rural proouction ano support services.
WLilst tLe private sector may provioe certain types ol inlormation relateo to proouction,
processing ano marketing, pullic investments are requireo to strengtLen local inlormation
systems, incluoing Luman skills oevelopment to make more ellective use ol inlormation.
Communication tecLnologies are central to tLe process ol knovleoge luiloing ano
inlormation sLaring (!AC 1998). Luring tLe past oecaoe tLere Las leen consioeralle
innovation in tLe metLoos ano institutions lor inlormation acquisition, analysis ano
oissemination. Eecent oevelopments in ¡C1s present nev, olten lov-cost, opportunities
to strengtLen llovs ol inlormation in oroer to improve management oecision-making ly
larmers, traoers, artisans ano otLer local entrepreneurs. As olserveo at tLe LÞ ¡nter-
Agency Eounotalle on Communication lor Levelopment Lelo in 200+, 'tLe rapio expansion
ol ¡C1s Las laileo to lrioge tLe gap letveen knovleoge ano inlormation, ano tLe poorest still
Lave very limiteo participation in tLe oevelopment process` (!AC 2005). 1Le Eounotalle
recommenoeo tLat, in oroer to realise tLe potential ol ¡C1s, participatory approacLes sLoulo
le useo to estallisL Lorizontal tvo-vay processes ol communication lor creating ano sLaring
ol knovleoge, vLilst respecting local context, values ano culture.
Baseo on tLe vision ol better nanagenent tlrougl inpro:ed access to injornation,
tLis oocument lrings togetLer, lor prolessionals in government, civil society ano private
sector involveo in oesigning ano implementing rural oevelopment programmes, a variety
ol lielo experiences exploring larmers` existing inlormation netvorks ano opportunities lor
improving rural inlormation llovs.
2
Introduction
OVERVIEW Of DOCUMENT
1Le seven papers oiscusseo in tLis oocument vere originally presenteo at a vorksLop
organiseo ly tLe !arm Management ano Proouction ¡conomics Service
1
, !AC tLat vas
Lelo in Eome in Lecemler 2001. Approximately 30 participants lrom !AC ano partner
organizations sLareo tLeir experiences vitL innovative metLoos ano institutional mooels on
larm LouseLolo ano community inlormation systems.
LocaI in!ormation and knovIedge netvorks
1Le oocument opens vitL tLree papers tLat explore tLe local oimensions ol larm LouseLolo
ano community inlormation sources ano llovs in GLana, ¡ritrea ano Lganoa. Lralor ano
Atta-Agyepong classily LouseLolos accoroing to tLeir access to, ano use ol, inlormation ano
compare inlormation llovs letveen areas vell enooveo vitL agricultural services ano areas
vitL sparse services in GLana. 1Ley oocument tLe mucL oenser netvork ol inlormation
llovs in a commercialising larming area compareo vitL a looo-crop orienteo system vitL
lever support services, ano sLov tLe greater role ol civil society ano private sector in tLe
inlormation systems in tLe commercialising areas.
1Le importance ol traoitional rural institutions in complementing state agencies lor rural
oevelopment in tLe provision ol agricultural inlormation is LigLligLteo ly ILativaoa in an
Agricultural Inovleoge ano ¡nlormation System (AI¡S) stuoy in ¡ritrea. 1Le results ol tLe
AI¡S stuoy contriluteo to tLe oevelopment ol village laseo planning ano oemano-oriven
larmer aovisory services, ly provioing inlormation alout various stakeLoloers ano tLeir
role in tLe generation, mooilication, transmission ano excLange ol inlormation relating to
agriculture.
Access to inlormation is a prerequisite lor successlul commerce ano market operations lor
all parties concerneo. Iato ano Þkonya report on tLe asymmetric availalility ol inlormation
letveen traoers, processors ano larmers in Lganoa. Þot only are tLere oillerences in
availalle capital ano tLe means to acquire market-relateo inlormation, lut also in tLe relative
importance ol various cLannels ol communication. 1raoers ano processors Lave letter access
to institutional inlormation (government parastatals) tLan larmers. Eaoio is tLe prelerreo
inlormation oissemination cLannel ly all categories ol responoents, suggesting tLat tLe
increasing numler ol !M raoio stations in tLe country coulo le useo to oisseminate price
ano market inlormation.
Improving in!ormation !Iovs
1Le lour remaining papers locus on opportunities to improve inlormation llovs tLrougL
utilising tecLnologies, institutions ano metLoos tLat lover tLe cost ol inlormation
acquisition, processing ano oelivery. ¡n particular, !M raoios ano telecentres oller potential as
mecLanisms lor lrioging tLe oigital oivioe, stimulating tLe oevelopment ol local inlormation
llovs ano linking communities to external inlormation sources.
Access to relialle ano timely price inlormation is a prerequisite lor larmers to make
inlormeo oecisions alout tLeir input purcLases ano proouct sales in tLe sLort term.
SLepLero stresses tLat inlormation on market prices, traoeo quantities, ano otLer marketing-
relateo matters rarely reacLes a large numler ol larmers in oeveloping countries. A market
1
Cne ol tvo services tLat later mergeo to create tLe Agricultural Management, Marketing ano !inance Service
(AGS!).
3
Introduction
inlormation system, complementeo vitL longer term olservation ol market prices ano tLeir
interpretation, ano matcLeo vitL tLe appropriate management skills, may assist larmers in
planning tLeir proouction. Yet larmers, particularly smallLoloers ano tLose in remote areas,
are lrequently oepriveo ol sucL inlormation, Lence tLe importance ol searcLing lor ellicient,
relialle ano sustainalle metLoos to lrioge tLe inlormation gap letveen memlers ol rural
communities. ¡n tLe past, attempts to create or strengtLen market inlormation systems Lave
lrequently laileo. SLepLero illustrates some ol tLe typical causes ol lailure ano gives examples
ol initiatives to overcome sucL prollems, paying particular attention to tLe opportunities lor
oeveloping a mooern market inlormation system laseo on local !M raoio stations.
Proenza oravs on various ¡atin American experiences to oispel a numler ol popular
misconceptions surrounoing tLe oevelopment ol telecentres. Cylercalés are olten oisregaroeo
in tLe telecentre oiscourse yet tLey can provioe many uselul lessons regaroing tLe oevelopment
ol sustainalle telecentres. ¡t is olten unrealistic to rely on community ovnersLip to ensure
long term vialility. 1Le oilliculties ol commercial telecentre lrancLises, in particular lor
reacLing lov income groups, are oiscusseo. Cpportunities lor oeveloping telecentres incluoe
community investment lunos, nev lov cost tecLnologies sucL as vireless systems, ano
partnersLips ano alliances lor telecentres.
1Le village knovleoge centres estallisLeo in PonoicLerry in soutLern ¡noia, supporteo
ly tLe M. S. SvaminatLan EesearcL !ounoation, represent a practical application ol tLese
nev communications tecLnologies to reacL poor villagers. Iumaran oescriles tLe Lul-ano-
spoke mooel ol oata-cum-voice communication linking 10 villages vitL eacL otLer ano a
central Lul ano enalling villagers to access inlormation accoroing to tLeir neeos to improve
tLeir liveliLooos. 1Le project is laseo on communal contrilutions lor tLe Lousing lacilities
lor tLe centres. Stall ano local volunteers run tLe centres, ano create local ano customiseo
inlormation content, incluoing translation into tLe local language (1amil), on a oemano-
oriven lasis.
1Le linal paper oescriles tLe role lor ÞGCs ano larmers` organizations in strengtLening
inlormation systems. Iunze LigLligLts tLe oillerences letveen inoigenous ano mooern
knovleoge systems ano empLasises tLe value ol integrating tLe tvo. Cpportunities lor
improving inlormation systems, particularly at tLe local level, are also oiscusseo.
REfERENCE5
!AC 1998, Knouledge and injornation jor jood security in Ajrica· jron traditional nedia
to tle Internet, Communication lor Levelopment Group, Sustainalle Levelopment
Lepartment, !AC, Eome
!AC 2005, Connunication jor De:elopnent Boundtable Beport, Focus on sustainable
de:elopnent, ÞintL LÞ Eounotalle on Communication lor Levelopment, 6-9 Septemler
200+, Eome
LÞ 2002, Beport oj tle World Sunnit on Sustainable De:elopnent, joLanneslurg, SoutL
Alrica, 26 August - + Septemler 2002
LÞLP 2001, Hunan De:elopnent Beport· Making neu teclnologies uork jor lunan
de:elopnent, lrom Lttp://Lor.unop.org/reports/glolal/2001/en/
Worlo Bank 2002, Beacling tle Bural Poor· A Beneued Strategy jor Bural De:elopnent,
WasLington L.C., lrom Lttp://vvv.vorlolank.org/rural
5
ChapIer 2
LocaI In!ormation 5ystems !or
Community DeveIopment in Ghana
Ivy Dralor
2
and Koli Atta-Agyepong
3
INTRODUCTION
!arm LouseLolos ano local entrepreneurs lotL oepeno on inlormation ol various kinos
lor tLeir inoivioual oecision-making. Groups sucL as larmer organizations, co-operatives,
traoers ano local ÞGCs also neeo inlormation lor group oecision-making ano ellective
management. Accoroing to tLe Ministry ol !ooo ano Agriculture ol GLana, 'tLe ellicient
management ol agriculture as a lusiness requires accurate ano timely inlormation on all
aspects ol agricultural proouction, processing, marketing ano utilisation` (MC!A 1991).
¡t is tLerelore necessary to Lave timely ano appropriate oata ano inlormation availalle to
guioe larmers ano local entrepreneurs, as vell as policy makers in planning ano oecision-
making. ¡mproveo inlormation ano communication vill also assist in lringing an improveo
unoerstanoing ol tLe economic ano social environments in vLicL larmers live.
¡nlormation ano communication tecLnologies (¡C1s) Lave lrougLt issues ol communication
ano rural access to inlormation to tLe lorelront ol tLe oevelopment agenoa. Eural people are
lorming nev social netvorks, learning togetLer ano sLaring knovleoge across geograpLic
ano cultural lounoaries (Morrov 2002).
!armers neeo timely ano appropriate inlormation to make ellicient use ol tLeir limiteo
resources. ¡n GLana, tLe Ministry ol !ooo ano Agriculture (MC!A) is primarily responsille
lor tLe provision ol agricultural extension services. 1Le Ministry Las agricultural extension
agents (A¡As) vLo are assigneo to oillerent communities, knovn as operational areas, vLicL
are sometimes very large. As a result, ano oue to inappropriate availalility ol resources, tLe
A¡As are not alle to reacL many larmers. MC!A is also manoateo to collect ano oisseminate
agricultural inlormation at tLe oistrict level. EesearcL institutions, ÞGCs ano otLer stakeLoloers
are also oirectly or inoirectly involveo vitL tLe generation ano oissemination ol agricultural
inlormation to varying oegrees. Hovever, inlormation olten remains vitLin tLe sector vLere
it is collecteo ano is not maoe availalle lor vioer use. ¡mproveo availalility ol inlormation to
larm LouseLolos lrom vitLin ano outsioe tLe oistricts vill enalle tLem to explore opportunities
lor using proouction metLoos tLat vill improve tLeir proouctivity ano liveliLooos.
1Le necessity ol linking oata lrom prooucers ano users at tLe oistrict level Las leen
ioentilieo. Hovever, several questions remain unansvereo. ¡t is unclear Lov mucL ol tLe
local level inlormation can le leo lack into tLe local system. ¡n tLe same vay, leeolack to
tLe larm LouseLolo lrom tLe many micro-level stuoies is usually veak ano systematic local
inlormation netvorks are non-existent in many Alrican communities.
2
¡ecturer, Agricultural ¡conomics, Lniversity ol Cape Coast, GLana ([email protected]).
3
Monitoring ano ¡valuation Cllicer, Brong-ALalo Eegion, Ministry ol !ooo ano Agriculture, Government ol
GLana
6
Local Injornation Systens jor Connunity De:elopnent in Glana
1Lis paper is laseo on a stuoy jointly commissioneo ly !AC ano G1Z, tLe purpose
ol vLicL vas to ioentily interventions tLat coulo ensure a sustainalle llov inlormation
to improve local level oecision-making. 1Le stuoy sougLt vays ol making local level
inlormation more availalle in tLe oistricts lor oecision-making ano planning. 1Le general
oljective vas to ioentily inlormation llovs ano knovleoge lases at oillerent levels vitLin a
community lor improveo oecision-making.
CHARACTERI5TIC5 Of 5ELECTED AREA5
1Le stuoy vas carrieo out in tLe Central ano Brong-ALalo Eegions ol GLana. !our sites vere
selecteo using tLe lolloving criteria: oensity ol agricultural services, lactors contriluting to
increasing access to inlormation sources sucL as roao netvorks, access ano oistance to major
market, access to inlormation sources (sucL as raoio, 1V, internet ano telepLone), ano nev
oevelopment opportunities tLat are resulting in increasing access to inlormation. 1Le lour
communities are oescrileo lelov, in oescenoing oroer ol tLeir service enoovments.
Bailikrom, a community in Mlantsiman Listrict, is situateo on tLe coastal portion ol tLe
Central Eegion. 1Le community consists ol larmers, traoers ano artisans, tLougL larming is
tLe main occupation. An irrigation project Las leen estallisLeo vLicL lacilitates ory season
larming ano tLe cultivation ol exotic vegetalles. ¡nlormation is important lor all stages ol
agricultural proouction ano marketing. 1Le tovn Las tLe potential lor economic grovtL ano
poverty reouction as nev larming tecLniques ano cropping systems Lave leen aoopteo over
tLe years. Mlantsiman Listrict is one ol tLe service-enooveo oistricts in tLe Central Eegion.
¡t Las a relatively LigL concentration ol ÞGCs ano otLer service provioers. 1Lere is a lig
market in Mankessim, vLicL attracts traoers lrom most parts ol tLe country.
1Le main activities in tLe village ol Asueyi in 1ecLiman Listrict are larming, livestock,
traoing, lisLing ano processing ol gari (maoe lrom cassava roots). Crops are grovn lor lotL
Lome consumption (cassava, yam, maize ano plantain) ano sale (cassava, tomatoes, casLev,
maize, yam, cocoa ano mango). ¡ivestock proouction is lor lotL Lome consumption ano
traoe. 1Le village Las a numler ol cassava milling macLines ano tLe processing ol gari
generates mucL employment. 1Le community lenelits lrom gooo scLool enrolment ano
cLiloren are encourageo to attain LigL levels ol eoucation. A lev meoical ooctors, lecturers,
ano leaoers Lave emergeo lrom Asueyi.
Alaka community is locateo in Alura-Aselu-Ivamankese (AAI) Listrict vLicL is
ratLer oepriveo in terms ol service enoovments vitL lev activities ano limiteo presence ol
ÞGCs, input oealers ano service provioers tLat coulo generate agricultural inlormation. 1Le
tovn Las its ovn relatively large ano vell-organiseo market, vLile tLe oistance to tLe major
market in Mankessim is alout 30 km.
Sene Listrict is classilieo as a oepriveo or lov oensity agricultural service area. Lrole is a
major yam-prooucing village in tLis Listrict. 1Le main economic activity is mixeo larming
ano crops grovn incluoe yam, cassava, maize, grounonuts ano aguslie (melon seeos).
COMMUNITY LEVEL INfORMATION 5Y5TEM5
Priority areas
A prollem analysis vas conoucteo to ascertain tLe priority prollem areas lor eacL
community. At Alaka, participants mentioneo limiteo access to larm inlormation ano
ioentilieo tLe causes ano ellects ol tLis prollem (!igure 1). At Bailikrom, tLe most important
prollem vas tractor availalility vLile linancial prollems vere important lor lotL Asueyi
ano Lrole communities.
7
I:y Drajor and Koji Atta-Agyepong
figure 1. ProbIem Tree on Limited farm In!ormation, Abaka, Abura-Asebu-Kvamankese District
LocaI organizations and their impIications !or access to in!ormation
An analysis ol tLe organizations in eacL community ioentilieo key local groups tLat lacilitateo
access to larm inlormation. 1Le organizations rangeo lrom crop-relateo associations,
Aoventist Levelopment ano Eeliel Agency (ALEA), Eeo Cross, reciprocal lalour groups
ano irrigation co-operatives. 1Le crop-relateo groups, sucL as callage ano citrus grovers
association, get togetLer to learn more alout crop proouction, estallisL group larms to serve
as oemonstration sites, ano explore marketing opportunities. 1Ley oltain inlormation on
nev varieties ano memlers pass inlormation on to otLer memlers ol tLe community.
1Le irrigation co-operative in Bailikrom Las gooo access to agricultural extension services
oue to tLe LigL value vegetalles grovn in tLe irrigateo area. 1Ley unoertake planting,
spraying, vatering ol crops ano Larvesting at tLe same time. A nnoboa (reciprocal lalour)
group vas prominent in Lrole.
HousehoId characteristics
Participants classilieo tLe LouseLolos in tLeir community accoroing to tLe intensity ol
inlormation tLey vere receiving. 1Le tLree main LouseLolo categories ioentilieo vere:
LouseLolos vitL LigL access ano use ol inlormation,
LouseLolos vitL meoium access ano use ol inlormation,
LouseLolos vitL lov access ano use ol inlormation.
Poor standard
of living
Low incomes
Low yields Low productivity
Limited Farm
Ìnformation
Lack of excitement
in agricolture
Do not see value
or importance
of farm information
E
F
F
E
C
T
S
Conservatism Poor timing Poor farm
practices
PROBLEM
C
A
U
S
E
S
Unaware of
sources
Lack of
education
Ìgnorance
Low farm
incomes
8
Local Injornation Systens jor Connunity De:elopnent in Glana
1Le key element accounting lor tLe oillerences in access to inlormation vas tLe role ol
larming in tLe LouseLolo`s liveliLooo, vLetLer people larm as tLeir main lusiness lor casL
revenue or lor sulsistence proouction. Hence tLose in tLe LigL access ano inlormation use
group voulo le people unoertaking larming as a lusiness. ¡eaoers in tLe communities voulo
also lall vitLin tLis group. 1Lese people sougLt inlormation on larming activities to enalle
tLem to larm ellectively in oroer to make a prolit. 1Ley vere likely to le eoucateo ano tLus
alle to oltain more inlormation tLrougL reaoing. 1Lis group incluoeo people vitL lamily
memlers outsioe tLe community vLo may lring tLem inlormation, ano larmers vLo vere
exposeo tLrougL travelling outsioe tLe community. Very importantly, tLis group oltaineo
inlormation ano reaoily acteo upon it. Some group memlers inoicateo tLey Lao seen gooo
results lrom using tLe inlormation receiveo.
1Le secono group, vitL meoium access to inlormation, representeo tLe majority ol tLe
larmers in tLe community. 1Leir contact vas mainly vitL otLer larmers, vatcLing eacL otLer
ano learning. !armers in tLis group Lao attempteo using improveo metLoos ol larming ano
some Lao gooo experiences.
1Le tLiro group cultivateo small areas ol lano only to grov looo lor Lome consumption.
Some concentrateo on traoing more tLan larming activities. AltLougL tLis group vas as
exposeo to inlormation tLat came to tLe village as otLer groups, tLey Laroly ever put it into
practice.
Major in!ormation sources
1Le sources ol inlormation consulteo varieo accoroing to topic (1alle 1). 1raoers vere tLe
most common source ol market inlormation. ¡xtension ollicers vere tLe common source ol
inlormation alout cLemical use. WeatLer inlormation, vital lor tLe timing ol larm activities
sucL as lano preparation, planting ano Larvesting, vas usually acquireo tLrougL raoio ano
television lroaocasts. Cverall, otLer larmers ano past experience vere tLe most lrequently
citeo sources ol inlormation.
Alout Lall tLe larmers intervieveo expresseo a villingness to pay lor relevant inlormation.
1LougL tLey tLougLt tLat certain general types ol larm inlormation sLoulo le lree ano easily
accessille to all, important inlormation coulo come at a price. At least some ellort sLoulo le
maoe to seek relevant inlormation.
In!ormation !Iovs
An inlormation mapping exercise vas carrieo out vLere tLe community memlers vere askeo
to ioentily tLe locations (sources) ano types ol inlormation receiveo lrom eacL location. 1Le
inlormation maps lor tLe lour communities sLov tLat tLe relatively vell enooveo Bailikrom
ano Asueyi Lao access to more inlormation sources tLan Alaka ano Lrole, vLicL vere
vitLin oistricts vitL lev services.
1Le inlormation map in Lrole, as an example ol service-oepriveo community, sLovs
tLat LouseLolos Lao limiteo access to sources ol inlormation lor tLeir oay-to-oay larming
activities (!igure 2). !or tLeir economic activities, tLey vere communicating mostly vitL
agricultural extension agents, tLe nnoboa groups, traoers, moneylenoers, LealtL vorkers ano
otLer experienceo larmers lor inlormation ano aovice.
9
I:y Drajor and Koji Atta-Agyepong
TabIe 1. farm Activities and 5ources o! In!ormation
farm activity Decisions associated vith
activity
5ources o!
in!ormation
Consequence o! Iack o!
in!ormation on activity
Lahd acquisiIioh Where Io !arm, where Io
obIaih lahd
MosIly !rom oIher !armers
ahd !armers' pasI experiehce
Low yields due Io poor
locaIioh o! !ields
Lahd preparaIioh 1imihg, labour, size o!
!arm, crediI availabiliIy
MosIly !rom oIher !armers
ahd !armers' pasI experiehce
Few !armers obIaih
ih!ormaIioh !rom weaIher
!orecasI oh radio
LaIe plahhihg, which
could resulI ih low yield.
Disorgahised Iimihg o!
acIiviIies
PlahIihg 1imihg, Iype o! crop Io
grow, labour, ahd seed
ih!ormaIioh (varieIy,
price, locaIioh)
MosIly !rom !armers' pasI
experiehce ahd oIher !armers
Poor Iimihg
LaIe plahhihg wiIh
resulIahI low yields
Weedihg 1imihg, labour ahd
mohey
MosIly !rom !armers' pasI
experiehce ahd oIher !armers
Weeds compeIe wiIh
crops, leadihg Io low
yields
FerIilizer applicaIioh 1ype o! !erIilizer,
locaIioh, price ahd crediI
AbouI 60% geI ih!ormaIioh
!rom oIher !armers
AbouI 35% geI ih!ormaIioh
!rom ALAs
Ill e!!ecI oh !armers'
healIh
Ill e!!ecI oh cohsumers
Loss o! soil !erIiliIy, hehce
low yields
ApplicaIioh pracIices Maihly !rom ALAs, radio ahd
oIher !armers
Crop damage
IhappropriaIe applicaIioh
Sprayihg 1ype o! chemical AbouI 50% obIaih
ih!ormaIioh !rom ALAs
AbouI 30% geI ih!ormaIioh
!rom oIher !armers
Crop damage
Uh!avourable e!!ecIs oh
!armers' healIh
8ad e!!ecI oh cohsumers
ApplicaIioh pracIices Maihly !rom ALA, radio ahd
oIher !armers
Crop damage
IhappropriaIe applicaIioh
HarvesIihg 1imihg, labour MosIly !rom !armers' pasI
experiehce ahd oIher !armers
High posI-harvesI losses
ImplicaIiohs !or !ood
securiIy
Poor produce qualiIy
Low price !or produce
Sellihg Where Io sell, price o!
produce
From oIher !armers, buyers
ahd radio broadcasIs
Low price !or produce
LxploiIaIioh by buyers
due Io poor qualiIy
SIorage MeIhods o! sIorage MosI !armers do hoI cohIacI
ahyohe !or Ihis ih!ormaIioh
Very !ew said Ihey geI
ih!ormaIioh !rom ALAs
PosI-harvesI losses
ImplicaIiohs !or !ood
securiIy
Low level o! household
ihcome
10
Local Injornation Systens jor Connunity De:elopnent in Glana
figure 2. In!ormation Map o! Drobe, 5ene District
Ejura market
Ìnput dealers
Ministry of Agriculture
District Office
Atebubu
Mechanisation Centre
Atebubu yam
and cattle market
Drivers
Other villages
and other districts
NGO (WVÌ)
Extension agent
Farmers in
neighbouring villages
Radio
Experienced / contact
farmers
Village and
neighbouring villages
Drivers
Chiefs
Nnoboa group
School children
Traders /
moneylenders
Churches and
church leaders
Farmer farm
household (Drobe)
Family members Farmers (Drobe)
11
I:y Drajor and Koji Atta-Agyepong
figure 3. In!ormation Map o! ßai!ikrom, M!antsiman District
Traders-Togo, Gambia, Cote d'Ìvoire
(Food items and clothing)
International
Within region
(includes district capital)
Tractor and
bulldozer service
Agro-chemical
companies
Seed company
Ìnput and farm
tool suppliers
Family
members
National level
Techiman, Accra
Farm household
(Baifikrom)
Seed and
seeding suppliers
District Assembly
Agro-chemical
suppliers
Market
Hospital
Radio (FM)
Tractor service
University and schools
Ministry of Agriculture
District Office
Neighbouring
communities
Tractor
service
Ìnformation
centre
Artisans
Schools
Baifikrom
Assemblyman
Friends
Chief
Other
farmers
Chemical
dealers
Newspapers School
children
Market Teachers Travellers
Agro-chemical
suppliers
Bookshop
Agriculture
Officer
Market
Traders
Traders
and buyers
Family
members
Religious
leaders
Artisans
Radio/TV
Trading and
marketing
Radio/TV
Travellers
Artisans
Family
members
NGOs
(WVÌ)
Family
members
NGOs
(Plan)
Post
Office
Bank
Clinic
12
Local Injornation Systens jor Connunity De:elopnent in Glana
1Le inlormation map lor Bailikrom, as an example ol a service-enooveo community,
sLovs tLat tLe larm LouseLolos Lao a vioe range ol inlormation netvorks (!igure 3). 1Le
main sources ol inlormation vere larmers, raoio ano 1V (incluoing veatLer lorecasts),
traoers ano agricultural extension ollicers.
Ranking o! In!ormation 5ources
1Le main inlormation sources vere ioentilieo ano rankeo ly larmers accoroing to tLeir
importance, relialility, lrequency ano cost. 1Le cost relers to tLe time spent, tLe oistance
to source, tLe ellort ano tLe transportation costs involveo in contacting tLe source ol
inlormation. Betveen live to six key sources vere ioentilieo in eacL community. AltLougL
it voulo Lave leen oesiralle to use similar sources lor all lour communities, tLis vas not
possille lecause communities oio not necessarily oltain inlormation lrom tLe same sources.
1Le sources ioentilieo in eacL community ano tLeir ranking are presenteo in 1alle 2.
TabIe 2. AnaIysis o! In!ormation 5ources by Ranking
Rank
Importance ReIiabiIity
ßai!ikrom Asueyi Abaka Drobe ßai!ikrom Asueyi Abaka Drobe
1
sI
Farmers 1raders
WeaIher
!orecasIs
LxIehsioh
o!!icer
Radio/1V 1raders
LxIehsioh
o!!icer
LxIehsioh
o!!icer
2
hd
Radio/1V 1rahsporIaIioh
LxIehsioh
o!!icer
Nnoboa
group
Farmers 1rahsporIaIioh 1raders
Nnoboa
group
3
rd
LxIehsioh
o!!icer
Labourers 1raders
Mohey
lehders
WeaIher
!orecasIs
IhpuI dealers 1rahsporIaIioh
HealIh
workers
4
Ih
WeaIher
!orecasIs
LxIehsioh
o!!icer
Radio/1V
HealIh
workers
LxIehsioh
o!!icer
Labourers VeI service
Lxperiehced
!armers
5
Ih
8uyers IhpuI dealers 1rahsporIaIioh
Lxperiehced
!armers
8uyers
LxIehsioh
o!!icer
Radio/1V
Mohey
lehders
6
Ih
CLS/MOL VeI service CLS/MOL
WeaIher
!orecasIers
Rank
frequency Least cost
ßai!ikrom Asueyi Abaka Drobe ßai!ikrom Asueyi Abaka Drobe
1
sI
Radio/1V 1raders 1raders
LxIehsioh
o!!icer
Farmers
LxIehsioh
o!!icer
WeaIher
!orecasIs
-
2
hd
Farmers 1rahsporIaIioh 1rahsporIaIioh
Nnoboa
group
WeaIher
!orecasIs
1raders Radio/1V -
3
rd
WeaIher Labourers Radio/1V
Lxperiehced
!armers
Radio/1V CLS/MOL 1raders -
4
Ih
LxIehsioh
o!!icer
LxIehsioh
o!!icer
LxIehsioh
o!!icer
HealIh
workers
8uyers 1rahsporIaIioh 1rahsporIaIioh -
5
Ih
8uyers IhpuI dealers VeI Service
Mohey
lehders
LxIehsioh
o!!icer
IhpuI dealers
LxIehsioh
o!!icer
-
6
Ih
CLS/MOL
WeaIher
!orecasIs
Labourers VeI service -
CLS = Chaha LducaIioh Service, MOL = MihisIry o! LducaIioh
!rom tLe ranking, larmers` interaction vitL otLer larmers vas louno to le tLe most
important, least expensive, very lrequent ano a relialle source ol larm inlormation. !armers
also inoicateo tLat a lot ol vLat tLey oio vas laseo on tLeir personal larming experience ano
intuition.
1Le majority ol larmers listeneo to raoio lroaocasts on agricultural inlormation ano
louno tLis source very uselul. ¡n 1ecLiman Listrict, vLere Asueyi is situateo, alout 98
percent ol tLe population Lao access to raoio. An inlormation centre vas louno in Atelulu
13
I:y Drajor and Koji Atta-Agyepong
(15 km lrom Lrole) ano anotLer in Mankessim (3 km lrom Bailikrom), vLicL vere set
up to provioe agricultural inlormation to larmers in tLe vicinity. Hovever, oue to lack ol
pullicity, resources ano stall, tLe centres vere not vell organiseo, oespite tLeir potential to
reacL larmers vitL appropriate inlormation. 1Le agricultural extension ollicer playeo a more
important role in inlormation provision in service-oepriveo oistricts.
1Le role ol traoers ano luyers vas very signilicant in all tLe sites, vLicL coulo le
attriluteo to tLe nature ol crops grovn. !armers in Alaka, Bailikrom ano Asueyi vere
groving a consioeralle amount ol perisLalle vegetalles ano requireo prompt marketing lor
tLeir proouce.
5TAKEHOLDER LEVEL INfORMATION 5Y5TEM5
1Le stakeLoloers involveo vitL tLe generation ano oissemination ol agricultural inlormation
vere ioentilieo in eacL oistrict. 1Ley vere intervieveo inoivioually ano a vorksLop vas
organiseo vLere all tLe stakeLoloers vere lrougLt togetLer vitL larmers selecteo lrom tLe
community meetings. ¡n eacL oistrict, tLe Listrict Agricultural Levelopment Lnit ano tLe
Listrict Assemlly vere also intervieveo.
1Lere vere many ÞGCs operating in Mlantsiman Listrict namely: Worlo Vision
¡nternational (WV¡), Plan ¡nternational, ALEA ano Association lor tLe Aovancement
ol Women in Alrica (ASAWA). 1Le main stakeLoloers intervieveo in 1ecLiman Listrict
vere tLe Eural 1ecLnology Service Centre (E1SC), ¡cumenical Association lor Sustainalle
Agricultural Levelopment (¡CASAEL) ano 1ecLnoServe. Worlo Vision ¡nternational vas
active in Sene Listrict. 1Le Centre ol Avareness, agro-processors ano an exporter vere
operating in AAI Listrict.
1Le ÞGCs provioeo inlormation on service-orienteo activities sucL as processing ano
marketing. 1Le Centre ol Avareness vas active in community molilisation ano sensitisation
vLile local processors relateo more to market opportunities, proouction lottlenecks ano
operational researcL. 1ecLnoServe concentrateo on crops sucL as casLev ano maize, vLile
¡CASAEL locuseo on lee keeping, musLroom proouction ano preservation as vell as otLer
income generation activities. Worlo Vision ¡nternational oealt vitL community oevelopment,
larm management practices, provision ol sale vater lor rural communities ano evangelism.
An important source ol larm inlormation vas tLe raoio ano television, vioely useo
in every community. Eaoio lroaocasts lor larmers provioeo a vioe range ol inlormation
incluoing nev varieties, appropriate cLemical use ano veatLer lorecast. CtLer sources ol
inlormation vere reports, meetings, vorksLops, oemonstrations ano Lanoouts in tLe case ol
E1SC, ano oirect contact vitL ÞGCs ano researcLers.
Almost all tLe stakeLoloers recogniseo tLat tLere vas untappeo potential in tLeir areas
ol operation lor generating ano oisseminating agricultural inlormation as vell as tLeir
alility to make luller use ol inlormation tLey receiveo. 1Ley voulo also lenelit lrom
improveo collaloration vitL otLer stakeLoloers vorking on similar activities. 1Le prollem
ol inaoequate lunoing ol planneo activities vas common to all ano some inoicateo tLat tLeir
vork vas not alvays vell knovn even in tLe communities in vLicL tLey vere operating.
Suggestions lor improving inlormation generation ano sLaring in tLe oistrict incluoeo
sLaring ol ioeas tLrougL regular meetings, proouction ol nevs lulletins, mini-traoe lairs,
ano tLe greater involvement ol cLurcLes, scLools ano !M raoio stations in inlormation
generation ano sLaring.
14
Local Injornation Systens jor Connunity De:elopnent in Glana
District
Assembly
Radio/TV
dvertisement
ollaboration
MOFA
arket prices
Traders
Price credit
and market
information
Ìnput
dealers
Extension
officers
ollaboration
NGOs
(work with
specific crops)
ashew
information
arket
prices
ashew sales
information
Farmers Farmers
aize
storage
Supply price
and application
information
arket prices
weather
forecasts
In!ormation !Iovs
At tLe vorksLop, stakeLoloers vere oivioeo into groups ol alout live to six persons to
analyse selecteo stakeLoloers accoroing to tLeir interest, role in community, ano agricultural
inlormation tLey provioeo to larmers. !armers vere louno to relate to all stakeLoloers
altLougL in some cases, tLe links vere veak (!igure +). !or example, tLe relationsLip vitL
tLe Listrict Assemlly vas inoirect as larmers relateo to it tLrougL MC!A. 1Le link letveen
larmers ano ÞGCs vas also veak lecause many ÞGCs vitLin tLe oistricts eitLer vork
vitL specilic crops or are more involveo vitL non-agricultural activities. Price ano veatLer
inlormation vas oltaineo mainly lrom tLe raoio, a lairly strong link. Strong links also
existeo letveen larmers, traoers ano agricultural extension ollicers.
Among tLe stakeLoloers, tLere vas collaloration letveen ÞGCs ano agricultural
extension ollicers, ano ÞGCs ano traoers (!igure +). 1raoers oealing in maize vere linkeo
vitL input oealers lor storage inlormation, tLey vere also linkeo to raoio ano 1V stations
ano MC!A lor inlormation alout market prices. Hovever, tLere vere no links reporteo
letveen extension ollicers ano raoio, letveen extension ollicers ano traoers, or letveen
ÞGCs ano input oealers.
1Lere vas a strong netvork lor inlormation sLaring among larmers. HouseLolos in tLe
same category ol access to inlormation tenoeo to interact more letveen tLemselves tLan vitL
tLose in otLer categories, altLougL LouseLolos in tLe meoium ano lov access to inlormation
categories also consulteo LouseLolos vitL LigL access in oroer to oltain relevant inlormation.
figure 4. Interactions among Key 5takehoIders
15
I:y Drajor and Koji Atta-Agyepong
INTERVENTION5 TO 5UPPORT INfORMATION AVAILAßILITY
At community IeveI
¡oucation ano avareness raising on tLe role ol inlormation in larmer oecision-making sLoulo le
promoteo. !armers olten viev assistance to le in tLe lorm ol money, inputs or otLer resources.
1Le stuoy revealeo a lack ol unoerstanoing ol tLe role ol inlormation in improving larm
management ano, Lence, improving larm proouctivity. Eigorous eoucation ano community
avareness programmes sLoulo le pursueo ly all stakeLoloers incluoing tLe oistrict assemlly,
researcL institutions, oonor agencies, ano local ano international ÞGCs. !armers` time sLoulo
le respecteo ano tLeir cropping calenoar, marketing scLeoules ano cultural norms neeo to le
unoerstooo to ensure gooo participation ouring community meetings.
¡t is important to ioentily ano motivate key inlormation provioers in communities to reacL
otLer larmers vitL agricultural inlormation. 1Le key inlormation provioers are likely to le
louno amongst larmers vitL tLe potential to oisseminate inlormation to otLers. !armers
vitL lov access to inlormation, especially in service-oepriveo areas, sLoulo le encourageo
to interact more vitL tLe otLer larmers ano leaoers vitLin tLeir communities lor increasing
tLeir access to inlormation.
Eeaoing materials, currently in inaoequate supply, sLoulo le maoe availalle oirectly
to larmers as vell as to stakeLoloers to enalle tLem to provioe appropriate agricultural
inlormation to larm LouseLolos. Agricultural extension agents require inlormation on
various larm activities ano tecLnologies lor improveo extension oelivery tLat vill leao to
enLanceo larm management practices.
A system sLoulo le put in place to ensure tLat leeolack is given to larmers laseo on tLe
inlormation collecteo lrom tLem. 1Lis voulo involve researcLers, government ano ÞGCs.
1Le provision ol leeolack voulo improve larmer conlioence ano interest in oevelopment
researcL ano programmes, ano voulo also rellect a nev unoerstanoing ol tLe relationsLip
letveen larmers ano support systems agents.
At stakehoIder IeveI
At tLe stakeLoloer level, tLere is tLe neeo lor collaloration ano co-oroination ol tLeir ellorts
in tLe generation ano oissemination ol inlormation to tLe larm LouseLolo. An increaseo
avareness ol eacL otLer`s activities is a gooo starting point lor increaseo collaloration, vLicL
can le oone tLrougL vorksLops tLat systematically lring togetLer stakeLoloers vorking in
oillerent capacities in a oistrict to oiscuss tLeir activities, cLallenges ano constraints as vell
as opportunities lor nev activities.
More time sLoulo le oevoteo to agricultural inlormation on raoio ano television, oue
to tLeir vital role in reacLing a vioe range ol larm communities (incluoing very remote
ones). 1Le timing ol raoio lroaocasts ol agricultural inlormation sLoulo le sensitive to
larmers` neeos. Eaoio lroaocasts ouring peak Lours ol larm activities vill lenelit larmers
less. Agricultural lroaocasts coulo cover appropriate cLemical use ano cLemical regulations,
environmental consciousness, soil lertility, price ano market inlormation, LealtL ano
nutrition, ano marketing opportunities, among otLers.
Business nevs on tLe television coulo oiscuss issues ol importance to larm communities,
ratLer tLan locusing on issues tLat are lar removeo lrom larmers` concerns. Eainlall
inlormation, lor example, sLoulo at least consioer tLe cropping calenoar ol tLe major looo
prooucing areas ano it voulo le oesiralle to provioe analytical inlormation comparing
precipitation vitL long term averages.
16
Local Injornation Systens jor Connunity De:elopnent in Glana
Agricultural extension ollicers sLoulo make ellorts to provioe price ano market
inlormation to larmers, vLicL is olten availalle at tLe oistrict agricultural oevelopment units
ano voulo increase tLe negotiating pover ol larmers. 1Le vork ol agricultural extension
agents neeos to le laseo on larmers neeos` ano targeteo to eacL LouseLolo type ano
community type lor improveo ellectiveness. ¡n oroer to oo tLis, A¡As voulo neeo to le
provioeo vitL appropriate supervision ano tecLnical lackstopping.
!armer organizations ano groups sLoulo le urgeo to, ano eoucateo on Lov to, solicit
inlormation lrom memlers.
At poIicy IeveI
Policy support lor improving inlormation generation ano oissemination lor rural communities
is necessary in GLana in oroer to provioe larmers vitL relevant inlormation lor ellective
oecision-making ano lor acLieving LigLer income levels.
1Le starting point sLoulo le to strengtLen cLannels tLat are currently leing useo to
make agricultural inlormation availalle to larmers sucL as increasing time allocation lor
raoio lroaocasts. Most larmers make an ellort to listen to tLe raoio ano oltain vital larm
inlormation tLrougL tLis cLannel. Hovever, tLe time currently allocateo lor agricultural
raoio lroaocasts is inaoequate ano olten not convenient lor larmers. !inancial support
is neeoeo to luy raoio time lor agricultural inlormation lroaocasts. Crganizations ano
agencies tLat provioe inlormation lor raoio lroaocasts sLoulo le lotL traineo ano monitoreo
to ensure tLat tLe inlormation provioeo is timely ano appropriate.
1Le government neeos to recognise tLe roles ol alternate cLannels ol agricultural
inlormation tLat are useo ly larmers. 1Lis recognition voulo Lelp relocus tLe vork ol
A¡As lor improveo ellectiveness in specilic areas. 1Le normal agricultural messages carrieo
ly A¡As migLt not le relevant in service-enooveo communities vLere specilic types ol
inlormation are more important.
HouseLolos vitL lov access to inlormation sLoulo le targeteo vitL oillerent types
ol inlormation tLan tLose vitL LigL access to inlormation. 1Lis voulo involve regular
assessment ol larmer neeos in terms ol inlormation ano accoroing to LouseLolo type.
Since tLe results inoicateo tLat rural people also require inlormation lor oll-larm
activities, it is recommenoeo tLat MC!A links up vitL otLer Ministries ano ÞGCs to source
ano oeliver tLis kino ol inlormation. An inlormation policy lor tLe rural areas is necessary. ¡n
aooition, measures to strengtLen tLe inlormal inlormation sector neeo to le put in place.
CONCLU5ION5
¡ocal level inlormation lor ellective oecision-making is important lor poverty alleviation
ano larmer empoverment. Hovever, tLere is a general lack ol appropriate agricultural
inlormation generateo ano oisseminateo at community level lor ellective larm LouseLolo
oecision-making tLat can leao to enLanceo agricultural proouctivity.
Most stuoies on rural inlormation systems locus on tLe role ol rural communities ano
service provioers as recipients ano provioers ol inlormation. Hovever, a Lolistic viev ol tLe
inlormation llovs in rural areas sLoulo also take into account inlormation excLangeo vitLin
tLe community, among rural oevelopment stakeLoloers (agencies ano service provioers), ano
letveen stakeLoloers ano tLe community. ¡xamining sucL llovs can reveal tLe inlormation
enoovments ano inlormation neeos ol rural areas, ano practical steps can le ioentilieo to lill
tLe gaps as appropriate.
17
I:y Drajor and Koji Atta-Agyepong
REfERENCE5
Ministry ol !ooo ano Agriculture 1991, Agriculture in Glana· Facts and Figures, Government
ol GLana
Morrov, I. 2002, '1Le ¡C1 agenoa: glolal action plans ano local solutions` LEISA Magazine
on Lou External Input and Sustainable Agriculture, july 2002, 18 (2): 9-10
19
4
Crop Proouction Aoviser, LAÞ¡LA, Agricultural Sector Support Programme, ¡ritrea.
5
1Le country is oivioeo in seven zobas lelov vLicL lie tLe sul-zobas.
ChapIer 3
AgricuIturaI KnovIedge and
In!ormation 5ystems in Eritrea
Yadav Khatiwada
4

INTRODUCTION
1Le Ministry ol Agriculture (MoA) ol ¡ritrea Las emlarkeo upon tLe introouction ol tLe
!armer Aovisory Services. 1Lis service is a nev extension approacL piloteo ly tLe Ministry
tLat seeks active participation ol larmers, tLeir organizations ano local communities in
ioentilying tLeir inlormation, knovleoge ano skill neeos to improve tLeir agricultural
proouction ano eventually improve tLeir liveliLooos.
Currently agricultural extension services in ¡ritrea are provioeo preoominantly ly tLe
pullic sector, tLrougL ollicers ol tLe Ministry. Sul-zoba
5
ollices are tLe main points ol
contact letveen tLe Ministry ano larmers. 1Le stall, usually laseo in tLe sul-zoba main
tovn, meet larmers eitLer vLen tLey travel out to tLe villages or vLen larmers come to tLe
tovn. Cne ol tLe main oljectives ol MoA is to acLieve looo security tLrougL tLe promotion
ol improveo tecLnology, ano extension services are seen as a key instrument in tLis task.
¡xtension services are largely provioeo lree ol cLarge.
1Le Government ol ¡ritrea is committeo to moving tovaros a more oemano-oriven
approacL to extension tLat responos to tLe varying local neeos ol oillerent categories ol
larmers. ¡t is recogniseo tLat tLe resources ol tLe Ministry vill not allov lrequent ano regular
contact letveen larmers ano aovisers, Lence it is necessary to look lor vays ol increasing tLe
impact ol extension tLrougL greater elliciency ano cost-ellectiveness. Cne vay ol ooing tLis
is to contrilute to tLe letter lunctioning ol tLe various cLannels ano sources tLrougL vLicL
larmers may access inlormation.
figure 1. Ten 5teps o! the AKI5 5tudy
identify
information
need
select
methods
select
and sub-
assemble
study team
select
villages
document
(final report)
sub-
seminar
data
analysis
workshop
field
study
training
workshop
20
Agricultural Knouledge and Injornation Systens in Eritrea
Stuoies vere conoucteo in tvo sul-zobas: Hagaz in Ansela zoba situateo in tLe nortL
ol tLe country ano LekemLare in Lelul zoba in tLe mio-vest. 1Leir purpose vas to
contrilute to tLe oevelopment ol oemano-leo extension ano aovisory services in ¡ritrea,
tLrougL a letter unoerstanoing ol tLe Agricultural Inovleoge ano ¡nlormation System
(AI¡S) tLrougL vLicL larmers access inlormation. !igure 1 outlines tLe steps in tLe process
ol carrying out tLe AI¡S stuoy (GarlortL 2001).
1Le stuoy teams ioentilieo various inlormation neeos ano tLe metLoos ano tools necessary
to collect tLem (1alle 1). 1Lis paper locuses on tLe linoings associateo vitL inlormation
seeking leLaviour.
TabIe 1. In!ormation Needs and fieId TooIs
In!ormation needed TooIs used
HisIory o! chahge ih agriculIural Iechhology AgriculIural Iimelihe
Socio-ecohomic pro!ile o! Ihe area Semi-sIrucIured ihIerview
AgriculIural ih!ormaIioh ahd Iechhology heeds 1rahsecI walk ahd problem Iree
SIrucIures, ihsIiIuIiohs ahd processes !or acquisiIioh, Irahs!er ahd
exchahge o! ih!ormaIioh
Ih!ormaIioh mappihg ahd lihkages
Farmers' ihdividual use ahd assessmehI o! imporIahI sources ahd
chahhels
Ihdividual quesIiohhaire
5OURCE5 Of TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE
1Le agricultural timeline is a vay ol recoroing tLe Listory ol agricultural innovations ano
cLange in an area (Eamirez 1997). 1Le timelines LigLligLteo tLe introouction ol tecLnologies
ano innovations ly oillerent actors. CtLer larmers ano nomaos are importance sources ol
tecLnological cLange, particularly in Hagaz sul-zoba. 1Le MoA is also a oominant source
ol innovation, particularly in Alella ano AsLera.
TabIe 2. AgricuIturaI TimeIines
5ource o! innovation,
in!ormation,
technoIogy
A!eIba
(Dekemhare)
Ashera
(Hagaz)
GIass
(Hagaz)
Farmers/homads Very liIIle chahge ih
!armihg pracIices over
decades
Ohly local varieIy o!
crops used
CrouhdhuI, sorghum ahd pearl milleI
!rom Kereh
Hassahi goaIs !rom Sudah
8arka caIIle !rom Cash 8arka zoba
1racIor
Cushia culIivaIioh
Crop varieIies ahd
ahimal breeds
!rom Sudah
WaIer pump
MihisIry o!
AgriculIure
MeIal plough
1racIor ploughihg
Chemical !erIilizer
VeIerihary services
Fayoumi poulIry
DAP !erIilizer
ICMV 221 pearl milleI
CaIIle vaccihaIioh
ICMV 221 pearl
milleI
Church LgypIiah poulIry
21
Yada: Klatiuada
INfORMATION MAPPING
1Le inlormation mapping metLoo (see C`!arell 2001, Eamirez 1997, ano Eees et al. 2000)
LigLligLteo key oillerences letveen tLe villages vitL respect to tLeir inlormation sources.
¡n Alella, vLicL lies 7 km on a tar roao lrom tovn, larmers Lave very lev sources ol
inlormation (!igure 2). At tLe village level tLey communicate mostly vitL otLer larmers
lor inlormation ano aovice. 1Ley consioer tLis to le tLe most lrequent source tLat can
le very easily accesseo lor uselul ano relialle inlormation. 1Le village aoministration
is rankeo secono since it can le easily accesseo occasionally lor mooerately uselul
ano relialle inlormation. ÞeigLlouring villages ano markets take tLiro place. Contact
larmers, otLer traineo larmers ano tLe Þational Lnion ol ¡ritrean Women are rankeo
lourtL.
1Le MoA sul-zoba ollice is consioereo to le a source ol mooerately relialle inlormation
lut ooes not score LigL in lrequency ol contact ano access, partly lecause tLe ollice ooes
not Lave a veLicle lor stall movement. ¡nlormation provioeo ly tLe MoA sul-zoba ollice
is mostly alout tLe use ol lertilizers, insecticioes, seeos ano animal Luslanory. Since tLe
Lecentralisation Act vas implementeo, contact vitL tLe MoA sul-zoba ollice is olten
tLrougL tLe ollice ol tLe village aoministrator.
figure 2. In!ormation Mapping, A!eIba
AsLera vas tLe most isolateo community stuoieo, vitL a journey ol 10 km on oirt roao
ano 2 km on tar roao to reacL tLe nearest tovn. !armers oepeno on government institutions
ano cLannels lor inlormation ano knovleoge lrom outsioe tLe community (!igure 3). 1Le
cost ol accessing inlormation is consioereo ly tLe villagers to le expensive, in lotL cost ano
travel time, in comparison to similar journeys. WLen larmers neeo to contact tLe MoA ollice
in Hagaz, tLey usually oo it tLrougL tLe village aoministrator lut tLey oo not alvays get a
response lecause stall lack transport.
Dekemhare
Market
National Union of
Eritrean Women
Farmers in
neighbouring villages
Sub-o Ministry
of Agriculture
Farmer
Farmers in
the same village
Sub-o Local
Government
Village
administrator
Contact and trained
farmers in the
same village
Sub-Zoba
Village
22
Agricultural Knouledge and Injornation Systens in Eritrea
Participants in tLe inlormation mapping activity (tLree vomen ano lour men) spoke
ol tLeir contact vitL tLe Ministry mainly in terms ol services tLey receive, particularly
veterinary services ano tractor plougLing unoer tLe ¡ntegrateo !arming ScLeme. 1Ley Lave
receiveo aovice on Lov mucL lertilizer to use per Lectare lor grain crops, lut oo not leel tLey
Lave enougL knovleoge to optimise tLeir use ol lertilizers. 1raining Las leen given on plant
protection (to men) ano on poultry (to vomen), ano tLe animal LealtL expert Las given one
oay`s training on animal Luslanory.
!armers oo not get any agricultural aovice or inlormation over tLe raoio, ano very little
tLrougL tLe contact larmers vLo, tLey suggest, Lave no incentive to provioe it. ¡xcLange ol
inlormation vitL otLer larmers is important to tLem: it is easy to access ano communication
is continuous. Hovever, it may not alvays le accurate. 1Le overall impression gaineo
in AsLera is tLat tLe Ministry is regaroeo as a LigLly creoille source ol inlormation ano
aovice, lut is very oillicult to access oirectly. Apart lrom larmer-to-larmer communication,
most llovs ol inlormation vere oescrileo as 'lov lrequency`. 1Le exception vas veterinary
inlormation ano service vLicL tLey saio is availalle tLrougLout tLe year. 1Lis perLaps
rellects tLeir villingness to pay tLe cost ol travel or senoing someone to tLe Hagaz veterinary
clinic il tLeir animals are sick.
figure 3. In!ormation Mapping, Ashera
National Union
of Eritrean
Women/
branch
Red Cross Ministry of
Agriculture
office
National Union
of Eritrean
Women,
sub-
Contact
farmer
Eritrean
Commercial
Bank
Local
administration
Farmers Farmers
Village
administrator
Ministry of
Agriculture
experts
Zoba
Sub-zoba
Village
23
Yada: Klatiuada
figure 4. In!ormation Mapping, GIass
Other
sub-o
National
Assembly
member
National
Union of
Eritrean
Women
EPDDJ
(party)
Hagaz
Agrotechnical
school
Catholic
NGO
ECDF
(military
camp)
Livestock
market
Local
shops
Farmers in
neighbouring
villages
Fruit and
vegetable
producers
co-operative
National/international
Zoba
Village/sub-zoba
Farmers in the viIIage
(men and women)
Sudan
Asmara
agricultural
markets
Pesticide
dealers
Shops
Agricultural
markets
Livestock
markets
o
administration
Subo
administration
Local
administration
(village)
Dairy
co-operative
Nuns
in the village
Other
farmers
in the village
Ministry of
Agriculture
MOA
Keren
MOA
Hagaz
MOA
veterinary
clinic
24
Agricultural Knouledge and Injornation Systens in Eritrea
1Lese linkage oiagrams are not necessarily a complete ano accurate representation ol
tLe AI¡S: tLey represent tLe oirect sources ano cLannels vitL vLicL larmers excLange
inlormation, ano larmers` perceptions ol Lov tLese sources are linkeo to otLers. !armers
are not necessarily vell inlormeo alout linkages among tLe otLer actors in tLe AI¡S. !or
example, AsLera inlormants tLougLt tLat tLe Eeo Cross in Ieren vas someLov involveo in
tLe llov ol inlormation relating to looo ano agriculture lut tLey vere not clear Lov it linkeo
to otLer organizations.
!armers in Glass, situateo only 2 km lrom tovn on a tar roao, Lave access to a vioe
range ol inlormation sources (!igure +). ¡n aooition, tLey can get inlormation ano aovice
lrom local ano more oistant markets, ano lrom stall at tLe cLurcL ano scLool in tLe village.
1Le inlormants ioentilieo over 20 separate sources ano cLannels ol inlormation vitL vLicL
larmers in tLe village Lave oirect contact. ¡n tLeir linkage oiagram, tLey oio not incluoe
sources vitL vLicL tLey oio not tLemselves Lave oirect contact, apart lrom tLose vitLin tLe
MoA ano tLe local aoministration. 1Lree leatures ol tLis oiagram are vortL noting:
compareo to larmers in AsLera, tLose in Glass Lave access to many more institutions
vLicL are potential sources ol inlormation, incluoing markets (local, zoba ano national),
cLurcL-laseo institutions ano inoiviouals, tLe agro-tecLnical scLool ano tvo recently
lormeo co-operatives,
in aooition to larmer-to-larmer excLange ol inlormation vitLin tLe village, participants
reporteo interaction vitL larmers in otLer villages,
at least some larmers Lave oirect links to national ano international sources ol
inlormation.
Hovever, linoings lrom otLer metLoos inoicate tLat larmers in Glass still leel tLey neeo
more inlormation ano aovice. Availalility ol, ano access to, cLannels ooes not guarantee tLat
all inlormation neeos vill le aoequately met.
HOU5EHOLD INTERVIEW5
!urtLer oetails alout inlormation sources vere revealeo tLrougL inoivioual LouseLolo
intervievs. WitLin eacL village tLe inlormation neeos vere louno to vary letveen various
socio-economic ano genoer categories, tLese oillerences vere sultle in Alella lut vere more
oistinct in Glass.
¡n Alella, larmers in tLe same village are tLe most lrequenteo source ol relialle
inlormation vitL very easy access. Village local aoministrator is consioereo a mooerately
lrequent source vitL very easy access ano mooerately relialle inlormation. MoA sul-
zoba experts are regaroeo as a source ol mooerately relialle inlormation lut oo not rank
LigL on lrequency ano access. Eaoio is consioereo as a relialle source ol inlormation vitL
mooerately easy access ly many ol tLe intervievees. 1Le cLurcL is also consioereo ly some
to le a source ol inlormation. 1Lere are some genoer-laseo oillerences in inlormation ano
knovleoge neeos: vomen vere interesteo in training in poultry keeping ano vegetalle
garoening vLile men are interesteo in soil ano vater conservation, crop Luslanory ano
crop protection.
¡ano resources are seriously oegraoeo in Alella ano tLere is a sLortage ol vater so most
LouseLolos Lave similar rainleo larming enterprises. Lue to tLe Deisa lano tenure system,
vLere larmlano is reoistriluteo equally every seven years, most LouseLolos Lave similar
amount quality ol larmlano ano most Lave some livestock (except some LouseLolos Leaoeo
ly vomen). Since tLey Lave similar larming enterprises, tLeir inlormation neeos teno to le
similar. 1Le market in LekemLare Las little impact on commercial agricultural oevelopment
25
Yada: Klatiuada
ol Alella since larmers are unalle to proouce surplus lor sale oue to lano oegraoation ano
vater sLortages.
¡n Glass, tLe lano tenure is tLe Tsilni/Bsti system vLere sons inLerit tLe user rigLt.
Consequently, some LouseLolos Lave more lano tLan otLers ano some Lave irrigalle lanos
vLile otLers oo not. 1Le market is nearly vitL gooo roao conoitions. 1Lere are oillerent
types ol larm enterprises ano tLerelore, tLe inlormation neeos ol tLe village are more
varieo. ¡nlormation lrom otLer larmers vitLin tLe village is consioereo to le very uselul
ano relialle vitL LigL lrequency ol contact, ano very easy access. ¡nlormation lrom village
local aoministration is consioereo to le mooerately uselul ano relialle vitL mooerate
lrequency ol contact ano very easy access. ¡nlormation lrom tLe MoA is tLougLt to le
mooerately relialle lut tLe lrequency ol contact ano access is not LigL. Eaoio is consioereo
as a very relialle source ol inlormation vitL mooerate lrequency ol contact ano easy
access. Villagers saio tLat tLe contact larmer Lao little interaction vitL tLe larmers in tLe
village.
INVENTORY Of EXI5TING RURAL INfORMATION 5OURCE5
1Le Village Aoministration Cllice is tLe most lrequenteo centre ol inlormation ano aovice.
¡t comes unoer tLe Ministry ol ¡ocal Government. All otLer ministries cLannel tLeir
inlormation to villages tLrougL tLis ollice. ¡t is manneo ly an aoministrator ano a secretary,
vLo are assisteo ano aoviseo ly tLe village council. 1Ley Lave an ollice in a luiloing ano in
some villages tLey also Lave a lilrary vitL looklets, pampLlets, posters ano pictures relating
to pullic LealtL, eoucation, ano agricultural oevelopment.
1Le constraints tLey lace are untraineo stall ano a lack ol resources to luy inlormation
materials. 1Ley oo not Lave notice loaros ano tLey lack transport veLicles. 1o make tLem
more ellective, stall sLoulo le traineo in tLe skills ol communication, conoucting meetings,
ano lilrary management. 1Ley neeo to le provioeo vitL vLite/llack loaros, ano simple
lattery operateo slioe projectors.
ScLools are an important source ano cLannel ol inlormation. 1Le MoA uses tLeir lacilities
to conouct larmers` meetings. Hovever, tLey lack gooo lilraries ano neeo assistance to
oevelop tLem.
¡n many villages tLe cLurcL plays an important role in inlormation oissemination. ¡t is
useo ly ÞGCs to cLannel tLeir messages. !armers visit tLe cLurcL to get inlormation on
LealtL, eoucation ano agricultural oevelopment, especially on seeo ano poultry matters. ¡t
is a permanent ano sustainalle institution. CLurcLes voulo le more ellective il tLey vere
supplieo vitL looklets, posters, pampLlets etc.
!armers generally visit tLe market place in tLe sul-zoba every veek to sell tLeir proouce
ano luy tLeir LouseLolo requirements. 1Lis is a very important centre lor excLange ol
inlormation as it is a gatLering place lor a large numler ol larmers lrom many villages. 1Lere
are no estallisLeo mecLanisms ol inlormation transler at tLe marketplace. An inlormation
corner at a prominent place insioe tLe market, vitL lulletin loaros lor notices, posters,
pictures ano pampLlets, voulo make a uselul tool lor oissemination. 1Lis voulo also apply
to livestock markets. !urtLermore, many livestock keepers move tLeir animals regularly to
vatering points vLere inlormation regaroing animal LealtL, oiseases ano tLeir prevention
coulo le oisplayeo on notice loaros.
Women in tLe village lrequent village vells vLicL can le an important source ol inlormation
lor lamily planning, motLer ano cLilo nutrition, reproouctive LealtL, eoucation etc. Assistance
to provioe inlormation loaros at sucL places voulo make tLem more ellective.
26
Agricultural Knouledge and Injornation Systens in Eritrea
Almost in every village tLere is a small sLop tLat sells lasic groceries. ¡t is a very common
meeting place ano an inlormal inlormation excLange centre vLicL neeos to le supporteo
vitL notice loaros ano a regular supply ol inlormation materials.
BotL in Hagaz ano LekemLare tLere are tvo types ol cooperatives: Lorticulture
cooperatives ano oairy cooperatives. 1Le Lorticulture cooperatives provioe inlormation ano
services alout purcLasing inputs like seeo, lertilizer, vater pumps ano insecticioes. 1Ley
also organise tLe storage ano sale ol memlers` proouce. Lairy cooperatives Lave similar
lunctions. 1Lese organizations neeo training in linancial management, accounting, meeting
proceoures ano tLe lormulation ol constitutions ano lylavs. 1Ley also neeo assistance in
luiloing an inlormation unit.
1Le Þational Lnion ol ¡ritrean Women is a very large national organization tLat Las its
presence in every village ol tLe country. 1Lere is a cLairperson in eacL village ano several
memlers. 1Ley provioe inlormation mostly on matters ol pullic LealtL, nutrition, cLilocare,
girl ano inlormal eoucation. 1Ley neeo aooitional training in areas ol tLeir interest.
1Le Þational Lnion ol ¡ritrean YoutLs ano Stuoents is anotLer important national
organization. ¡ts memlersLip comes lrom youtLs ano stuoents. 1Ley are very active in
national service tLat incluoes summer campaigns as vell. 1Ley plant trees ano construct
terraces lor soil conservation. 1Ley assist larmers in Larvesting crops vLen tLere is an
acute sLortage ol lalour. 1Ley neeo more training lelore tLey lecome engageo in project
implementation.
1Le Agency lor Cooperation ano EesearcL in Levelopment (ACCEL) is an ÞGC tLat
is active in tLe soutLern zoba ol tLe country oealing mainly vitL rural micro-linance. ¡t
provioes inlormation on tLe linancial vialility ano prolitalility ol projects. ¡ittle, il any,
external support is neeoeo. 1Le ÞGC can le utiliseo as a resource lor training MoA stall
ano larmers.
Contact larmers are part-time (lor tLree to lour montLs) employees ol MoA. 1Ley receive
some training ano are expecteo to Lelp larmers vitL inlormation ouring tLe larming season.
1Lis stuoy revealeo tLat larmers are not very satislieo vitL tLeir vork. 1Ley seem to le
accountalle to tLe sul-zoba agricultural ollice lrom vLere tLey get tLeir salary, ratLer tLan
to tLe larmers. Contact larmers voulo le more ellective il tLey lecame accountalle to tLe
larmers ano villagers vLo sLoulo evaluate tLeir perlormance annually. Cn tLe lasis ol sucL
evaluation tLeir contract coulo le eitLer reneveo or terminateo.
CONCLU5ION5
1Le analysis ol AI¡S can le very uselul in assessing inlormation neeos ano examining
inlormation provision options lor tLe rural population. 1Le village stuoies oemonstrateo
researcL tecLniques tLat can le replicateo to assist ellorts to move tovaros a more oemano-
oriven ano participatory extension system. 1Le linoings suggest tLat, given tLe constraint ol
limiteo pullic resources in ¡ritrea, tLere is consioeralle scope lor enLancing tLe role ol rural
meeting points to lunction as inlormal inlormation centres to complement tLe lormal ano
relatively expensive institutions.
¡acL village is unique ano oillers lrom otLers in respect ol its inlormation system
vLicL is inlluenceo ly many lactors. 1Le most important is tLe oiversity ol tLe larm
enterprises vLicL oepeno on gooo quality lano, vater lor irrigation ano tLe lano tenure
system. ¡ocation (oistance lrom market) ano molility (cost ol transport) vere louno to
le important parameters lor tLe AI¡S as tLey largely oetermineo tLe cost ol access to
inlormation. 1Le market plays an important role in a rural inlormation system. Hovever,
27
Yada: Klatiuada
its impact is oepenoent on tLe level ol commercialisation tLat is usually lov in resource
poor areas.
1Le role ol cLurcL ano village scLools as sources ol inlormation varies letveen villages
ano teno to le more important vitL regaro to eoucation ano pullic LealtL matters. 1Lere
are some village lilraries in rural areas, sucL as tLe one in Glass, tLat contains looklets on
pullic LealtL, eoucation ano agriculture. CtLer inlormal centres lor inlormation excLange
vere not examineo in tLis stuoy, sucL as village vells vLere vomen collect orinking vater,
vatering points lor animals ano village teasLops.
AnotLer key point in tLis stuoy is tLe importance ol larmers` perceptions alout tLe
quality ol inlormation tLat is maoe availalle lor tLem as vell as tLe quality ol access to tLat
inlormation, in estallisLing an extension system tLat is accountalle to tLe larmers.
REfERENCE5
GarlortL, C. 2001, Agricultural Knouledge and Injornation Systens in Eritrea - a study
conducted in sub-zola Hagaz, !AC-LAÞ¡LA-Ministry ol Agriculture Government ol
¡ritrea
C`!arrell, C. 2001, 'Mapping inlormation llovs metLooology` Brieling note lor researcL
project on De:eloping Appropriate ICTs jor Sustainable Li:eliloods A¡ELL, 1Le
Lniversity ol Eeaoing (mimeo)
Eamirez, E. 1997, Understanding Farners' Connunication Netuorks· Conbining PBA
uitl Agricultural Knouledge Systens, Analysis Gatekeeper Series 66, ¡nternational
¡nstitute lor ¡nvironment ano Levelopment, ¡onoon
Eees, L., Momanyi, M., WekunoaL, j., Þoungu, !., Coonoi, j., Cyure, A.C., Anoima,
L., Iamau, M., Þouli, j., Musemli, !., Mvaura, ¡. & joloersma, E. 2000, Agricultural
Knouledge and Injornation Systens in Kenya ÷ Inplications jor Teclnology Dissenination
and De:elopnent AgE¡Þ Þetvork Paper 107, CL¡, ¡onoon lrom Lttp://vvv.elois.
org/static/LCC8357.Ltm
29
ChapIer 4
In!ormation Asymmetry among Output
Traders, Processors and farmers in Uganda
Ldward Kato
6
and Lphraim Þkonya
7
INTRODUCTION
1Le ¡nternational !ooo Policy EesearcL ¡nstitute (¡!PE¡) Las leen implementing a project
calleo 'Policies lor ¡mproveo ¡ano Management Project in Lganoa` in oroer to ioentily
policy options lor improving lano management to alleviate tLe prollem ol soil oegraoation
in tLe country. Cne project activity vas to survey 352 output traoers, 82 processors ano
208 larmers to estallisL tLeir inlormation requirements, tLeir use ol inlormation ano tLeir
prelerences lor oillerent inlormation sources.
INfORMATION 5OURCE5
1Le major source ol oay-to-oay market inlormation lor traoers ano larmers is speaking vitL
otLer traoers ano otLer larmers respectively (1alle 1). ¡nlormation lrom otLer traoers may
le more relialle tLan lrom otLer larmers since traoers are more eoucateo ano letter inlormeo
alout prices ano markets. Speaking vitL regular customers is anotLer important source ol
oaily market inlormation lor agricultural traoers ano processors, vLile inlormation lrom tLe
raoio is important lor larmers. 1Le use ol nevspapers, internet, e-mail ano telepLone is still
very limiteo, vitL processors making most use ol tLese sources at present.
TabIe 1. Day-to-day 5ources o! Price and Market In!ormation
Main source o! day-to-day price in!ormation
Output traders
(N = 352)
Processors
(N=82)
farmers (N=208)
%
Persohal observaIioh 4 9 0
Speakihg wiIh regular cusIomers 34 48 0
Speakihg wiIh regular supplies 3 2 0
Speakihg wiIh ihIermediaries (agehI, broker) 3 7 0
Speakihg wiIh oIher Iraders/!armers 45 14 73
Radio 2 2 23
Newspaper 0 2 1
IhIerheI, e-mail, Ielephohe 7 16 0
Source: IFPRI survey daIa 1999-2001
6
¡nternational !ooo Policy EesearcL ¡nstitute.
7
¡nternational !ooo Policy EesearcL ¡nstitute ([email protected]).
30
Injornation Asynnetry anong Output Traders, Processors and Farners in Uganda
1Lere are several government parastatals vitL a legally estallisLeo manoate to collect
ano oisseminate price ano market inlormation to traoers ano larmers, sucL as Lganoa
Collee Levelopment AutLority (LCLA), Cotton Levelopment Crganization (CLC),
ano Ministry ol 1raoe ano ¡noustry. Cutput traoers ano processors Lave letter access tLan
larmers to relialle ano oetaileo inlormation lrom tLese institutions (1alle 2), partly lecause
tLey are laseo in urlan areas vLere most traoers ano processors operate.
TabIe 2. InstitutionaI 5ources o! Price and Market In!ormation
In!ormation sources Output traders
(N=352)
Processors
(N=82)
farmers
(N=208)
%
Are you avare o!.
UCDA radio programme 64 76 48
UCDA daily Iermihal price ih!ormaIioh 54 48 18
CDO mohIhly coIIoh ihdicaIor price ih!ormaIioh 42 38 35
MarkeI hews !rom FoodheI Pro|ecI 25 26 5
Radio price ih!ormaIioh 84 81 62
Newspaper price ih!ormaIioh 75 82 30
Do you Iisten or have access to in!ormation provided by.
UCDA radio programme 66 63 0
UCDA daily Iermihal price ih!ormaIioh 56 45 0
CDO mohIhly coIIoh ihdicaIor price ih!ormaIioh 62 49 1
MarkeI hews !rom FoodheI Pro|ecI 64 57 0
Radio price ih!ormaIioh 85 79 20
Newspaper price ih!ormaIioh 83 81 1

Source: IFPRI survey daIa 1999-2001
Eaoio stations ano nevspapers Lave announcements ano price inlormation releases.
1raoers ano processors Lave LigL accessilility to raoio ano nevspaper price inlormation
(arouno 80 percent) in comparison to only 20 percent ol larmers listening to tLe raoio ano
1 percent consulting nevspapers (1alle 2). 1Le circulation ol nevspapers is still limiteo
to urlan ano peri-urlan areas vitL very lov penetration into rural areas vLere its use is
inLiliteo ly poor transport inlrastructure, poverty ano illiteracy. Lganoa Las a population
ol over 20 million people ano an approximate oaily circulation ol 30,000 nevspaper copies.
Commercial netvorks in oeveloping countries are sometimes oevelopeo tLrougL traoers`
or larmers` associations. Associations may le useo lor market ano price inlormation excLange
among memlers. 1Le results sLov tLat more larmers tLan traoers or processors lelong to
associations ano tLe most important reasons lor tLeir memlersLip are access to creoit ano
mutual support (1alle 3). 1raoers ano processors place more value on tLe provision ol
market ano price inlormation, interestingly tLis reason vas not citeo ly any larmer as a
lenelit ol association memlersLip.
31
Eduard Kato and Eplrain Nkonya
TabIe 3. CommerciaI Netvorks
Association data Output traders
(N=352)
Processors (N=82) farmers (N=208)
%
Do you beIong to an association?
Yes 25 34 79
Advantage derived !rom membership in the
association.
Lasier access Io crediI 28 20 26
Lasier access Io markeI ih!ormaIioh 16 27 0
DevelopmehI o! commercial cohIacIs 5 27 0
Helps Io hegoIiaIe wiIh auIhoriIies/goverhmehI/
cusIoms
8 33 0
OIher 46 67 0
MuIual supporI (!uheral, sickhess) 0 0 24
Source: IFPRI survey daIa 1999-2001
Access to tLe various types ol communication inlrastructure varieo letveen traoers,
processors ano larmers. Cutput traoers ano processors seem to le aoopting mooern
communication inlrastructure incluoing lax, internet, e-mail ano molile pLone (1alle +). Þo
larmer intervieveo ovneo a molile pLone, telepLone, lax or computer, or useo tLe internet.
1Le only inlormation meoium larmers Lave access to is tLe raoio (ano even tLen, tLat is only
31 percent ol tLe sample vLereas nearly all output traoers ano processors ovn raoios). Since
most Lganoan larmers are locateo in rural areas vitLout access to electricity, ory cells are
neeoeo to operate a raoio lut tLey are unalloroalle, tLerely limiting tLe raoio`s ellectiveness
as a tool lor vioe oissemination ol inlormation.
TabIe 4. Access to Communication In!rastructure
Communication in!rastructure
Output traders
(N =352 )
Processors
(N=82 )
farmers
(N=208)
%
Owh a mobile phohe 18 48 0
Owh a lahdlihe Ielephohe 12 33 0
Has access Io Ielephohe hearby 47 76 0
Has a !ax machihe 6 14 0
Use a compuIer !or busihess operaIiohs 7 18 0
Has access Io ihIerheI or e-mail 7 16 0
Has a radio 95 99 31
Source: IFPRI survey daIa 1999-2001
32
Injornation Asynnetry anong Output Traders, Processors and Farners in Uganda
INfORMATION REÇUIREMENT5 AND DI55EMINATION METHOD5
Market inlormation neeos oiller letveen traoers, processors ano larmers. ¡nlormation on
market opportunities is a major requirement lor larmers, more so tLan inlormation on prices
vLicL tLey take as given since tLey are price-takers. Processors ano output traoers consioer
price inlormation to le more important tLan marketing opportunities, a rellection tLat tLey
may Lave tLe pover to inlluence prices, especially il tLey operate in an oligopoly (1alle 5).

TabIe 5. In!ormation Requirements, Dissemination and Use
In!ormation characteristics
Output traders
(N=352)
Processors
(N=82)
farmers
(N=208)
%
Types o! in!ormation needed.
MarkeIihg opporIuhiIy 24 0 58
NoIi!icaIioh o! Iehders 4 0 3
Price ih!ormaIioh 68 69 0
IhpuI sources 0 0 43
OIhers 4 15 12

Use o! price and market in!ormation.
A!!ecI purchasihg decisiohs 52 53 18
A!!ecI sales decisiohs 38 26 84
A!!ecI sIockihg decisiohs 15 31 30
A!!ecI ihvesImehI decisioh 20 16 11

Proposed most e!!ective method in providing price and
market in!ormation
Radio 48 39 58
1V 4 0 0
PosI bulleIih 2 0 0
1elephohe 20 8 1
Press 4 15 1
CohversaIioh 22 23 26
Correspohdehce 0 8 0
OIher 0 8 15
Source: IFPRI survey daIa 1999-2001
Eaoio appears to le tLe prelerreo source ol marketing inlormation ly all tLree categories
ol responoents. Hovever, even il inlormation is oisseminateo tLrougL tLis cLannel lever
larmers vill Lave access to it lecause ol tLeir limiteo ovnersLip ol raoios. Similarly, tLe
use ol television ano nevspapers or otLer printeo meoia typically useo ly government
parastatals or institutions lor oisseminating inlormation voulo principally lenelit processors
ano traoers ano not reacL poor larmers.
Verlal communication is also a popular source ol inlormation vitL all tLree groups.
1Lis points to tLe neeo lor contact vitL extension stall lor marketing inlormation. 1Le
current state ol extension services in tLe country is inaoequate in terms ol stalling ano
logistics. Moreover, extension vorkers in tLe Ministry ol Agriculture teno to Lave letter
knovleoge ano access to crop ano livestock proouction inlormation tLan marketing ano
price inlormation. 1Lere is almost no oirect extension service to traoers ano processors.
33
Eduard Kato and Eplrain Nkonya
CONCLU5ION5
1Le current extension system locuses on proouction ano Luslanory, ano overlooks
marketing ano market inlormation. 1Lere is a neeo to equip extension agents in tLe regions
vitL price ano market inlormation lor oissemination to larmers ouring tLeir oay-to-oay
extension activities.
1Le results Lave sLovn tLat many larmers lelong to associations tLat oo not seem to
provioe price ano market inlormation to tLeir memlers. 1Lere is a neeo to encourage
larmers` associations to provioe market ano price inlormation. ¡nstitutional price ano market
inlormation metLoos coulo le cLannelleo tLrougL tLese associations to tLeir memlers.
All tLe responoent categories proposeo tLe raoio as tLe prelerreo communication meoium.
Governments sLoulo consioer reoucing tax on tLe lov cost raoio ano ory cells to make tLem
more alloroalle to larmers. 1Lere is an increasing numler ol !M regional raoio stations in
all tLe country tLat coulo le useo to oisseminate inlormation to tLe local population in tLeir
ovn local languages ano at Lours convenient lor larmers.
1Lere is still lov use ol tLe inlormation in tLe printeo meoia especially ly larmers.
Village, region or parisL loaros coulo le estallisLeo at convenient points vLere lulletins,
catalogues ano nevspapers vitL tLe veekly price inlormation releaseo ly tLe government or
otLer institutions is oisplayeo. !armers ano traoers coulo le encourageo to visit tLese loaros
lelore tLey make tLeir sale or purcLase oecision.
Accessilility to internet, e-mail, or lax as means ol communication is lov among
traoers, processors ano larmers. Government or oonor agencies may Lelp to oecentralise
communication ano strengtLen tLe oistricts` inlormation capacity ly equipping tLem vitL
inlormation systems tLat voulo enalle prompt access to market ano price inlormation
vitLin oistricts.
35
ChapIer 5
ßringing Market In!ormation to farmers.
Opportunities through fM Radio
Andrew Shepherd
8
INTRODUCTION
Market inlormation can le sLovn to Lave signilicant lenelits lor larmers ano also traoers.
Lnlortunately, inlormation on market prices, quantities traoeo, ano otLer marketing-
relateo matters rarely reacLes larmers in oeveloping countries. ¡nlormation tecLnologies,
in particular larm raoio, voulo appear to represent important vays ol overcoming tLis
prollem, il oilliculties relating to inlormation availalility ano cost can le overcome.
1Le paper lrielly revievs tLe lenelits ol market inlormation. ¡t tLen consioers tLe
prollems vitL existing market inlormation sources ano gives examples ol initiatives to
overcome sucL prollems, in part tLrougL using local raoio stations.
ßENEfIT5 Of MARKET INfORMATION
!armers may use market inlormation in tvo vays. Current, or immeoiate, inlormation can
le useo to negotiate vitL traoers, to oecioe vLetLer or not to go to market ano, in some
cases, to oecioe vLicL market to visit or supply. Historical inlormation, sucL as a time series
ol prices over several years, can le useo to make oecisions regaroing proouct oiversilication
or tLe proouction ol out-ol-season crops. ¡t may even le useo to Lelp sulsistence larmers
ioentily opportunities lor a casL income (SLepLero 1997).
At tLe simplest level, tLe availalility ol market inlormation enalles larmers to cLeck on
tLe prices tLey receive, vis-a-vis tLe prevailing market prices. Cne ol tLe lest examples ol tLis
comes lrom ¡noonesia, vLere market prices lor vegetalles are lroaocast oaily on provincial
raoio stations lor all major proouction areas. Þearly all larmers listen to ano use tLese
lroaocasts. ¡l tLey receive prices lover tLan tLose lroaocast tLey may, lor example, concluoe
tLat tLey sLoulo sell to otLer traoers in luture, negotiate more lorcelully or try to improve
tLe quality ano presentation ol tLeir proouce. Broaocast prices are also useo as a starting
point in negotiations vitL traoers tLe lolloving oay ano tLe availalility ol tLe ¡noonesian
market inlormation service (M¡S) enalles larmers to negotiate lrom a position ol relative
strengtL (SLepLero ano ScLalke 1995).
!ev otLer countries Lave eitLer tLe concentration ol vegetalle larmers in a limiteo
numler ol proouction pockets or tLe necessary resources to contemplate sucL a service at
a national level. ÞevertLeless, even a simple service ollering regular price inlormation lor
one or tvo markets can le lenelicial to larmers. ¡nlormation reouces tLe costs ol selling
tLe proouce ly reoucing risks. A stuoy in GLana, lor example, louno tLat many prooucers,
lacking market inlormation, leareo tLat tLe cost ol marketing voulo exceeo tLeir selling
8
Marketing ¡conomist, Agricultural Management, Marketing ano !inance Service (AGS!), !AC, Eome
([email protected]).
36
Bringing Market Injornation to Farners· Opportunities tlrougl FM Badio
prices ano tLus oio not go to market. ¡n an extreme case, larmers vitL tLe necessary price
inlormation must sometimes make tLe rational oecision to plougL tLeir crops into tLe
grouno. But sucL a oecision sLoulo le laseo on relialle inlormation ratLer tLan on possilly
unlounoeo concerns alout lov prices.
Prices lor a particular proouct in one market may oiller signilicantly lrom prices lor tLe
same proouct in anotLer market. ¡n tLeory, tLe provision ol market inlormation permits
larmers ano traoers to take aovantage ol sucL price oillerences. ¡n reality, Lovever, tLis is
not oone as olten as migLt le expecteo. ¡n part tLis is lecause lotL larmers ano traoers Lave
strong linkages vitL particular markets, linkages vLicL may involve lamily, trilal or creoit
olligations. ¡noivioual larmers may not le alle to acLieve tLe economies ol scale necessary
to visit more oistant markets. Also, tLe LigL-priceo markets may Lave only limiteo sales ano
attempting to supply tLem presents tLe risk lor larmers ano traoers tLat tLey may arrive at
tLe market only to oiscover tLat otLers Lave got tLere lelore tLem. As inlormation availalle
to traoers improves, sucL 'spatial arlitrage` opportunities are increasingly sLort-liveo.
!or example, several countries in tLe Central ano ¡astern ¡uropean region Lave reporteo
signilicant reouctions in price oillerences alter tLe introouction ol market inlormation
services. ¡n Allania, lor instance, tLe availalle inlormation alout more oistant markets Lao
leen very limiteo lecause lotL roaos ano telecommunications vere lao lut, as tLe result ol
an M¡S leing introouceo, tLere vas a noticealle reouction in price oillerences (CLristopLer
Grace, pers. comm.).
WLile, inoivioually, larmers may le unalle to take aovantage ol limiteo spatial arlitrage
possililities, collectively tLey may le alle to organise transport to more oistant ano
prolitalle markets. Marketing ly groups ol larmers is not vitLout its prollems ano, vLile
ollering some attractions, Las not leen vioely taken up in practice. ¡n general, cooperative
involvement in marketing ooes not Lave a gooo track recoro. ¡mproveo availalility ol
inlormation may, Lovever, encourage more group marketing initiatives, vLicL can acLieve
tLe necessary economies ol scale lor larmers to oeliver to markets outsioe tLeir immeoiate
area.
EXI5TING INfORMATION 5OURCE5
A market inlormation service commonly involves tLe collection on a regular lasis ol
inlormation on prices ano, in some cases, quantities ol vioely traoeo agricultural prooucts,
lrom rural assemlly markets, vLolesale ano retail markets, as appropriate, ano oissemination
ol tLis inlormation on a timely ano regular lasis tLrougL various meoia to larmers, traoers,
government ollicials, policy-makers ano otLers. Most countries Lave introouceo government-
run M¡S at one time or anotLer. By ano large tLese Lave laileo to meet tLeir oljectives ano
Lave experienceo prollems ol sustainalility. M¡S teno to tLrive vLile supporteo ly oonor
projects, only to laoe avay vLen tLe oonors leave, until resuscitateo ly a nev oonor. WLile
most countries oo Lave sucL a national service, tLere are notalle exceptions. ¡n SoutL Alrica,
lor example, tLe Þational Lepartment ol Agriculture Las lully recogniseo tLe neeo lor an M¡S
lut Las leen unalle to oltain nev resources or reallocate existing resources to set up one.
Many M¡S lunction as oata collectors vLile losing sigLt ol tLe original purpose ol tLe
oata collection, i.e. to assist larmers ano traoers to make commercially uselul oecisions. ¡n
BanglaoesL, lor example, veekly price inlormation is collecteo lrom 150 oillerent markets,
lut little ol tLis is maoe availalle to larmers. Lissemination is almost alvays tLe veakest point
ano tLis is maoe increasingly oillicult ly tLe lact tLat government-ovneo raoio stations are
increasingly requireo to le commercially minoeo. 1Lis Las leo to tLe groving insistence ol
many raoio stations tLat tLey sLoulo le paio lor lroaocasting price inlormation. ¡n Ienya,
37
Andreu Sleplerd
quoteo rates lor a veekly lroaocast are saio to le as LigL as LS$ 120,000 per annum. ¡n
Lganoa, a lee ol LS$ 20,000 per annum per language Las leen quoteo. ¡n 1anzania tLe cLarge
is LS$10,000 per annum lor veekly national lroaocasts in SvaLili (S. !erris, pers. comm.).
CtLer veaknesses ol M¡S incluoe paying inaoequate attention to tLe quality ol tLe oata
collecteo (vLicL can olten le poor ano not an accurate rellection ol prevailing market
prices) ano collecting ano oisseminating inlormation on prices very inlrequently. Prices ol
Lorticultural proouce in major markets are constantly cLanging lut M¡S may collect price
inlormation only veekly or even once every tvo veeks. WLile sucL inlormation can le useo
lor long-term purposes it ooes not really Lelp larmers to negotiate vitL traoers or to oecioe
vLetLer or not to seno proouce to market. Þational M¡S olten oisseminate inlormation in a
lorm vLicL is unsuitalle lor some larmers. Some M¡S pullisL market prices in nevspapers
lut oo not lroaocast tLem on tLe raoio. ¡n some countries nevspapers only reacL rural
areas slovly ano, moreover, many larmers are illiterate. WLere lroaocasts are useo tLese are
usually only on national raoio ano are olten only in one or tvo languages, vLicL cannot le
unoerstooo ly all larmers. Broaocasts are olten at times vLicL are inconvenient lor larmers
to listen, unless tLey take tLeir raoios to tLe lielos vitL tLem.
¡n years gone ly, a popular vay ol oisseminating market inlormation vas to use notice
loaros in villages or markets. Hovever, M¡S lrequently lorgot to upoate tLe inlormation on
tLe loaros, vLicL eventually lecame oamageo. Alternatively, prices vere lelt on tLe loaros
vitL no oate, so tLat larmers Lao no ioea ol tLe oay to vLicL tLe prices relerreo. A local
inlormation service in GLana also trieo to use loaros lut louno tLat lrequent rains vasLeo
oll tLe inlormation lelore larmers coulo see it.
WLilst it is relatively simple to list prollems, it is mucL more oillicult to resolve tLem.
¡n many countries market inlormation services are ooing a gooo jol, ano in otLers tLey are
vorking Laro to overcome prollems. Almost all suller lrom a sLortage ol money to oo tLe
jol properly. ¡n many cases rural raoio stations visLing to lroaocast market inlormation
vill Lave to rely on sucL M¡S, as tLere are at present lev, il any, otLer lormal sources ol
inlormation.
!armers may oltain inlormation lrom otLer larmers or traoers lut lotL sources are
unrelialle, lor lairly olvious reasons. ¡nlormation availalle to rural traoers on urlan market
prices is almost certainly more up-to-oate tLan tLat provioeo ly market inlormation services,
traoers regularly visit tLese markets ano also learn alout market conoitions lrom otLer
traoers. ¡ncreasingly, traoers are nov in oirect contact vitL markets ly stanoaro telepLone
ano, vLere availalle, cell pLone. Hovever, it is in a traoer`s interest to maximise Lis or Ler
prolits ano a strategy to acLieve tLis is unlikely to incluoe giving unliaseo inlormation to
larmers. !armers, vLo may not le alle to alloro a raoio, let alone a cell pLone, are rarely
in a position to argue. CtLer larmers can le an important source ol market inlormation,
particularly alout local markets. At tLe same time, it sLoulo not le assumeo tLat inlormation
lrom otLer larmers is alvays relialle. 1Ley may rememler tLe total price tLey receiveo, lut
may not Lave knovn tLe exact veigLt tLat tLey solo (particularly vLen using non-stanoaro
containers), ano tLus cannot provioe relialle inlormation on tLe price per kilogram. Also,
larmers may teno to exaggerate tLe prices tLey receive. 1Ley may vant otLer larmers to
tLink tLat tLey are eitLer very gooo at negotiating vitL traoers or prooucers ol top-quality
proouce vLicL gets tLe lest prices.
CtLer tLan government M¡S, traoers or otLer larmers, tLere are lev otLer inlormation
sources availalle to most larmers. Þational meoia olten lroaocast commooity prices
provioeo ly marketing loaros. Hovever, tLe treno in Alrica is lor sucL loaros to le closeo
oovn, ano tLe private sector may le less keen to supply price inlormation. ¡nlormation is
38
Bringing Market Injornation to Farners· Opportunities tlrougl FM Badio
sometimes maoe availalle ly lanks ano reproouceo in nevspapers ano magazines. 1Lis is
mainly to le louno vLere tLere are large commercial larms, e.g. in SoutL Alrica vLere tLe
!irst Þational Bank prepares veekly commooity revievs. Some extension services provioe
limiteo market inlormation lut larmers are usually requireo to visit tLe extension ollice to
access it.
NEW APPROACHE5 TO MARKET INfORMATION PROVI5ION
Lilliculties associateo vitL national level market inlormation services Lave encourageo tLe
oevelopment ol nev approacLes, empLasising tLe importance ol inlormation collection ano
oissemination at tLe local level. 1Lis rellects a general treno tovaros tLe oecentralisation ol
government services. !or example, in tLe mio-1990s an !AC project in Zamlia recogniseo
tLat tLe grain marketing lileralisation process voulo le assisteo il larmers Lao access to
inlormation alout market prices, crop luyers ano tLeir luying terms ano conoitions at
provincial level as vell as at national level. Assistance vas provioeo to tLree provinces to
proouce montLly market inlormation nevsletters. Hovever, to oate, tLese experiments Lave
mainly leen supporteo ly external oonors ano it is too early to say vLetLer tLese activities
vill le sustainalle or vLetLer tLey vill experience tLe same prollems as oonor-supporteo
national M¡S.
1Le recent increase in local !M raoio stations is making tLe localisation ol market
inlormation really leasille. ¡n Lganoa, tLe ¡nternational ¡nstitute ol 1ropical Agriculture
(¡¡1A) is vorking vitL Lniteo States Agency lor ¡nternational Levelopment (LSA¡L) ano
tLe 1ecLnical Centre lor Agricultural ano Eural Cooperation ACP-¡L (C1A). LSA¡L is
lunoing a nev national level M¡S tLat collects veekly prices on 28 commooities lrom 19
oistricts ano oisseminates inlormation ly national raoio. 1Lis service lorms tLe lasis lor
pilot scale activities to localise market inlormation, vLicL are supporteo ly C1A. SucL a
move is particularly important in a country like Lganoa vLere many oillerent languages are
spoken.
Cne ol tLe tLree pilot areas in Lganoa presently uses local-language Eaoio Lganoa
services. 1Lis is in tLe eastern part ol tLe country, vLicL Las arouno live million people,
ano incluoes tLree assemlly markets lor maize, i.e. jinja, ¡ganga ano Mlale. 1Lese markets
represent an important source ol maize lor luyers lrom Ienya, as vell as lrom Lganoa.
¡nlormation alout maize is collecteo tLree times a veek ly market reporters vLo are alreaoy
employeo part-time ly tLe national M¡S. ¡ocal ano national price inlormation is lroaocast
locally tLree times a veek.
¡mpLasis is not just on ouplicating tLe price inlormation collecteo ly tLe national
M¡S lut also on oltaining otLer relevant marketing inlormation, sucL as tLe prevailing
transport situation, market turnover, ano tLe numler ano type ol luyers. SucL inlormation
is analyseo in Iampala ano 15-minute raoio programmes in local languages are proouceo,
using intervievs vitL market participants in local languages as mucL as possille (Muganga
ano !erris 2000).
1Le costs associateo vitL oata collection can le consioeralle. ¡n Mali, lor example, lelore
tLe reorganization ol tLe M¡S, oata collection costs Lao risen to 6+ percent ol tLe M¡S`s
operating luoget. ¡ocal services may vell lino collection costs proLilitive ano tLis is one
reason vLy tLe interrelationsLip letveen tLe local ano national services in tLe Lganoan
mooel is important.
SucL a relationsLip ooes not, Lovever, exist in anotLer C1A-lunoeo pilot programme
in GLana. AltLougL tLere is a national M¡S, operateo ly tLe Ministry ol Agriculture, tLis
39
Andreu Sleplerd
sullers many ol tLe prollems listeo alove. 1Le national service Las not taken aovantage ol
using any ol tLe +3 local !M stations nov operating in tLe country. 1Le pilot programme
is laseo on tLe main Aseseva market in tLe eastern region ol GLana, ano also involves live
surrounoing village markets vLere price inlormation is collecteo ano oisplayeo on notice
loaros, togetLer vitL prices lrom Aseseva. Cn tLe market oay prices lrom Aseseva are
collecteo ano lroaocast early in tLe morning, on tLree !M stations serving oillerent language
groups, vitL tLe intention ol encouraging larmers to go to tLe market il prices are gooo.
1Leir alility to oo tLis is somevLat constraineo ly tLe conoition ol tLe roaos, lut tLe market
inlormation Las leen vell receiveo ly larmers ano Las encourageo traoe, incluoing across tLe
Volta lake lrom neigLlouring 1ogo (Boakye 2000). 1o oate tLe main constraint laceo ly tLe
pilot programme is tLe insistence ly tLe raoio stations to le paio lor tLe lroaocasts.
¡n 1999 tLe M¡S in Mali vas oecentraliseo, vitL tLe creation ol 22 local ollices tLrougLout
tLe country, in aooition to tLe central ollice in Bamako. 1Lese local units are nov responsille
lor collecting inlormation ano arranging lor its local oissemination, a signilicant cLange lrom
tLe previous arrangement vLerely local collectors sent tLeir inlormation to tLe Heao Cllice
vLicL vas responsille lor processing it ano arranging its oissemination nationally. At tLe
same time, responsilility lor operating tLe M¡S passeo lrom tLe grain marketing loaro, vitL
oversigLt lrom tLe multi-oonor Cereals Market Eestructuring Programme, to tLe CLamlers
ol Agriculture ol Mali (APCAM). Prior to tLis restructuring tLe M¡S vas lully oepenoent on
oonor lunos, tooay it is lully linanceo ly tLe Government (Lemlélé et al. 2000).
APCAM Las contracteo 2+ local raoio stations to oisseminate price ano quantity
inlormation regaroing looo crops ol local interest. Currently eigLt ol tLe main local units
are linkeo togetLer ly an !M raoio-telepLone system, ano are equippeo vitL mooems. 1Ley
can excLange price inlormation ly e-mail among tLemselves ano vitL tLe Heao Cllice in
Bamako. !armers Lave also askeo to use tLis system to place 'luy ano sell` ollers, opening
up tLe possilility ol electronic commerce lor looo crops in Mali (joLn M. Staatz, pers.
comm.).
Many otLer countries presently lack a privately-ovneo raoio netvork. ¡n Zimlalve, lor
example, a consioeralle amount ol agricultural inlormation, incluoing market inlormation,
is lroaocast on tLe national state-ovneo raoio, in a variety ol languages. 1Lere are, Lovever,
no local stations (¡. Mukvereza, pers. comm.). SoutL Alrica, on tLe otLer Lano, ooes Lave
an extensive netvork ol !M stations lroaocasting to rural areas, lut none is apparently
lroaocasting market inlormation. ¡noeeo, tLe prooucer ol a programme lor larmers on one
!M station inoicateo tLat Le Lao no ioea vLere to lino sucL inlormation. ¡n Mozamlique,
market inlormation is lroaocast ly local raoio stations. 1Ley invarially require payment lor
tLis vLicL is currently leing met ly Government, oonor projects ano ÞGCs (A. ScLalke,
pers. comm.).
LOCAL fM fARM RADIO AND MARKET INfORMATION
1Le alove examples are ol tentative activities to localise market inlormation provision,
taking aovantage ol tLe groving numler ol local !M raoio stations. ¡t is increasingly leing
recogniseo tLat larmers vLo sell mainly to local retail or assemlly markets Lave consioeralle
oilliculties in relating inlormation alout a lev central markets to tLeir ovn neeos ano
tLus tLere is a neeo to make inlormation availalle alout local markets. !urtLermore, tLe
inlormation provioeo nationally is olten in tLe vrong language, oillicult to unoerstano
ano oillicult to access. 1Le limiteo experiences to oate vitL M¡S lroaocasts on !M raoio
are positive. ¡noeeo, alter starting M¡S lroaocasts one raoio station ovner in Lganoa vas
reporteoly 'molleo` ly larmers asking lor more inlormation (P. Eollins, pers. comm.).
40
Bringing Market Injornation to Farners· Opportunities tlrougl FM Badio
!armers vill continue to le poorly serveo vitL market inlormation il progress is only
maoe on tLe lasis ol initiatives ol oonors ano ÞGCs. ¡noeeo, in some cases tLese initiatives
may le counterproouctive vLen tLey oller tLe possilility lor raoio stations to le paio lor
market inlormation lroaocasts. Stations may come to see tLese programmes as tLe equivalent
ol paio aovertisements. ¡nevitally, sucL arrangements vill prove unsustainalle once tLe
oonors Lave oeparteo. 1Lere voulo le a greater cLance ol sustainalility il raoio stations coulo
viev tLe provision ol market inlormation as a pullic service, equivalent to nevs lroaocasts.
Moreover, market inlormation on tLe raoio sLoulo attract larmers to listen, tLerely alloving
raoio stations to cLarge more lor commercial aovertisements. An alternative approacL is lor
companies to le approacLeo to sponsor M¡S lroaocasts, altLougL tLis is less satislactory as
sustainalility voulo also le tLreateneo il tLe sponsor oecioeo to vitLorav.
PossibIe sources o! market in!ormation
Eural raoio stations visLing to provioe market inlormation on tLeir ovn initiative Lave
a range ol options, oepenoing on tLe availalility ol inlormation ano tLe resources ol tLe
station. 1Lese incluoe:
Using injormation easily a:ailable
At tLe simplest level, raoio stations coulo consioer using inlormation availalle on national or
international raoio. 1Lose in commooity-groving areas, lor example, coulo oltain tLe latest
vorlo market prices lrom tLe oaily lroaocasts ol tLe BBC. WLere national raoio lroaocasts
prices lrom major urlan lruit ano vegetalle markets tLese coulo also le useo, particularly
vLere tLey are relevant to larmers in tLe station`s catcLment area.
Using the internet as a data source
1Lis may seem an unrealistic ioea lor many rural raoio stations at present lut tLe rapio
expansion ol internet use vorlovioe suggests tLat it is only a matter ol time lelore tLe
internet is vioely availalle. 1Le main constraints to overcome are tLe lack, or poor quality, ol
telepLone lines, tLe quantity ol inlormation tLat can le carrieo over tLose lines ano tLe cost
ol long-oistance calls. Eecent tecLnological oevelopments inoicate tLat tLere are prospects
to overcome prollems associateo vitL telepLone lines, sucL as solar-povereo electricity
generation, raoio mooems, ano molile or cell-pLone services.
Access to tLe internet solves only Lall tLe prollem, since it Las little value il uselul
inlormation is not availalle, vLicL is presently tLe case in most Alrican countries. Cne
exception is SoutL Alrica, vLere tLere is a consioeralle amount ol market inlormation
availalle on tLe internet, eitLer lree or lor a small cLarge.
¡t is likely tLat vel-laseo inlormation services in many countries vill oevelop only slovly.
1Lis is mainly lecause tLe agricultural marketing systems teno to le less lormally structureo
tLan in SoutL Alrica ano tLe organizations tLat coulo provioe inlormation over tLe internet
oo not necessarily exist. ¡t is also, perLaps, unrealistic to expect local raoio stations to monitor
vel sites on a oaily lasis. !or tLis reason tLere may le tLe neeo lor a central organization to
monitor sucL sites ano lorvaro ly e-mail or lax relevant inlormation to eacL station. SucL a
looy coulo le tLe national raoio association, tLe Ministry ol Agriculture, tLe state lroaocasting
organization, etc.
Do-it-yourselj
¡n PLnom PenL in Camlooia a local !M raoio station vas provioing oaily market
inlormation several years lelore a Government M¡S vas set up vitL assistance lrom !AC.
41
Andreu Sleplerd
¡very oay a reporter vent to one ol tLe city`s markets ano lroaocast oirectly lrom tLe
market using a molile pLone since tLe programme vas sponsoreo ly tLe molile pLone
company. 1Le reporter lirst gatLereo inlormation on prices ol a lixeo list ol prooucts ano
legan Lis lroaocast vitL tLese, lelore intervieving traoers ano consumers. 1Le programme
vas possilly ol more value to consumers tLan prooucers as a oillerent market vas visiteo
eacL oay ano so continuity ol inlormation vas lacking. ÞevertLeless, it is an interesting
example ol vLat can le oone.
WLere molile pLones are not availalle tLe raoio station coulo still consioer collecting
inlormation itsell. ¡ven il resources are lacking to seno a stall memler to tLe local market
to collect prices on a oaily lasis, arrangements coulo le maoe vitL stall memlers` lamilies
vLen tLey visit tLe market to purcLase tLeir ovn supplies. !or a small lee, lamily memlers
coulo le askeo to recoro tLe prices tLey paio ano pLone tLese to tLe station, lor compilation
ano lroaocast on tLe same oay. SucL an approacL is, ol course, lar lrom ioeal ano runs tLe
risk ol inaccurate inlormation leing oisseminateo.
Establishing linkages uith other organizations
Arrangements coulo le maoe vitL otLer organizations tLat voulo le responsille lor
collecting prices ano passing tLese on to tLe raoio station reaoy lor lroaocasting. Cne
possilility coulo le tLe local extension service. AnotLer coulo le local larmers` associations
or local lrancLes ol national associations.
Establishing linkages uith national le:el MlS
ÞotvitLstanoing tLe prollems vitL national M¡S ioentilieo earlier, tLese may still oller tLe
most relialle, ano least-cost, source ol market inlormation in many countries. ¡n some, lor
example GLana, price inlormation is leing collecteo lrom a large numler ol local markets lut
is not leing useo. ¡ocal raoio stations coulo perLaps make arrangements lor tLis inlormation
to le sent to tLem. ¡n otLer cases, tLe promise ol regular oissemination may le sullicient
to persuaoe tLe M¡S to legin collecting inlormation in tLe local market. At tLe very least,
local stations coulo lroaocast national inlormation in local languages ano, perLaps, provioe
larmers vitL some guioance on Lov to use tLis inlormation.
PossibIe probIems vith market in!ormation on IocaI radio
¡t is a matter ol oelate vLetLer tLe availalility ol some inlormation lor larmers is letter
tLan none, vLen tLe inlormation provioeo is not necessarily relialle. Eaoio stations neeo
to le avare ol a numler ol oilliculties tLat can arise in tLe collection ano interpretation ol
oata, ano try to avoio tLem. A particular prollem in mucL ol Alrica is tLe lact tLat veigLts
ano measures are not lixeo. Prooucts are solo, lor example, ly tLe 'tin`, ly tLe 'Leap` or
ly tLe 'lag`. WLile tins ano lags may Lave a consistent size in a particular locality, tLey
may not necessarily le consistent tLrougLout tLe country. 1Lere is also tLe practice ol tLe
traoer aooing a top-up ('oasL`) once tLe sale Las leen concluoeo. 1Le size ol tLe oasL may
vary accoroing to supply ano oemano conoitions. 1Le size ol Leaps also varies accoroing to
tLe proouct. !or inoivioual prooucts traoers may vary tLe Leap on a oaily or even Lourly
lasis, in oroer to keep a lixeo price per Leap vLile rellecting tLe realities ol supply ano
oemano. Eeporting on tLe prices ol sucL llexille units tLus runs tLe risk ol inaccuracies.
Cn tLe otLer Lano, converting tLe units to kilograms requires taking scales to tLe market
or luying tLe proouce ano veigLing it later. 1Le lormer may incur tLe vratL ol traoers,
vLile tLe latter can le expensive (altLougL almost certainly tLe most accurate metLoo
availalle).
42
Bringing Market Injornation to Farners· Opportunities tlrougl FM Badio
CtLer areas in vLicL misunoerstanoings can arise incluoe issues ol variety ano quality.
!or example, in some parts ol Alrica tLere may le as many as ten varieties ol lean on sale in
a market on any one oay. Simply reporting tLe price ol 'leans` on tLe raoio is tLerelore not
very Lelplul. !armers can also le misleo il tLe quality tLey proouce is not tLe same as tLe
quality to vLicL tLe market report relers. 1Le time at vLicL prices are collecteo can also le
important. ¡n many countries prices ol perisLalles go oovn at tLe eno ol tLe oay as traoers try
to sell tLeir stock to make vay lor lresL proouce tLe lolloving oay, or as larmers sell oll tLeir
proouce to avoio Laving to take it lack Lome. AnotLer potential misunoerstanoing is relateo
to tLe stage in tLe marketing cLain at vLicL tLe price is leing collecteo. ¡l tLe raoio reports
on tLe price at vLicL consumers are luying, tLat is not tLe price tLe larmer is going to get
vLen taking proouce to market ano selling it to a traoer. 1o avoio sucL misunoerstanoings it
is oesiralle lor raoio stations presenting market inlormation to Lave occasional programmes
tLat explain tLe precise nature ol tLe prices leing lroaocast.
¡ocal raoio stations neeo to le avare tLat larmers can only alsorl ano use a limiteo
amount ol inlormation. Market inlormation programmes sLoulo concentrate on tLe most
important crops in tLe most relevant local market(s) ano not provioe price inlormation alout
prooucts ol interest to only a lev larmers. !inally, as noteo earlier, it is important to make
sure tLat lroaocasts coincioe vitL times vLen larmers can listen to tLem.
OTHER WAY5 Of MAKING INfORMATION AVAILAßLE TO fARMER5
1Lere is little ooult tLat raoio is tLe most ellicient vay ol getting market inlormation to
larmers. Hovever, in tLis situation larmers lecome passive recipients ol inlormation tLat
tLe raoio station oecioes to provioe, ano tLey may not receive inlormation tLat tLey really
require. 1elecentres, oelineo as sLareo sites tLat provioe pullic access to inlormation ano
communication tecLnologies, Lave leen proposeo as vays ol lringing tLe internet to rural
areas, so enalling larmers to access tLe inlormation tLat tLey really neeo. Hovever, sucL
rural 'internet calés` may not le very suitalle lor market inlormation lecause, altLougL tLey
oecentralise inlormation availalility, tLe inlormation sources usually remain centraliseo.
!urtLermore, even il tLere is a rapio explosion in tLe numler ol sucL telecentres, tLey vill
alvays le more oillicult to access tLan raoio lroaocasts.
CONCLU5ION5
1Le !AC guioe entitleo 'Lnoerstanoing ano Lsing Market ¡nlormation` goes into more
oeptL on tLe points raiseo in tLis paper ano also oiscusses issues sucL as marketing costs
(SLepLero 2000). ¡l aoapteo to local conoitions, tLe guioe coulo le useo ly local raoio
stations as tLe lasis lor talks aovising larmers on Lov to use tLe price inlormation tLe
stations provioe.
Eaoio stations tLat voulo like to store tLe price inlormation tLey collect may also le
interesteo in tLe !AC-AgriMarket soltvare programme. 1Le oatalase system is laseo on
MS-Access, part ol tLe Microsolt ollice system. ¡t is simple to install ano operate, ano comes
vitL a compreLensive user manual ano on-line tutorial. 1Lere is no restriction on tLe numler
ol commooities or markets tLat can le inserteo ano tLe programme can generate oaily,
veekly or montLly reports, as vell as grapLs ano cLarts.
Many ol !AC`s pullications on marketing may le accesseo ano oovnloaoeo in portalle
oocument lormat (pol) lrom tLe Marketing Group`s velsite. ¡nlormation relateo to
agricultural marketing can le louno on Lttp://vvv.lao.org/ag/ags/AGSM/MAEI¡1¡Þ.
H1M. 1Le soltvare mentioneo alove ano tLe associateo guioe are availalle lree ol cLarge
unoer Lttp://vvv.lao.org/ag/ags/AGSM/!AM20/ inoex_¡.H1M.
43
Andreu Sleplerd
REfERENCE5
Boakye, I.A. 2000, '1Le oevelopment ol market inlormation services lor small operators in
tLe agricultural sectors ol ACP countries`, Presentation at a consultative group meeting,
C1A Heaoquarters, 30-31 Cctoler 2000, Wageningen, 1Le ÞetLerlanos
Lemlélé, Þ.Þ., 1ellt, j.!. & Staatz, j.M. 2000, Mali's Market Injornation Systen· Inno:ati:e
Elution in Support qj a Dynanic Pri:ate Sector, Policy SyntLesis Paper 56, Lecemler
2000, LSA¡L, WasLington L.C.
Muganga, A. & !erris, S. 2000, '1Le oevelopment ol market inlormation services lor small
operators in tLe agricultural sectors ol ACP countries`. Presentation at a consultative
group meeting, C1A Heaoquarters. 30-31 Cctoler 2000, Wageningen, 1Le ÞetLerlanos
SLepLero, A.W. & ScLalke, A. 1995, Tle Indonesian Horticultural Marketing Injornation
Ser:ice, AGSM Cccasional Paper 8, !AC, Eome
SLepLero, A.W. 1997, Market Injornation Ser:ices - Tleory and Practice. AGS Bulletin 125,
!AC, Eome
SLepLero, A.W. 2000, Understanding and Using Market Injornation, !AC Marketing
¡xtension Guioe 2, Marketing ano Eural !inance Service, !AC, Eome
45
ChapIer 6
TeIecentre 5ustainabiIity.
Myths and Opportunities
Irancisco Proenza
9
INTRODUCTION
1elecentres are 'sLareo premises vLere tLe pullic can access inlormation ano communication
tecLnologies` (Colle ano Eaul 1999). AltLougL a centre ollering only telepLone or computer
services voulo le incluoeo unoer tLis oelinition, tLis paper locuses on tLose telecentres
vLicL provioe access to tLe internet.
1Le internet ollers opportunities lor netvorking ano access to inlormation ano services
previously unavailalle to lov income people on account ol oistance ano cost. Voice over
tLe ¡nternet Protocol (Vo¡P) is gaining importance, even il tLere are still institutional
olstacles ano latency limitations (Minges ano Ielly 2001). 1Le internet may also le useo
in comlination vitL traoitional tecLnologies, sucL as raoio, to lroaocast inlormation over
a vioe area at lov cost. 1Le oominance ol tLe internet tLrougL computers as tLe stanoaro
telecentre equipment-service conliguration may cLange as tecLnologies converge (lor
example, as tLiro generation cellular telepLony lecomes uliquitous). Hovever, access to tLe
internet is tLe stanoaro leature ol tooay`s telecentre ano tLe sale ol internet-computer time is
tLe most common service ano source ol revenue.
A successlul telecentre experience requires lamiliarity vitL computers. 1Lis is not
an insurmountalle larrier: cLiloren ano young people aoapt to tLe tecLnology more
rapioly tLan mature aoults. 1Lis is important lotL lrom a market ano a oevelopment
perspective. Countries vitL young populations Lave potentially large markets lor telecentres.
!urtLermore, tLe use ol telecentres to introouce tLe tecLnology to young aoults ano cLiloren
lor eoucational ano proouctive purposes makes social ano economic sense lecause tLey Lave
a longer Lorizon in vLicL to make proouctive use ol tLese skills
10
.
1Le principles ol telecentre economics are not complex. ¡l a telecentre`s revenue inllov
ooes not cover expenses ano generate a surplus (tLat is, acLieve lull linancial vialility),
tLe lunos availalle vill le insullicient to cover tLe inevitalle equipment lreakoovns ano
olsolescence ano tLe telecentre vill le lorceo to close. ¡l a telecentre ooes not generate
sullicient income to cover operation ano maintenance costs (operational vialility), it may
Lave to sLut oovn even sooner.
Lonors sometimes lill part or all ol tLe linancial gap. ¡t is common lor oevelopeo countries,
sucL as L.S., Canaoa, japan, !inlano, ano Australia, to make telecentre services availalle lor
lree in lilraries, alleit usually vitL restrictions on tLe amount ol time allocateo to inoivioual
9
¡conomist, 1ecLnical Cooperation Lepartment, ¡atin America ano Carillean Service (1C¡¡), !AC, Eome
([email protected]).
10
¡n part rellecting tLese consioerations, tLe presence ol scLool-age cLiloren (ageo 6 to 17) in LS LouseLolos
increaseo tLe percentage ol computers in tLe LouseLolo in August 2000 lrom +5 percent to 67 percent ano tLe
percentage ol internet access lrom 37 percent to 53 percent (LS Census Bureau 2000).
46
Telecentre Sustainability· Mytls and Opportunities
users. 1Le Government ol Australia, a country vitL a per capita income ol LS$ 20,500 (in
2000), gives recurrent expenoiture support to arouno 150 telecentres. Hovever, lov income
countries tLat try to lollov a LigLly sulsioiseo approacL to telecentre oevelopment vill lino
it an unsustainalle orain on resources, ano tLey vill le lorceo to limit tLe extent ano reacL
ol tLeir telecentre programmes.
!AC is interesteo in telecentres tLat are eitLer operationally sustainalle or lully vialle ano
voulo also like tLem to Lave a oevelopment impact. 1Ley sLoulo: (i) improve tLe vellare ano
living conoitions ol a large numler ol lov-income users (scope ol outreacL), ano (ii) lenelit
tLe very poor segments ol tLe population (oeptL ol outreacL). 1Le oevelopment impact ol
a telecentre is tLus a very important consioeration, even il it is a oimension tLat is oistinct
lrom sustainalility.
Sustainalility is itsell many-sioeo. Structural conoitions, sucL as telecommunications
inlrastructure, are critical oeterminants ol sustainalility. At tLe inoivioual telecentre level,
its governance structure or constitutional rules Lelp sLape Lov oecisions are maoe ano
Lov resources are procureo ano useo. A country`s policy ano regulatory lramevork may
inlluence telecentre oevelopment in many vays.
1o give a notion ol oroer ol telecentre costs, summary oata lrom Peru, Hungary ano
jamaica are presenteo in 1alle 1. 1Le investment costs range lrom LS$ 8,000 ÷ 17,000 ano
annual operating costs lrom LS$ 12,000 ÷ 20,000.
TabIe 1. ExampIes o! TeIecentre Costs
Peru Hungary 1amaica
Number o! compuIers per cehIre 14 4-5 5
CohhecIiviIy ADSL - 64 kbps Dial-up Dial-up
LocaIioh Urbah small Iowh/
good Ielecom
small Iowh/
good Ielecom
MahagemehI Commercial NCO NCO
IhvesImehI cosI1 (US $) 17,200 7800 - 10,100 8500
Ahhual operaIihg cosI (US $) 17,500 12,400 - 17,000 20,500
NoIes: All cosIs as reporIed ih 2001.
1
A humber o! iIems are hoI cohsidered, e.g. !easibiliIy sIudy, buildihg cohsIrucIioh or !urhishihgs.
Sources: LsIimaIes !or Huhgary are based oh survey daIa presehIed ih 1elecoIIages ih Huhgary, uhpublished 2001
mahuscripI paper produced by Huhgariah 1elecoIIage AssociaIioh. PrivaIe pro|ecI daIa !or Peru were
made available by Carlos Lihares (ih!ormaIics advisor aI UhiversiIy o! Arequipa), collecIed ih early 2001.
Pro|ecI daIa !or 1amaica are courIesy o! 1amaica's SusIaihable DevelopmehI NeIwork ahd CompuIer
SocieIy.
MYTH5
Myth. A cyberca!é is not a teIecentre
¡t is an unlortunate lut common mistake to oisregaro cylercalés lecause tLey are 'not
oevelopment orienteo`. 1Lese small lusinesses Lave leen expanoing very rapioly vorlovioe,
are olten sustainalle, ano tLere is mucL to learn lrom tLeir experience. 1o oisregaro tLem
is to ignore tLe most replicalle ano sustainalle governance structure knovn (tLe privately
ovneo lusiness) ano narrov tLe range ol possililities
11
. 1elecentres operateo ly institutions
using perLaps tLe secono most commonly useo governance structure (i.e. not-lor-prolit non-
47
Francisco Proenza
governmental organizations (ÞGCs)), ly traoition rely on oonor lunoing, at least to cover
investment costs. Þo vonoer it is oillicult to lino telecentre mooels tLat are sustainalle!
Cylercalés olten provioe as many services as otLer types ol telecentres. 1Ley train tLeir
clients (lor example, in lasic computer skills ano ollice applications), eitLer in response to
local oemano or to stimulate oemano lor tLeir services. Many ÞGC-run telecentres are in
practice 'cylercalés in oisguise`, tLey oo not oller any more valueo services tLan a typical
cylercalé, ano any excess revenues (lrom oonor lunoing or lees) are oistriluteo to operators
as stall salaries. Cylercalés also provioe insigLts alout policy ano managerial approacLes
tLat contrilute to sustainalility. WLy, lor example, Lave cylercalés spreao rapioly ano
extensively tLrougLout ¡ima, Peru, vLere tLey are knovn as cabinas publicas, vLereas tLe
same ooes not Lappen in otLer countries, sucL as Brazil ano jamaica¹ Mainly lecause ¡ima
ollers a comlination ol important leatures tLat Lave lacilitateo telecentre oevelopment ano
tLese are not alvays present elsevLere. 1Lese leatures incluoe:
º an enormous ano oensely concentrateo oemano, in tLe lorm ol young lov-income
people vitL limiteo access to alloroalle telecommunications lacilities,
º a large numler ol vell traineo engineers vitL limiteo employment opportunities
enalleo tLe oevelopment ol lov-cost repair ano supply ol parts inoustry laseo on PC
clones ano pirateo or lov-cost soltvare,
º tLe imminent tLreat, ano eventually real competition, resulting lrom a privatiseo
telecommunications sector vitL limiteo exclusivity perioo tLat enoeo in 2000, resulting
in a rapio lall in tLe cost ol connectivity,
º a major avareness campaign launcLeo ly an ÞGC, tLe Eeo Cientilica Peruana, ouring
tLe early oays ol internet oevelopment, Lelping many young entrepreneurs learn ol tLe
potential lenelits ol inlormation communication tecLnologies (¡C1s).
At tLe operator level, tLe leLaviour ol cylercalés is also instructive. Lonor-oriven
telecentres Lave veak motivation to le economical. 1Ley may invest ano speno more tLan
tLey can alloro on superlluous services, sucL as lancy luiloings, more tLan one attenoant per
sLilt, LigLly eoucateo costly operators, ano prooucts tLat are not alloroalle or oesireo ly
customers. ¡n contrast, a vell-run cylercalé exLilits tLe lolloving leatures:
º 1Le local market oemano oetermines tLe numler ano quality ol services provioeo. 1Le
service provioeo is usually tLe lasic minimum, mainly computer-internet connect time.
EelresLments, magazines, oiskettes ano relateo supplies, ano Voice over ¡P are otLer
common services. AltLougL tLere are some oepartures lrom tLe norm
12
, supplementary
services seloom account lor more tLan 20 percent ol total revenue.
º 1Le training given to telecentre attenoants is very lasic. WLoever sets up tLe lusiness
neeos to knov alout computers ano Lov to set up a local area netvork (¡AÞ) letveen
11
1Le inclination to set cylercalés apart lrom telecentres is reminiscent ol tLe oiscussions in tLe microlinance
literature a lev years ago. 1Le 'minimalists` empLasiseo tLe neeo to locus on microlinance ano to oevelop
souno linancial institutions tLat operate like any lusiness tLat must le sustainalle, vLile otLers argueo in
lavour ol linking creoit to otLer services, especially training. 1Le major institutions tLat successlully provioe
microcreoit sustainalility tooay ÷ e.g. Banco Sol ano PECL¡M in Bolivia, !inanciera Calpia in ¡l Salvaoor, etc.
÷ Lave oevelopeo specialiseo lanking tecLniques tLat reacL a large numler ol tLe poor lolloving tLe minimalist
approacL. Microenterpreneurs neeo otLer services, leyono microcreoit or oeposit services. Being alle to access
relialle services lrom a souno ano oepenoalle specialiseo linancial institution is important.
12
Guyana, lor example, Las a population ol alout 800,000 ano as many Guyanese live alroao as in tLe Lomelano.
A private monopoly operator oominates tLe telecommunications sector ano international calls are expensive.
As a result, tLe key service provioeo ly Georgetovn`s cylercalés is communications vitL relatives ano lrienos
living alroao. Vo¡P is commonplace, even tLougL its legality is cLallengeo ly tLe telecom operator.
48
Telecentre Sustainability· Mytls and Opportunities
computers in tLe telecentre, or neeos at some point to Lire someone vLo ooes. ¡veryoay
attenoants are lev in numler (e.g. one person per sLilt covering up to 30 computers)
ano are generally lov-salary stall vitL a suitalle, lut limiteo, level ol eoucation.
º Soltvare provioeo is minimal, oepenoing on client oemano lor applications. ¡itLer
pirateo or lree soltvare is useo, or soltvare licenses are purcLaseo at lov-cost, lor
example, tLrougL online auction sites.
º WLere competition among telecentre operators is LigL, as in ¡ima, prices lall to very
lov levels, as little as LS$ 0.50 per Lour ol service. ¡nteresting tLings start to Lappen: tLe
operators vLo survive are tLose vLo lino a vay (tLrougL location, quality or variety
ol services) to lill in tLeir cylercalés most ol tLe time (65 percent or LigLer occupancy
rate), ano are in constant searcL lor vays to keep expenses lov ly relying on special
situations like, lor example, running tLeir lusinesses lrom tLeir ovn Lome, or sLaring
overLeaos letveen oillerent lusiness activities (e.g. ly comlining tLeir cylercalés vitL
otLer enterprises sucL as, lor instance, selling computer parts ano supplies).
Cylercalés sometimes Lave a lao name lecause tLey are associateo vitL upmarket
lusinesses serving tourists. WLile tLese types ol telecentre meet a market neeo, tLeir
oevelopment impact is limiteo. ¡n practice Lovever, vLere cylercalés are uliquitous
ano competition is intense, small entrepreneurs set up sLop in areas serving lov-income
communities. At LS$ 0.50 per Lour in ¡ima, 20 Lours ol internet service every montL can
le purcLaseo lor LS$ 10 or LS$ 120 per year. 1Lis is Laroly an insurmountalle olstacle in a
country vitL an average per capita income ol alout LS$ 2100 (Worlo Bank 2001).
Myth. 5uccess is assured through community ovnership
1Le notion ol 'community ovnersLip` is vague, yet it is lrequently tLe allegeo oriving lorce
leLino telecentre experiments. Well-meaning oonors tLat provioe initial lunoing lut let tLeir
projects start running on loose terms regaroing ovnersLip ano control over resources are
courting oisappointment ano lailure.
¡ike any organization, a telecentre must Lave vorking rules to ensure sustaineo
satislactory operation. ¡ts governance structure neeos to le clear, must loster tLe commitment
ol tLe operator vorking at tLe local level, ano must le compatille vitL tLe oljectives ol tLe
centre ano its sustainalility. Someone neeos to le responsille ano accountalle lor repairs
in tLe event ol a lreakoovn, Liring ano liring stall ano paying tLeir salaries, recruiting
ano supervising volunteers, opening tLe centre on a regular scLeoule, Lelping customers
ano making sure tLat tLeir neeos ano aspirations are met ly tLe centre, ano protecting tLe
equipment ano premises.
1Le reason commercial telecentres are so resilient as a system, is tLat il a telecentre
ovner is not committeo Le or sLe vill surely lail vLile otLers take over to serve tLe market.
¡n contrast, telecentres 'ovneo` ly municipalities or are otLervise Leavily inlluenceo ly
politicians teno to cause prollems lecause a mayor`s loremost concern is to keep in gooo
stanoing vitL tLe electorate. !inancial sustainalility is ol seconoary consioeration. 1Lis is
ol course less ol a consioeration in LigL income countries vLere tLe political signilicance ol
telecentres is not so large.
Grassroots organizations ano ÞGCs are excellent veLicles lor reacLing tLe poor. Since
tLey rely on external lunos, some are alle to oller tLe kino ol sulsioiseo specialiseo services
tLat oisaovantageo groups, sucL as tLe oisalleo or vomen, neeo most lrom a telecentre,
lut vLicL voulo Laroly le provioeo ly lirms seeking a prolit. !urtLermore, tLe social
interaction tLat occurs tLrougL joint action lor a common purpose ollers tLe potential lor
49
Francisco Proenza
contriluting signilicantly to social ano economic oevelopment, over ano alove tLe oirect
lenelits associateo vitL using tLe nev tecLnologies. 1Lese spill over or external lenelits vill
lecome increasingly important as communities ol oisenlrancLiseo groups lacing common
prollems expano ano oevelop, ano learn to trust eacL otLer ano vork togetLer tLrougL a
comlination ol lace-to-lace encounters ano online interaction.
Þot-lor-prolit organizations, Lovever, teno to le most ellective in sLort-liveo single-
cause action lut less so vLen concerteo prolongeo ellort is requireo. Since tLe managerial ano
linancial requirements ol telecentres are not complex, tLese sLortcomings may le overcome
tLrougL training ano institutional upgraoing primarily geareo at improving governance,
enLancing stall capacity to keep recoros ano manage resources, ano making sustainalility a
central oljective ol telecentre operations lrom tLe outset.
Myth. 5et up the right poIicy !ramevork and the market viII provide
A stalle macroeconomic environment, competition in tLe telecommunications sector, ano a
suitalle regulatory environment, is necessary to make ¡C1s more accessille to tLe pullic at
large. Hovever, otLer lactors may inLilit commercial telecentre oevelopment.
A key issue is vLetLer tLere is a sulliciently large market to stimulate entrepreneursLip
in tLe cylercalé lusiness. 1elecentre markets, Lovever, are LigLly localiseo ano sensitive to
oistance. ¡n Peru, ++ percent ol tLe customers use cabinas tLat are locateo vitLin 1 km lrom
tLeir Lome, ano 70 percent vitLin 5 km lrom tLeir Lome (Proenza et al. 2001). ¡l a city ooes not
Lave areas vitL a large concentration ol young lov-income people Laving no alternative lov-
cost means ol connecting to tLe internet, sell-sustaining commercial telecentres vill not arise.
¡stallisLing telecentres in rural areas can le a cLallenge, particularly vLere tLe population
is scattereo. BotL ol tLese leatures make tLe cost ol expanoing tLe telecommunications
inlrastructure expensive. 1Le lov oensity ol population tLat is typical ol rural Alrica ano
¡atin America oelies tLe lasic premise ol sLaring equipment vitLin a single lacility. ¡t is mucL
easier to keep a 10-30 computer telecentre lully occupieo in a large city tLan in a sparsely
populateo small tovn vLere clients are poor ano Lave limiteo means ol transportation.
¡ven vLere commercial telecentres are locateo in poor urlan neigLlourLooos tLey are
useo primarily ly vell-eoucateo young people. 1o reacL tLe large mass ol lov-income
people, most ol vLom Lave limiteo eoucation, specilic measures (sucL as promotion
campaigns, start-up investment capital, training programmes, ano oemano support ouring
tLe initial stages vLile users lecome lamiliar vitL tLe tecLnology) are necessary. 1Lese
measures are costly, yieloing LigL social lut lov private returns. Private enterprise vill
not lear tLese costs on its ovn volition. 1elecentres tLat Lelp luilo up social capital in a
community create more vealtL ano value tLan tLe market vill recognise. Communities
ol people lacing common prollems ano pursuing action tLrougL joint ellorts generate
externalities tLat cannot le reproouceo or captureo ly tLe inoivioual or tLe lirm (Collier
1998, Inack ano Ieeler 1997). Pure lor-prolit ventures vill not engage in tLese activities.
Yet, in oroer to le ellective, tLe neeos ol inoigenous people, vomen ano otLer minorities
neeo to le aooresseo oirectly tLrougL explicit concerteo action. 1Le risk, especially in LigLly
lragmenteo societies, is tLat community empoverment tLrougL ¡C1s vill at times involve
struggles over use ano control ol resources. A major cLallenge lacing oeveloping country
governments is to recognise tLis ano to provioe tLe leaoersLip ano lunoing necessary to
sponsor community netvorks tLat Lelp minorities ano oisenlrancLiseo groups use ¡C1s to
improve tLeir conoition ano, in tLe process, luilo up overall trust in society ano lorge nev
oemocratic all-inclusive institutions.
50
Telecentre Sustainability· Mytls and Opportunities
Myth. franchising is a proven and e!!ective strategy
Commercial telecentre lrancLises are conceptually appealing, as a vay to prolit lrom scale,
ano to serve a large numler ol people tLrougL a replicalle mooel. ¡n practice, implementing
telecentre lrancLises Las leen lraugLt vitL oilliculties.
!rancLises Lave leen common in tLe telepLone inoustry, set up ly traoitional monopoly
operators in many countries lut also ly innovative cellular operators like Grameen 1elecom.
More recently, some countries (Colomlia is an example) Lave estallisLeo minimum sulsioy
scLemes to encourage tLe oevelopment ol telecommunications ano telecentre inlrastructure
in small tovns. 1Lese sulsioiseo scLemes stimulate telecentre lrancLising: tLe inlrastructure
oevelopment is unoertaken not ly a large lirm lut ly local entrepreneurs.
As yet, Lovever, tLere are no knovn successlul commercial lrancLising (internet service)
telecentre experiences in a competitive (e.g. urlan) unsulsioiseo setting serving a lov-
income population. !or several years tLe Eeo Cientilica Peruana aovertiseo a telecentre
lrancLise project on its vel pages. ¡n practice, it never manageo to put togetLer a marketalle
plan ol services or assistance ol value to prospective lrancLisees leyono vLat an inoepenoent
operator coulo purcLase in tLe open market.
Beginning in 1999, S. Iumars ¡to. starteo promoting a promising service package in
¡noia. ¡t sougLt to connect small tovns ano villages tLrougL a netvork ol one-computer
internet kiosks using very small aperture terminal (VSA1) tecLnology. WLat sets tLe S.
Iumars mooel apart lrom otLer lrancLising scLemes are its provision ol inlrastructure ano
netvork economies associateo vitL a large netvork ol lrancLisees ano a compreLensive
service package (connectivity, equipment, creoit, casL laseo e-commerce). Plans provioe
lor tLe estallisLment ol a total ol 50,000 kiosks spreao tLrougLout tLe country. ¡n practice
Lovever, tLe company Las experienceo serious oilliculties vLile implementing its mooel.
Cut ol a total 53,000 lrancLise applicants in tLe lirst quarter ol 2000, only 1+00 lrancLisees
paio tLe requireo investment ano, as ol mio-year, tLese vere still vaiting lor tLeir kiosks to
le set up (CLatterjee 2001).
Some lrancLising ellorts Lave locuseo on tLe LigL eno ol tLe market. 1Le investment
cost ol a 1eltecGlolal telecentre, lor instance, ranges lrom LS$ 350,000 to LS$ 750,000.
1Lese are intenoeo to le a comlination ol 'Super Iinkos (a oocument reproouction service),
internet calé, virtual classroom, internet service provioer ano small (electrical appliance ano
equipment) sLovroom unoer one rool`.
A numler ol internet connecteo kiosks are also leing launcLeo, lor example, in Mexico,
LI ano jamaica. 1Lese are still experimental risky ventures, geareo primarily lor tLe
lusinessperson on tLe move.
Hovever, companies are leginning to locus on a lroao expansion ol tLe service. 1Le most
extensive urlan lrancLising telecentre scLeme appears to le emerging in Argentina, vLere
computer terminals provioing internet service Lave leen aooeo in an estimateo 300 (1elelónica)
ano +50 (1elecom) Locutorios tLat previously only ollereo telepLone service (Lavioziuk 2002).
1Le provision ol internet service tLrougL tLe McLonalo`s cLain is leing testeo in ¡srael (Heller)
ano Brazil (Liario1¡) ano coulo signilicantly increase access to tLe tecLnology.
Leveloping prolitalle lrancLising scLemes Las proven oillicult ano tLeir impact on lov-
income people is an open question. Yet time ano again, pullic or quasi-pullic institutions
take up lrancLising as a suitalle vay to provioe easy access to tLe masses expeoitiously. ¡n
lact, tLese initiatives eno up trying to control lrom tLeir 'Leaoquarters` ollice very critical
aspects ol tLe telecentre operations (e.g. prices) tLat can only sensilly le provioeo ly a
local operator responsive to a community`s neeos. 1Le 'central ollice` Lires overqualilieo
51
Francisco Proenza
expensive stall vLo presume tLey knov letter tLan tLe people in tLe locality vLen in lact
just tLe opposite is true. 1Lere are tremenoous economies ol 'oecentralisation` in telecentre
operations tLat lar outveigL any aovantage lrom say 'lulk purcLase` ol equipment ano
soltvare. Hence, tLe importance ol letting tLe local entrepreneur run tLe sLov, to give
Lim or Ler tLe pover ano llexilility to operate tLe telecentre accoroing to tLe neeos ol tLe
clientele, ano to aooress tLe prollems Le or sLe laces vitL tLe resources availalle.
OPPORTUNITIE5
Commercial telecentres are lully sustainalle in many urlan areas vLere a numler ol specilic
conoitions apply. ¡n sparsely populateo rural areas, sustainalility is oillicult to acLieve lecause
inlrastructure may le lacking ano lecause local oemano is scattereo ano tLere is limiteo
purcLasing pover. ¡ven in urlan areas commercial telecentres cannot alloro to provioe
pullic service gooos, like inlormal aoult or remeoial eoucation, to serve tLe special neeos ol
lov income people ano oisaovantageo groups. !or telecentres to reacL ano proouce tangille
lenelits lor tLe poor, eitLer in rural or urlan settings, state sulsioies vill le requireo lor tLe
start-up pLase, ano sulsequent governmental lunoing ol pullic services vill le neeoeo.
Opportunity. 5tate support systems
!or tLe investment ano start-up pLases, sulsioy mecLanisms sLoulo le transparent, pruoent
ano conoucive to sustainalility. 1vo systems meeting tLose criteria Lave proven successlul
in tLe Americas ano are oescrileo in tLe lolloving sul-sections:
Telecommunications De:elopment Iunds
1Lis system Las leen very ellective in encouraging private investment in rural telepLony in
lov prolit areas ano Las recently legun to le applieo to telecentre oevelopment in Colomlia,
CLile ano Peru.
1Lese programmes grant a concession ano a 'minimum sulsioy` to a centraliseo operator
or consortium tLat agrees to estallisL a given numler ol telecentres in specilic localities ano
lolloving preoetermineo service specilications (e.g. lanoviotL, content oevelopment ano
training). 1Le contract is avaroeo to tLe lirm or consortium tLat proposes to lullil tLe service
requirements lor tLe least sulsioy amount. 1Le competition is open to any kino ol 'lusiness
mooel` lut tLe enterprises tLat Lave von tLese avaros typically cLoose a commercial lrancLising
scLeme. Actual sulsioies granteo Lave varieo, lor example lrom an average ol LS$ 29,000 per
centre unoer PLase ¡¡¡ ol Colomlia`s CCMPAE1¡¡ programme (estallisLing a total ol 270
telecentres, eacL vitL 3, 6 or 12 computers), to LS$ 9000 per centre unoer tLe same programme`s
PLase ¡ (estallisLing 670 one-computer telecentres) (Government ol Colomlia 2000).
1Le size ol tLe sulsioy avaro is a lunction not only ol tLe size ol tLe centre lut also ol tLe
terrain ano oilliculty in provioing connectivity, as vell as market size. 1Le larger telecentres
are intenoeo lor relatively large tovns vitL a lev tLousano people, vLile tLe one-computer
centres are lor small tovns vitL lever tLan 250 inLalitants.
Community ln:estment Iunds
Betveen 1995 ano 2001 Canaoa`s Community Access Program (CAP) Lelpeo estallisL more
tLan 8000 telecentres using a Community ¡nvestment !uno approacL. 1Le CAP molilises
civil society ano Lelps lurtLer telecentre oevelopment ly avaroing grants to inoivioual
telecentre initiatives leo ly not-lor-prolit institutions tLat agree to provioe a preoetermineo
level ol service (Lours ol operation, access to tLe internet, access ly oisalleo persons, etc.),
52
Telecentre Sustainability· Mytls and Opportunities
ano to 'matcL` grant lunoing vitL local resources, mostly in-kino. As tLe CAP matureo, it
estallisLeo proceoures conoucive to telecentre sustainalility ano to tLe transparency ol tLe
grant avaro process. 1Lese incluoe:
1Le proposal reviev committee is maoe up ol a group ol notalles tLat reviev proposals
inoepenoently, alleit vitL tecLnical lackstopping lrom government.
Proposals must le put lortL ly a consortium as opposeo to a single institution to avoio
competing proposals lrom tLe same community lor oillerent projects, ano to increase
tLe size ol tLe clientele ano tLe intensity ol use ol tLe CAP (ano tLus potential revenue
ano sustainalility), as eacL institution encourages its ovn constituents to make use ol
tLe lacilities.
Some participating provinces also provioe tecLnical assistance to communities preparing
CAP proposals. A tecLnical unit gives assistance ouring project lormulation ano lilters
lao or incomplete proposals lelore tLey are presenteo lor consioeration ano lunoing.
Beginning in 2000 CAP starteo promoting tLe presentation ol proposals ly groups ol
communities in an ellort to expeoite tLe lormulation ano approval process ano, at tLe
same time, loster netvorking economies as vell as scale economies in inlrastructure
oevelopment.
1Le selection committee revievs proposals on a periooic lasis. Any proposal tLat is
oiscaroeo in any one selection rouno coulo le reviseo to rectily any sLortcomings ano
resulmitteo ouring a sulsequent selection rouno. 1Lis enalleo tLe committee to say
'no`, vitLout tLat oecision leing oelinitive, tLus reoucing tLe pressure learing on tLe
committee to approve lao proposals.
Comparati:e re:ieu
BotL tLe 1elecommunications Levelopment !unos ano Community ¡nvestment !unos
provioe sulsioies on a transparent competitive lasis. BotL Lave some elements ol lrancLising
(e.g. lulk purcLase ol equipment ano provision ol tecLnical assistance ly a centraliseo unit),
vitL notalle oillerences incluoing:
1Le state supports tLe system ouring an initial start up pLase ano any suprastructure is
temporary. ¡n tLe case ol Canaoa`s CAP, support to inoivioual telecentres is lor Lall tLe
cost ol estallisLment ano part ol tLe operational costs lor an initial perioo not exceeoing
18 montLs. 1ecLnical assistance is solely ouring tLe project preparation stage. ¡n
Colomlia, CCMPAE1¡¡ grants are avaroeo to ensure service lor a live-year perioo.
1Le sulsioy is applieo upon estallisLment ol eacL centre. 1Lere is no commitment lor
continueo support altervaros.
BotL systems encourage local initiative ano management. 1Le local telecentre manager
controls tLe resources, using revenues collecteo to meet expenses in a timely lasLion as
tLe neeo arises. 1Le manager is in tLe lest position to ioentily tLe neeos ol clients ano
to respono to tLose neeos vitL nev or improveo services.
1Le 1elecommunications Levelopment !uno approacL is most applicalle in rural areas
lacking telecommunications inlrastructure lecause scale ano netvork economies may le
acLieveo ly provioing numerous access points. Community ¡nvestment !unos are letter at
luiloing social capital ano aooressing tLe neeos ol lov-income people ano Lence are suitalle
lor countries vitL vell-oevelopeo inlrastructure ano rolust civil society organizations. A
summary comparison ol tLe tvo approacLes is presenteo in 1alle 2.
¡n aooition to provioing linancial support, in oroer to acLieve sustainalility, telecentre
programmes voulo oo vell to oller tecLnical assistance ouring tLe investment ano start-
53
Francisco Proenza
up pLases to: (i) strengtLen inoivioual telecentre constitution ano management structure
to ensure accountalility, commitment ano sensitivity to local neeos, (ii) cultivate ano Lelp
oevelop tLe market lor ¡C1 services amongst lov-income people, (iii) keep operating costs
to a minimum ly not over investing, controlling stall costs, avoioing services tLat cannot
alloro to le provioeo, (iv) promote partnersLips tLat Lelp cover part ol tLe costs or lring in
aooitional revenue, ano (v) Lelp oevelop netvorks tLat sLare experiences ano lest practices
letveen telecentres, lotL online ano tLrougL periooic lace-to-lace encounters.
Opportunity. Provision o! muItipIe services
Computer-internet access, mostly lor e-mail, lrovsing ano cLatting, is a key generator ol
revenue practically everyvLere. 1raining in computer literacy, voro processing ano spreaosLeet
use is a oistant secono lut nevertLeless ol prime importance in particular localities.
!ormal content is vioely regaroeo to le necessary to engage tLe interest ol local
communities, lut maintaining up-to-oate content remains a major cLallenge. Portals tLat
Lelp luilo community netvorks Lave leen tLe most commercially successlul ano tLeir
potential importance in luiloing up social capital across tLe internet is immense. Since tLey
rely on tLe interesteo party`s initiative, tLey sLoulo also prove easier to maintain.
1Le provision ol multiple services tLrougL a single site to attract a large rural clientele
ano enLance linancial vialility Las leen a cornerstone ol tLe multipurpose community
telecentres ol tLe ¡nternational 1elecommunications Lnion (¡1L) (¡rnlerg 1998). AltLougL
linancial vialility Las proven elusive in practice, ¡1L`s telecentre sLovcases in Honouras are
more promising tLan earlier experiments. 1Le multipurpose orientation is retaineo lut tLe
locus is on services tLat pay tLeir ovn vay (i.e. tLey lring in more revenues tLan it costs to
proouce tLem).
Opportunity. Lov cost ruraI connectivity to service IocaI Iimited markets
Wireless tecLnology in general, ano VSA1s in particular, Lave signilicantly contriluteo to
expanoing connectivity to rural areas. Most ol tLe least-sulsioiseo competitive tenoers to
expano telecommunications services to rural areas in ¡atin America (CLile, Colomlia ano
Peru) Lave leen avaroeo to lirms using VSA1 tecLnology.
¡1L`s telecentres in Honouras are using vireless tecLnology to oirectly aooress tLe issue
ol tLe oisperse population typical ol many rural settings. 1Le tvo Leaoquarters centres
(one in Valle oe Angeles ano tLe otLer in Santa ¡ucia) retransmit internet signals serving
as internet service provioer (¡SP) lor neigLlouring resioents, ano oata at a lover rate
(using spreao spectrum ano raoio packets) to lov-cost ano lov-maintenance one-computer
TabIe 2. Comparison o! TeIecom DeveIopment and Community Investment funds
Approach Type o! institutionaI arrangement
encouraged
5uitabiIity to bene!it !rom scaIe
economies associated vith
in!rastructure deveIopment
1elecom DevelopmehI Fuhds Commercial !rahchisihg is Iypical:
large (usually Ielecom) privaIe !irm
ih parIhership wiIh small busihesses
locaIed ih commuhiIies served
QuiIe suiIable
CommuhiIy IhvesImehI Fuhds Lead local NCO ih cohcerI wiIh oIher
ihsIiIuIiohs (e.g. small busihesses ahd
goverhmehI)
Feasible ih prihciple buI di!!iculI
ih pracIice - requires coordihaIed
group requesIs
54
Telecentre Sustainability· Mytls and Opportunities
mini-centres locateo in neigLlouring villages. 1Le ¡SP service in particular Las lecome a
key revenue source tLat Lelps cover costs lor tLe motLer centre, vLile keeping tLe cost ol
servicing satellite mini-centres at alloroalle levels.
1Lese experiments, ano similar initiatives in Brazil, ¡noia ano elsevLere, promise
to enLance tLe prospects ol rural telecentre vialility ano oeserve greater attention ly
government ano marketing support ly tLe private sector.
Opportunity. AIIiances
1elecentre partnersLips are commonplace. 1Le lest-oocumenteo experience is tLat in
Hungary (a per capita income ol LS$ +7+0 in 2001). ¡acL telecottage in Hungary is lormally
ovneo ly a vell-structureo not-lor-prolit organization. 1Le national government lunos
telecottage estallisLment lut managing ÞGCs are requireo to cover operating costs. ÞGCs
Lave contracts, lor example, vitL tLe employment agency to oo jol counselling, or vitL local
or national governments to provioe pullic services sucL as provioing inlormation ano lorms,
Lelping applicants sulmit project proposals, etc.
As ol mio-2001, a total ol 220 telecottages locateo in small rural communities tLrougLout
tLe country oller an impressive array ol services. 1Le oominant source ol telecottage service
revenue is oeriveo lrom access to tLe internet ano to computers (listeo unoer A in tLe talle
presenteo in Appenoix 1 at tLe eno ol tLis cLapter). 1Lese generate alout 50 percent ol all
revenues collecteo, tLe remaining 50 percent are proouceo ly a lroao array ol services lor
vLicL telecottages receive oirect compensation. ÞevertLeless, service revenues cover only
alout 30 percent ol operating expenses. Cltaining tLe rest is a continuous cLallenge, up
to nov overcome mainly tLrougL pullic lunoing (60 percent) ano competitive grants lrom
private sources (10 percent).
Given tLe pullic cLaracter ol many ol tLe services lacking in rural communities ano tLat,
in principle, telecentres may provioe tLese services ellectively ano at lov-cost, partnersLips
vitL pullic ano quasi-pullic institutions (national lut mostly local) is an appropriate
means ol improving living conoitions in rural areas ano enLancing telecentre sustainalility.
Hovever, to ensure successlul partnersLips, tvo tLings must le preserveo: tLe inoepenoence
ol tLe telecentre lrom political interlerence, ano tLe alility to make oecisions at tLe local
level.
1Lree kinos ol institutions present in many rural communities appear to le tLe most
promising lor partnersLips vitL telecentre initiatives: scLools, post ollices ano lilraries.
ScLool computer laloratories in tLe service ol tLe pullic at large are an ioeal location lor a
telecentre. 1Ley arise in many countries (lor example, in Canaoa, CLile, Colomlia, jamaica,
LS, SoutL Alrica ano Zimlalve) in response to community oemano or as a result ol an
inoivioual`s initiative. 1Le greatest cLallenge Las leen convincing aoministrators ano teacLers
ol tLe value ol a telecentre, ano provioing lor tLe institutional arrangements to make scLool
lacilities availalle, stall tLe centre ano protect tLe equipment. Pullic universities in Peru
Lave perLaps leen tLe most successlul, mainly lecause internal regulations allov computer
lals to keep tLe revenues collecteo lrom provioing services ano use tLose proceeos to cover
operating costs.
Post ollices are lacing a oeclining oemano lor traoitional services ano tLeir use to provioe
internet connectivity is leing promoteo in many countries. ¡n oroer to succeeo linancially,
acLieve oeptL ano lreaotL ol outreacL, ano provioe community-orienteo pullic services
ano training, tLey vill neeo to provioe a greater variety ol services, perLaps ly partnering
vitL otLer local organizations. ¡ilraries Lave leen quite successlul as telecentres in many
55
Francisco Proenza
countries. ¡n jamaica, every one ol tLe country`s 1+ parisL lilraries Las a small lut lively
computer lal vitL 9-10 computers eacL. 1Le opportunities presenteo ly locating telecentres
in pullic lilraries Las also leen recogniseo in Þev SoutL Wales, Australia, as a means ol
'lacilitating ongoing access to tecLnology lor remote, rural ano regional resioents` (Lirector
ol Eiverina Eegional ¡ilrary citeo in Bunoy 2000).
CONCLU5ION5
1Le estallisLment ol telecentres leo ly local, vell manageo (strengtLeneo, il necessary)
not-lor-prolit organizations, in partnersLip vitL a variety ol pullic, quasi-pullic agencies,
lusinesses ano otLer civil society organizations, appears to le tLe most promising vay
lorvaro, lotL lrom a oevelopment perspective ano to acLieve long term sustainalility. 1Lese
partnersLips sLoulo le lormeo voluntarily at tLe local level ly local partners, ano may neeo
to le encourageo ano nurtureo.
REfERENCE5
Bunoy, A. 2000, '¡ilraries a living lorce`, paper presenteo in Tlird Biennial Conjerence oj
Friends oj Libraries, Canlerra, Australia, lrom Lttp://vvv.lilrary.unisa.eou.au/papers/
living.Ltm
CLatterjee, S. 2001, ''Skumars` llip-llop e-com venture`, India Tines, july 1+
Colle, E.L. & Eaul, E. 1999, Connunication Centres and De:eloping Nations· A State oj
tle Art Beport, lrom Lttp://vvv.oevmeoia.org/oocuments/Banga.Ltm
Collier, P. 1998, Social Capital and Po:erty, Social Capital Initiati:e, Working Paper +, 1Le
Worlo Bank, WasLington. Eetrieveo lrom Lttp://vvv.vorlolank.org/poverty/scapital/
vkrppr/scivp+.pol
Laviozivk M.A., 2002, Las TIC cono instrunento de inclusión conunitaria y desarrollo
social, El caso del Proyecto CTC, !acultao oe Ciencias Sociales, Lniversioao oe Buenos
Aires (LBA)
¡rnlerg, j. 1998, 'Lniversal access lor rural oevelopment: lrom action to strategies`, First
International Conjerence on Bural Teleconnunications, WasLington, Þovemler 30-
Lecemler 2 1998
Government ol Colomlia, Ministerio oe Comunicaciones 2000, COMPABTEL· Prograna
de Teleconunicaciones Sociales, lrom Lttp://vvv.compartel.gov.co
Inack, S. & Ieeler, P. 1997, 'Loes social capital Lave an economic payoll¹ A cross-country
investigation`, Quarterly ]ournal oj Econonics, 112(12): 51-88
Minges, M. & Ielly, 1. 2001, '¡P 1elepLony`, ITU Neus, Þo. 2, lrom Lttp://vvv.itu.int/
¡1L-L/ict/cs/material/ ¡P1elepLony.pol
Proenza, !., Bastioas-BucL, E. & Montero, G. 2001, Telecentres jor Socioecononic and Bural
De:elopnent lrom Lttp://vvv.iaol.org/regions/itoev/telecentres
LS Census Bureau 2000, Hone Conputers and Internet Use in tle United States, lrom
Lttp://vvv.census.gov/proo/2001puls/ p23-207.pol
Worlo Bank 2001, 'Builoing institutions lor markets` in World De:elopnent Beport 2000,
1Le Worlo Bank, WasLington
56
Telecentre Sustainability· Mytls and Opportunities
Appendix 1. 5ervices Provided by More than HaI! o! Hungarian TeIecottages, 2001
5ervices provided by more than 50 percent o! 78 teIecottages surveyed % o! teIecottages
providing the service
A. Computer-Internet 5ervices (paid !or by users on an hourIy basis)
CompuIer games 99
CompleIioh o! compuIer work 97
IhIerheI access 96
L-mail !or public use 95
MulIimedia equipmehI !or use by Ihe public 83
ß. Other services !or vhich teIecottages receive direct compensation
O!!ice services (!axihg, phoIocopyihg, compuIer usage) 99
Local adverIisemehI, ih!ormaIioh cehIres 97
1echhical advice oh compuIers 91
Seek - O!!er Ih!ormaIioh Service 90
LdiIihg o! local hewspaper 88
Who does whaI ih Ihe village? 'Value map'
1
87
AssisIahce oh admihisIraIive a!!airs, admihisIraIive IrahsacIiohs
1
87
1eachihg, Iraihihg 86
AgriculIural ih!ormaIioh ahd advisory services (mosIly Io goverhmehI agehcies) 83
LmploymehI services - aid Io |ob seekers 83
ProspecIus, ih!ormaIioh lea!leIs - producIioh ahd dissemihaIioh 81
LdiIioh o! local web page
2
79
Almahacs, caIalogues ahd lexicohs (ihcludihg CDs) - producIioh, library o! maIerials 78
Local lisI o! programs ahd oIher publicaIiohs - producIioh ahd dissemihaIioh 78
Couhsellihg - aI leasI ih ohe pro!essiohal !ield
2
78
MediaIioh o! commercial ahd busihess services (e.g. real esIaIe, commodiIy) 77
OrgahizaIioh ahd procuremehI o! !uhdihg o! disIahce learhihg programs 77
OrgahizaIioh, procuremehI o! !uhdihg ahd provisioh o! accommodaIiohs !or Ielework 72
Local sale (books, posIcards, gi!Is, eIc.) 68
ProducIioh ahd upkeep o! daIabase wiIh ih!ormaIioh o! use Io Ihe commuhiIy
3
68
1ourisI Ih!ormaIioh O!!ice
4
68
DisIahce admihisIraIioh ahd disIahce supporI
3
67
1rahslaIioh services 65
MahagemehI o! Regiohal DevelopmehI Programs
3
64
Ca!é - co!!ee, Iea
3
62
1uIorihg 65
CD rehIal 58
ParIhership CehIre !or Small Regioh DevelopmehI
3
58
1ele-village cehIre
3
56
PublicaIioh o! local Ielephohe direcIory 53
C. 5ervices provided by teIecottages !or !ree
Ih!ormaIioh !or use by Ihe public 96
CehIre !or civil socieIy orgahizaIiohs 95
OrgahizaIioh o! commuhiIy programs ahd evehIs 92
Periodicals readihg room 86
CohsIahI place !or exhibiIiohs by commuhiIy orgahizaIiohs 69
D. 5ervices provided by government agencies using teIecottages
5
Ih!ormaIioh cehIre !or local a!!airs 82
OrgahizaIioh ahd provisioh o! social services 69
NoIes:
Source:
1
1his is a service o!Ieh o!!ered by IelecoIIages Io Ihird parIies !or a !ee buI someIimes also by goverhmehI
agehcies usihg IelecoIIage !aciliIies (wiIhouI direcIly compehsaIihg IelecoIIage).
2
AbouI hal! Ihe Iime IelecoIIages geI compehsaIed !or Ihis service ahd abouI hal! Ihe Iime Ihe service is
provided !ree o! charge.
3
1hese are services giveh by IelecoIIage Io Ihird parIies (e.g. goverhmehI agehcies, NCOs, busihesses or
ihdividuals) ahd Ihey geI direcI compehsaIioh !rom Ihe Ihird parIy. 1he service Io Ihe !ihal users is provided
by Ihe Ihird parIy usihg IelecoIIage !aciliIies.
4
Perhaps 70 percehI o! Ihe Iime IelecoIIage receives direcI compehsaIioh !or Ihe service ahd Ihe remaihihg
30 percehI is provided by goverhmehI agehcies direcIly, usihg IelecoIIage premises buI payihg ho direcI
compehsaIioh.
5
No direcI !ee is charged by IelecoIIage buI Ihere is usually a quid pro quo arrahgemehI wiIh goverhmehI
agehcy.
AuIhor's compilaIioh !rom daIa provided by 1elecoIIage AssociaIioh.
57
ChapIer 7
RuraI KnovIedge Centres.
An Experience !rom India
Senthil Kumaran
13
INTRODUCTION
Aovances in tecLnologies Lave oriven tLe last oecaoe`s economic loom ano tLe integration ol
markets arouno tLe planet. 1Le internet Las lurtLer accelerateo tLe speeo ol tLe oevelopment ol
'knovleoge societies`. But alongsioe tLese positive trenos are otLer, more solering signs. 1Lese
tecLnologies Lave also leo to serious oemograpLic, economic, genoer, genetic ano oigital oivioes
letveen tLe aovanceo nations ano tLe oeveloping regions. A groving population coupleo vitL
loss ol rural liveliLooos, oue to environmental oegraoation ano lack ol competitive alility
in markets, is leaoing to tLe rapio expansion ol urlan slums in many oeveloping countries.
1ooay, as tLe experiences ol tLe oevelopeo nations oemonstrate, it is recogniseo tLat knovleoge
empoverment is tLe key to tLe oevelopment ol any society in oroer to acLieve tLe triple goals
ol increaseo looo, increaseo employment ano increaseo income.
1Le use ol inlormation ano communication tecLnologies (¡C1s) Las a signilicant role to
play in provioing access to knovleoge. An interoisciplinary oialogue calleo '¡nlormation
1ecLnology: EeacLing tLe LnreacLeo`, organiseo ly tLe M.S. SvaminatLan EesearcL
!ounoation (MSSE!), CLennai, ¡noia, in 1992, empLasiseo tLe importance ol ¡C1s in
promoting sustainalle agriculture ano rural oevelopment in tLe oeveloping vorlo. 1o le ol
use to larm LouseLolos, tLe generic inlormation louno in tLe netvorks, incluoing tLe internet,
sLoulo le renoereo in locality-specilic knovleoge tLat larmers can act on. Baseo on tLis, tLe
!ounoation locuseo on oeveloping knovleoge centres in rural areas vitL mooern ¡C1s.
CREATION Of VILLAGE KNOWLEDGE CENTRE5
1Le main manoate ol MSSE! is tLe imparting ol a pro-nature, pro-poor, pro-vomen ano
pro-liveliLooo orientation to tecLnology oevelopment ano oissemination to tLe rural ano
trilal areas ol ¡noia. 1Le !ounoation Las estallisLeo a Lul-ano-spoke mooel ol oata-cum-
voice communication in a group ol 10 villages in PonoicLerry in soutL ¡noia. 1Le village
centres can communicate vitL eacL otLer as vell as to tLe internet. 1Le Lul provioes
connectivity to tLe internet, ano tLe stall create locally uselul content. 1Le oevelopment ol
rural knovleoge centres LigLligLts tLe neeo ol a Lolistic approacL tovaros tLe oevelopment
ol any rural society, vitL tecLnological intervention leing only one ol tLe components.
1Le initiative starteo in 1998 vitL tLe support ol tLe ¡nternational Levelopment EesearcL
Centre (¡LEC), Canaoa ano Las maoe an attempt to estallisL a sustainalle replicalle mooel
in vLicL tLe rural community is not a mere user ol ¡C1 lut tLe manager ol tLe knovleoge
system. MSSE! Las leen acting as a catalyst in tLe entire process. 1Le oevelopment ol
content ano oatalases, tLe management ol inlormation ano tLe netvork, tLe regulation ano
13
M.S. SvaminatLan EesearcL !ounoation, ¡noia ([email protected]).
58
Bural Knouledge Centres· An Experience jron India
quality control ol oata llov, ano tLe oelinition ol tLe knovleoge system are oone vitL tLe
active involvement ol tLe rural community. 1Le key step lies in tLe value aooeo to generic
inlormation ly making it locally relevant. SucL an approacL places empoverment tLrougL
knovleoge in an appropriate socio-cultural nilieu.
1Le selection ol PonoicLerry Lao certain initial aovantages: an accessille government
ano reasonalle telecom inlrastructure. 1Le level ol poverty vas LigL in rural areas, vLere
alout 21 percent ol tLe resioent lamilies vere living on less tLan LS$ 1 per oay as lamily
income. An earlier programme ol tLe !ounoation lor luiloing community assets laseo on
liological tecLnologies (Biovillage project) Lao leen lully operational in tLis region ano tLe
¡C1 component vas expecteo to complement tLis programme.
Objectives
Many activities vere planneo ano oevelopeo lor tLe rural knovleoge centres, targeting various
social groups in tLe villages. 1Le rural youtL ano vomen vere expecteo to gain tecLnical as
vell as managerial training lor operating inlormation sLops. 1Le centres voulo enalle rural
lamilies to access a lasket ol inlormation on tLeir entitlements using an appropriate lleno ol
mooern ano existing cLannels ol communication.
!urtLermore tLe centres voulo conouct impact assessments laseo on surveys, lacilitate
participatory rural appraisal ano otLer appropriate metLoos ol oata gatLering, conouct
researcL on tLe lormation ol multi-sectoral partnersLips (private-pullic/government-
ÞGCs) vitL rural communities to lorm a sustainalle mooel ol ¡C1s lor rural areas, ano
sLare researcL results vitL telecentre programmes in oillerent parts ol tLe vorlo, in oroer to
arrive at a more compreLensive picture ol impact assessment ano sustainalility issues ano its
possille internalisation in project implementation.
WorksLops ano otLer interactions sucL as on-site consultations vitL policy makers
voulo le organiseo to sensitise tLem to critical issues in tLe use ol ¡C1s to promote Luman
oevelopment in rural areas.
AppraisaI
All activities vere preceoeo ly oetaileo surveys ol tLe region (1+ villages vitL 22,000
population) covering tLe incioence ol poverty, status ol literacy ano eoucation, ano tLe
state ol telecom inlrastructure. A separate survey vas carrieo out vitL alout 10 percent ol
tLe resioent population in tLe proposeo area to ioentily existing communication Lalits ano
cLannels ol inlormation llov. 1Lese surveys revealeo tLe gaps ano tLe local availalility ol
skills to lrioge tLem. A gooo picture ol tLe rating ol various inlormation sources ly rural
lamilies vas also generateo.
Several interactive sessions letveen tLe project stall ano tLe community Lelpeo to
ioentity tLe inlormation neeos ol tLe community. 1Lese oiscussions assesseo Lov lar tLe
community vas villing to make in-kino or casL contrilutions to support tLe operations ol
tLe centre, ano vere also uselul in ioentilying a group ol volunteers vLo vere cLosen ly tLe
community to manage tLe local centre. 1Le project stall suggesteo tLat 50 percent ol tLem
must le vomen ano tLat tLey sLoulo le eoucateo at least up to LigL scLool level.
Genoer sensitivity in assessing inlormation neeos vas incorporateo lrom tLe inception ol
tLe project. A genoer expert in ¡noia vas inviteo to give an orientation to tLe project stall
in genoer matters. Sulsequently, a stall memler ol tLe !ounoation vas inviteo to join tLe
project operations at various stages to impart genoer sensitivity in neeos assessment ano in
content creation.
59
Sentlil Kunaran
ImpIementation
A cluster ol nine villages (all vitLin 25 km raoius) are connecteo to a Lul centre, Villianur,
ly tLe ingenious use ol a Lylrio vireo ano vireless netvork (consisting ol computers,
telepLones, VH! ouplex raoio oevices ano e-mail connectivity tLrougL oial-up telepLone
lines) tLat lacilitates lotL voice ano oata transler. WLile tLe village centres vere estallisLeo
in places vLere tLe community ollereo a secure space, lree ol cLarge, MSSE! Las manageo
tLe Lul ano provioeo tLe Larovare, tecLnical support ano training as ano vLen requireo.
Þine village centres vere set up ouring tLe perioo lrom Septemler 1998 to july 2001. 1Le
total population ol tLe lirst live villages is approximately 13,+00 ol vLicL alout +7 percent
are illiterate.
1Le village centre operators vere traineo in lasic PC operations, running Microsolt
Winoovs, Lanoling e-mail, ano in using tLe oata-cum-voice netvork. A lev volunteers Lave
pickeo up tLe use ol H1M¡ ano tecLniques ol recoroing voice in .WAV lormat. 1Le lack ol
stanoaroisation ol 1amil lonts vas overcome ly training volunteers in tLe use ol 1amil lonts on
tLe keyloaro layout oevelopeo ly tLe Centre lor Levelopment ol Aovanceo Computing (C-
LAC), Pune, ¡noia. ¡t vas louno tLat a perioo ol tvo veeks vas sullicient to train volunteers
in all tLese operations, a signilicant acLievement given tLat tLey Lao not seen a PC lelore ano
tLat tLeir level ol eoucation vas up to 10 years in scLool. 1raining vas also imparteo in tLe
lasics ol management, Lanoling queries lrom illiterate people, ano in maintaining a log ol tLe
use ol tLe centre ly local resioents. 1Le stall in tLe centre meet once every montL to maintain
a viev ol any cLanges in community neeos ano perceptions. 1ooay, tLe village volunteers act
as resource persons to provioe training to lresL recruits at tLese centres.
¡nlormation requesteo ly tLe community is oltaineo ly tLe Lul centre lrom lormal ano
internet sources. 1Le local communities cannot lino ansvers to many ol tLeir questions
exclusively tLrougL tLe internet. Ansvers to most questions are provioeo lrom inlormation
collecteo ly stall ano volunteers lrom local sources. Value is aooeo to tLe generic inlormation
ly translating it to 1amil, tLe local language, ano making tLe inlormation more locally
specilic. 1Le process Las resulteo in tLe creation ol several oatalases, all in 1amil (Box 1).
1Le use ol multimeoia tecLnology vitL voice lacilities is especially uselul lor tLe illiterate
poor vLo visit tLe centre. Many villagers reao tLe community nevspaper 'Þammavur
SeitLi` tLat tLe !ounoation pullisLes tvice a montL at 7500 copies ano oistrilutes lor lree.
ßox 1. Creation o! LocaI Databases at the VaIue Addition Centre
º ¡ntitlements to rural lamilies: 1Lis oatalase provioes oetails ol alout 130 scLemes vLicL are
operational in PonoicLerry Lnion 1erritory (L1) ouring tLe current Plan (up to 2002).
º !amilies lelov poverty line: 1Le oetails ol approximately 22,000 lamilies in tLe communes ol
Ariyankuppam, Villianur ano Þettapakkam Lave leen provioeo in tLis oatalase tLat Las leen
compileo lrom tLe L1 Aoministration ano upoateo until April 2000. (1Lis ollicial oocument
in ¡nglisL is translateo to tLose vLo request inlormation).
º Grain prices in PonoicLerry region.
º ¡nput prices (quality seeos ano lertilizers) in PonoicLerry region.
º Lirectory ol general ano crop insurance scLemes.
º ¡ntegrateo pest management in rice crop.
º Pest management in sugarcane crop.
º Lirectory ol Lospitals ano meoical practitioners in PonoicLerry, groupeo ly specialisations
sucL as ortLopaeoics, paeoiatrics etc.
º Bus ano train timetalles covering PonoicLerry region ano tvo nearly tovns.
60
Bural Knouledge Centres· An Experience jron India
ACHIEVEMENT5 Of RURAL KNOWLEDGE CENTRE
1Le value aooition centre in Villianur ano seven village centres Lave leen lully lunctional
vitL activities relateo to inlormation oissemination, oata provision ano leeolack collection.
1vo otLer centres Lao to le closeo, at one centre oue to irregular Lours ol operation ano
consioeralle oamage to equipment, vLile in tLe otLer centre, access to certain memlers ol
tLe community vas oenieo on tLe lasis ol caste. ¡n lotL cases, tLe contract letveen tLe
!ounoation ano tLe centre vas revokeo ano tLe equipment vas taken lack.
Baseo on user oata collecteo lrom live centres ouring tLe perioo january 1999 to june
2000, it vas estimateo tLat tLe average numler ol users is 12 per oay per centre. ¡nterestingly,
tLe assetless, ultra-poor lamilies are among tLe major users (accounting lor 29° ol total
users), along vitL tLe youtL (unoer 1+ years ol age) (28° ol users) ano vomen (18° ol
users). Eelatively lev illiterates use tLe centres (3° ol users).
1Le users Lave aoapteo vell to tLe availalle tecLnologies. Many ol tLem are nov aoept at
using computers ano Lave enjoyeo tLe lenelits ol oltaining tLe inlormation tLey neeo. As a
result, tLeir inlormation neeos are groving. More ano more villagers vill lecome skilleo at
using computers ano communication tecLnologies, ano vill visL to take aovantage ol nev
tecLnologies. ¡ventually, tLe !ounoation vill vitLorav lrom tLe villages, leaving tLe entire
programme in tLe Lanos ol tLe local community.
Genoer concerns are central to tLe project ano incorporating tLis concern is essential lor
success. Lue to a oelilerate oecision, more tLan Lall tLe volunteers operating tLe knovleoge
centres are vomen. 1Leir impact Las leen rellecteo in tLe increase in tLe numler ol vomen
users. Alout 18 percent ol tLe users are vomen, vLicL is mucL LigLer tLan tLe proportion
ol vomen users ol village pullic reaoing rooms (less tLan 3 percent). 1Lis aggregate ligure
conceals tLe lact tLat tLe proportion ol vomen users is mucL LigLer in tLe centres vLicL
Lave leen estallisLeo lor a longer time.
Hanoling computers ano ansvering men`s questions Las given vomen nev conlioence
ano status in tLe community. Some knovleoge centres provioe counselling to vomen in tLe
evenings. Many vomen Lave lormeo sell-Lelp groups, paying montLly sulscriptions ano
lorroving lrom tLe group vLen tLere is a neeo, especially lor tLeir cLiloren`s eoucation ano
starting cottage inoustries. 1Le knovleoge centres Lelp vomen get training relateo to nev
economic opportunities like incense stick manulacturing, pickle making, pLenyl ano soap oil
proouction, ano making ornamental artelacts lrom seasLells. Some vomen vLo oo not Lave
enougL time to visit tLe centre tLemselves, oue to tLe oemanos ol Lousevork ano lalouring,
oltain inlormation lrom otLer vomen vLo Lave visiteo tLe knovleoge centre. 1Lese results
are inoicators ol tLe success ol tLe project
approacL vLicL empLasiseo participation
ly vomen ano assetless lamilies.
1Le pattern ol usage across all nine village
centres inoicates tLat accessing government
sector oata ano inlormation on employment
opportunities are tLe tvo most important
uses ol tLis system (1alle 1).
1Lere Lave leen many instances vLere
local resioents Lave oeriveo lenelits lrom
tLe use ol oata ano inlormation oeriveo
lrom tLis netvork. ¡xamples incluoe:
TabIe 1. Pattern o! Usage in Nine ViIIage Centres
Type o! use frequency o! use (%)

Persohal 14
Programme relaIed 1

AgriculIure ahd !isheries 5
LducaIioh ahd Iraihihg 8
LmploymehI opporIuhiIies 26
HealIh 1
CoverhmehI secIor/
ehIiIlemehIs
45
61
Sentlil Kunaran
price inlormation relateo to grain sales, tLis is tLe most important lenelit to larmers as it
Lelps tLem improve tLeir negotiating position in oealing vitL price-lixing mioolemen,
inlormation on vave LeigLts (oovnloaoeo tvice oaily lrom tLe LS Þaval CceanograpLic
laloratory) receiveo ly lisLing Lamlets, tLis is vieveo ly tLe cralt-vessel lisLermen as
potential lile-saving inlormation,
government sector oata, in particular oeriving lenelits lrom Lousing scLemes,
availing larm lalour insurance ly lanoless vomen,
ease ol contacting meoical practitioners ano veterinarians, tLe local oatalases Lave leen
louno to le specilic ano uselul,
inlormation on jol opportunities ano training programmes Las also leen particularly
uselul,
accessing scLool examination results, over tLe last tvo years alout 2100 stuoents in all tLe
centres Lave useo tLis option ano saveo vaiting time ly at least one veek per person,
provioing exposure to computers, in IizLur arouno 80 stuoents lrom tLe government
mioole scLool regularly atteno tLe computer-training programme in tLe centre.
¡n aooition to tLe provision ol oata ano inlormation, eacL centre Las lecome a routine,
operational contact point letveen government agencies ano local lamilies. Government
oepartments sucL as agriculture, rural oevelopment, lisLeries, ano tLe State ¡lectoral Cllice
lrequently ano regularly use tLe village centres to oisseminate inlormation to village lamilies.
1Lus an important impact ol tLe centres Las leen tLeir role in enalling governance to le
lrougLt closer to tLe ultra poor ano tLis Las leen appreciateo ly local lamilies.
¡t is also signilicant to note tLat vLile project stall approacLeo tLe villagers ol IizLur ano
¡mlalam to estallisL inlormation centres, requests lor estallisLing centres in tLe seven otLer
villages came lrom tLe villagers tLemselves. 1Lis sLovs tLat a value Las leen createo ly tLese
centres in tLe lives ol tLe poor ano is rellecteo in tLeir oemano.
An important oevelopment is tLe emerging interest, especially among tLe youtL, to create
content tLat can le sLareo vitLin tLe netvork. 1Lis relates to commercial inlormation ano
on agricultural, inoigenous ano eoucational opportunities. Letaileo oocuments on sugarcane
cultivation ano tLe application ol manure are examples ol locality-specilic content creation.
¡n tLe long term, local content creation vill Lelp reouce tLe sLortage ol local language
materials availalle on tLe internet.
1Le creation ano upoating ol relevant content to suit local neeos is a key lactor in tLe
programme. Prior to commencing content-luiloing activity, extensive consultations vere
Lelo vitL participating village communities tLrougL small group meetings. ¡t emergeo tLat
tLe provision ol oynamic inlormation on prices ano tLe availalility ol inputs lor cultivation
sucL as seeos, lertilizer, or pesticioes is important to every larmer. Inovleoge ol grain sale
prices in various markets in ano arouno PonoicLerry is critical to larmers ouring tLe Larvest
season. 1Lis inlormation Lelps larmers market tLeir proouce more prolitally.
Village resioents are interesteo in oynamic ano customiseo inlormation. 1Lis is a resource-
intensive activity ano Las implications lor sustainalility since it involves locals in creating
ano managing local ano customiseo inlormation content. An encouraging oevelopment in
tLis regaro is tLat some village knovleoge centres Lave createo content relateo to agriculture,
animal Luslanory, eoucation, employment, LealtL, government announcements, income-
generating enterprises, tLe environment, ano general inlormation. 1Lere is a great sense ol
ovnersLip among tLe local people, vLo oo not viev tLe knovleoge centres as lelonging to
MSSE!. AnotLer outcome is tLe villingness ol locally laseo micro-creoit groups (savings co-
operatives), mostly lounoeo ano operateo ly rural vomen, to estallisL an accounts transaction
system using tLe oata netvork.
62
Bural Knouledge Centres· An Experience jron India
LE55ON5 LEARNT fOR fUTURE APPLICATION5
1Le programme Las leen oesigneo on tLe antyodaya (unto tLe last) principle ol MaLatma
GanoLi, i.e., to ensure tLat tLe poorest person in tLe village gains lrom tLe tecLnology ano
tLat tecLnology ooes not lurtLer vioen tLe ricL-poor oivioe. Some ol tLe lessons learnt are
tLe lolloving.
Connectivity, content ano sustainalility sLoulo receive concurrent attention.
Constraints must le removeo on tLe lasis ol a malaoy-remeoy analysis, lor example,
vireo ano vireless tecLnologies can le useo vLere telepLone connections are not
aoequate or satislactory. Similarly, solar pover can le Larnesseo vLere tLe regular
pover supply is irregular. 1Le approacL sLoulo le laseo on tLe principle tLat tLere is a
solution vLicL may le implementeo lor every prollem.
1Le inlormation provioeo sLoulo le oemano-oriven ano sLoulo le relevant to tLe oay-
to-oay lile ano vork ol rural vomen ano men.
Inovleoge oissemination sLoulo le linkeo to access to tLe inputs neeoeo to apply tLe
knovleoge lor economic activities.
1Le knovleoge centres sLoulo operate on tLe principle ol social inclusion, tLerely
presenting a vin-vin situation lor all.
Semi-literate vomen sLoulo le accoroeo priority in receiving training to operate tLe
centre, since tLis is an ellective metLoo ol enLancing tLe sell-esteem ano social prestige
ol vomen living in poverty.
º Programmes lor empovering rural lamilies vitL nev knovleoge ano skills sLoulo le
oesigneo on tLe antyodaya mooel, vLere empoverment starts vitL tLe poorest ano
most unoerprivilegeo vomen ano men.
1Le local population sLoulo Lave a sense ol ovnersLip ol tLe knovleoge centre. ¡t
sLoulo le client manageo ano controlleo, so tLat tLe inlormation provioeo is oemano-
ano user-oriven.
1Le local population sLoulo le villing to make contrilutions tovaros tLe expenses ol
tLe knovleoge centre, so tLat tLe long-term economic sustainalility ol tLe programme
is ensureo. Contrilutions in casL or kino generate a sense ol ovnersLip ano prioe, as
vell as create an economic stake in tLe operation ol tLe centre.
1Le !ounoation Las gaineo some uselul insigLts on Lov access to inlormation ano tLe
use ol ¡C1s can Lelp in poverty eraoication ano empovering vomen. Cn tLe lasis ol tLat
experience it Las estallisLeo a Virtual Acaoemy lor !ooo Security ano Eural Prosperity
(VAEP).
1Le VAEP is oesigneo to assist in tLe empoverment ol tLe rural population in ¡noia
tLrougL knovleoge. 1Le Acaoemy vill enalle larmers` organizations ano village vomen to
easily access scientilic ano tecLnical knovleoge tLat tLey neeo to solve local prollems, as vell
as to communicate tLeir ovn insigLts ano neeos lack to scientists. 1Le Virtual Acaoemy aims
at universal access tLrougL tLe integrateo molilisation ol tLe internet, calle 1V, community
ano Lam raoio ano vernacular nevspapers.
A oillerent approacL to lringing tLe lenelits ol ¡C1 to tLe rural poor Las emergeo at
anotLer site. A velsite calleo CooancLatrammarket.com vas launcLeo in tLe Biovillage
Centre at Iannivaoi, 1amil Þaou. CooancLatram is a small tovn, locateo in a region tLat
proouces large quantities ol vegetalles, lruits ano llovers. 1Le knovleoge centre locuses on
vegetalle prooucers, ano tLe velsite uploaos market price on real time lasis.
63
Sentlil Kunaran
¡t is oillicult to arrive at a single successlul mooel tLat can le replicateo in all rural areas
ano cater lor tLe varying neeos ol communities vitL oiverse lackgrounos. Hovever, tLe
lasic unoerlying principles, sucL as community participation ano creation ol locally relevant
inlormation, are generally applicalle.
CONCLU5ION5
1Le lottom-up approacL tLat involves community ovnersLip ol tLe village knovleoge
centres, generation ol locality-specilic content in tLe local language ano tLe aoaptation ol
mainstream tecLnologies to generate Lylrios to suit tLe neeos ol rural communities Las leen
tLe strengtL ol tLe knovleoge centres. 1raining volunteers in lotL tecLnology ano leaoersLip
Las playeo a major role in ellective management ol tLe project ly tLe community itsell.
1Le active participation ol tLe rural vomen as volunteers in tLe centre Las serveo to
enLance tLeir status in tLe society ano to lrioge genoer larriers. Cver 70 percent ol tLe 29
volunteers are vomen. ¡n turn, tLis encourages rural vomen to visit tLe centres to access
inlormation, especially on issues relating to reproouctive ano cLilo LealtL, ano lor income
generating activities.
1Le main issue ol researcL relates to sustainalility in a context vLere most users teno
to le ultra-poor. 1Le key may le to lorm partnersLips letveen local looies ano tLe local
aoministration ano liaise vitL government ollicials, local institutions ano traoers. AnotLer
important process is lorming sell-Lelp groups, assisting vitL setting up micro-enterprises,
arranging micro-creoit, ano Lelping market tLe prooucts lrom tLe micro-enterprises. Alove
all, a smootL vitLoraval strategy is neeoeo to ensure tLat tLe knovleoge centres, sell-Lelp
groups, micro-enterprises, etc. vill continue to lunction ano vitL greater elliciency once
external support is vitLoravn.
Levelopment ol applications, sucL as an online system lor community lanking ano
oistance eoucation, vill lurtLer contrilute to tLe economic sustainalility ol tLe operations.
1Le policy context sLoulo lecome more lavouralle in viev ol tLe cLaracter ol government
control ol lasic services in tLe telecom sector in many countries ol soutL Asia. ¡n tLe past
tLis Las preventeo applications-orienteo services lrom leing ollereo at lov cost. Hovever,
important policy cLanges Lave leen taking place at tLe regional, national ano international
level to lring tLe lenelits ol ¡C1s to tLe masses.
WLile tLe importance ol ¡C1s in tLe 'knovleoge empovereo oevelopment` ol rural areas
is crucial, tLe application ol tecLnology must relate to tLe social, economic ano oemograpLic
circumstances. Accoroing to SvaminatLan (1993), 'A Lolistic approacL is neeoeo lelore nev
tecLnologies are introouceo.` 1ecLnology transler alone cannot perlorm miracles ano solve
tLe prollems laceo ly rural communities in oeveloping nations. ¡t requires tLe integration
ano synergy ol several initiatives, incluoing knovleoge empoverment as a vital ingreoient,
to aooress genoer, social ano cultural larriers, ano leao to increaseo employment, increaseo
income ano increaseo looo. 1Lis is an entire process, in vLicL tLe appropriate use ol
tecLnology is only one part ol tLe solution.
ßIßLIOGRAPHY
ArunacLalam, S. 1999, '¡nlormation ano knovleoge in tLe age ol electronic communication:
a oeveloping country perspective`, ]ournal oj Injornation Science, 25 (6): +65-+76
Balaji, V., EajamoLan, I.G., Eajasekara Panoy E. & Iumaran, S. 1999, '1ovaros a
knovleoge system lor sustainalle oevelopment`, paper sulmitteo to tLe Workslop on
64
Bural Knouledge Centres· An Experience jron India
Equity, Di:ersity and Injornation Teclnology,National Institute oj Ad:anced Studies,
Bangalore, 3-4 Decenber 1999 lrom Lttp://vvv.lao.org/so/CLoirect/CLre0055l.Ltm
M. S. SvaminatLan EesearcL !ounoation 1996, Clennai Declaration oj tle World Science
Acadenies Sunnit on Food Security, CLennai
M. S. SvaminatLan EesearcL !ounoation 1999, Inpact oj Injornation Teclnology in Bural
Areas-India, Project Eeport sulmitteo to ¡nternational Levelopment EesearcL Centre,
Canaoa, CLennai
Press, ¡. 1999,'Connecting villages`, On Tle Internet, 5 (+): 32-37 lrom Lttp://som.csuoL.
eou/lac/lpress/articles/villages.Ltm
SvaminatLan, M.S. (eo.) 1993, Injornation Teclnology· Beacling tle Unreacled, Macmillan
¡noia
65
14
!arming Systems Levelopment Cllicer, !AC Eegional Cllice lor Alrica (!ACEA!), Accra
([email protected]).
ChapIer 8
The RoIe o! NGOs and farmer
Organizations in Linking RuraI In!ormation
and KnovIedge 5ystem LeveIs
Dagmar Kunze
14
INTRODUCTION
Eural oevelopment oepenos on lotL inlormation as tLe rav material tLat enters a learning
system, ano ol knovleoge generateo ly liltering, testing, comparing, analysing ano
generalising inlormation. 1Le users ol sucL a system tLen gain visoom as tLe alility to utilise
knovleoge ano experience in action (¡ovaros 1996). !or ÞGCs, no matter il international,
national or local, visoom is important lecause inlormation ano knovleoge tLat is not put
ellectively in practice is ol little value. 1Le goal is not to store inlormation alout tLe vorlo
lut to cLange it or Lelp otLers to oo so (¡ovaros 1997).
¡n rural areas, local inlormation ano knovleoge systems are maoe ol inoigenous, unique,
traoitional, local knovleoge, vLicL exists vitLin ano vas oevelopeo arouno tLe specilic conoitions
ol men ano vomen inoigenous to a particular geograpLic area (Grenier 1998). ¡ocal inlormation
systems also incluoe mooern inlormation systems sucL as tLose vitLin a local aoministration at
oistrict or provincial level. 1Le mooern systems vork vitL inlormation lrom tLe international
knovleoge systems generateo ly universities, researcL institutions ano private lirms. 1Lis
contrasts vitL local, inoigenous knovleoge ano inlormation vLicL is oelineo in tLe lolloving
terms: (i) it is linkeo to a specilic place, culture or society, (ii) it is oynamic in nature, (iii) it lelongs
to groups ol people vLo live in close contact vitL natural systems, ano (iv) it contrasts vitL
'mooern` or 'Western lormal scientilic` knovleoge (Stuoley 1998). ¡ocal knovleoge consists ol
inlormation, insigLt ano tecLniques tLat are passeo oovn ano improveo lrom one generation to
tLe next ano covers sucL topics as meoicine, animal lreeoing ano proouction, vater management,
seeo selection, crop proouction, soil conservation, ano pest management.
ÞGCs ano larmers` organizations (!Cs) are important catalysts lor tLe circulation ol
inlormation among various stakeLoloers vitLin tLe oevelopment process. ¡nternational
ÞGCs (¡ÞGCs) transler inlormation lrom tLe local or national level to oonor agencies
ano tLe international pullic ano vice versa, vLereas national ano local ÞGCs transler
inlormation mostly vitLin a country lrom LouseLolos ano communities to regional
or national level ano vice versa. ¡t is at tLis transler tLat inoigenous ano international
inlormation meets ano is mixeo. 1o appraise ano improve an inlormation system one neeos
to look at Lov inlormation is collecteo, accesseo, storeo, translerreo ano oisseminateo, ano
vLo is perlorming tLese tasks.
1Lis paper provioes an overviev ol tLe roles tLat local, national ano international ÞGCs
ano !Cs play in aooressing key issues in tLe collection, transler, translormation ano usage ol
66
Tle Bole oj NGOs and Farner Organizations in Linking Bural Injornation
inlormation at tLe local ano regional level, ano in improving sucL local inlormation systems
vitL tLe aim ol supporting local populations to enLance tLeir oecision making.
THE ROLE Of NGO5 AND fO5 IN THE DEVELOPMENT PROCE55
1vo types ol ÞGCs, laseo on tLeir emergence, are louno to le active especially in tLe
oeveloping vorlo context (!isLer 1993). !irst, vitL tLe availalility ol loreign assistance
since tLe 1970s, ioealistic young prolessionals Lave createo ano are involveo in tLe activities
ol grassroots support organizations (GESCs). Basically, tLese organizations are involveo in
lielos sucL as oevelopment, environment, vomen, ano primary LealtL care. 1ypical GESCs
are stalleo ly prolessionals ano are involveo in cLannelling international lunos to grassroots
organizations (GECs). Secono, GECs are createo ly local people lor tLeir community vell
leing. ¡xamples ol tLese organizations incluoe vomen`s groups, larmers` groups, or otLer
user groups. AltLougL in many cases GESCs Lave supporteo ano contriluteo to creating
GECs, tLere are also examples ol GECs Lelping GESCs ly provioing tLe manpover to
lorm ano operate tLem (Wagle 1999).
!armers` organizations can le GECs as oescrileo alove. At tLis level !Cs are olten
cooperatives ano organiseo along proouction lines lor acquiring ano oistriluting inputs,
marketing proouce ano oltaining creoit. At tLe national level !Cs are olten looies
to politically represent larmers vitL tLe aim ol lollying lor tLeir memlers` interests.
1Lerelore, vLile tLe role ol local !Cs lies olten in organizational ano economic support lor
tLeir memlers, national !Cs play a political role. Þotally in Alrica, national !Cs oller lev
oirect services to tLeir memlers, altLougL tLis service is evolving in some countries.
ÞGCs linking local ano glolal levels ol societies are lecoming increasingly important
actors in an emerging glolal civil society. ÞGCs Lelp to create a countervailing lorce to
tLe processes tLat exploit ano excluoe people ly re-oistriluting assets ano opportunities,
injecting social values into market processes, ano Loloing economic institutions to account
lor tLeir actions. Cne ol tLeir roles is tLe response to glolalisation ano tLe re-sLaping ol
tLe evolving processes vitL tLe long term target tLat all can enjoy tLe lruits ol economic
progress. ÞGCs olten take on tLe role ol a luller lor tLose groups tLat seem to lose out
in tLe course ol glolalisation. 1Ley provioe Lumanitarian assistance, conllict resolution
ano peace luiloing. ÞGCs also play an important role in tLe relorm ol international co-
operation ano Lelp luilo nev lorms ol governance tLrougL capacity-luiloing, constituency-
luiloing ano transnational civic organising (¡ovaros et al. 1999).
¡ÞGCs ano national !Cs play an important role in aovocacy, learning, netvorking ano
inlormation oissemination. Government ollicials olten look to ÞGCs lor innovative ioeas
ano inlormation (Paul 2000). ¡ÞGCs are multi-layereo organizations increasingly gaining
political inlluence in tLe glolal spectrum. 1Ley Lave a signilicant potential aovantage over
ollicial aio agencies vLose presence at tLe grassroots level is usually veak ano transient,
ano over grassroots organizations vLicL Lave a limiteo impact on oecision-makers at
national ano international levels. !Cs can link tLe grassroots level to tLe national level lut
olten lack inlormation on tLeir ovn memlers or only represent certain regions ol a given
country. WLile most ¡ÞGCs see tLeir relationsLip vitL lilateral ano multilateral agencies
as a oialogue on policy, oonors tLemselves continue to viev ¡ÞGCs as mere implementers
ol projects. !or example, it is reporteo tLat only 11 percent ol ¡ÞGCs vitL vLom tLe
Worlo Bank co-operateo letveen tLe perioo 1988 ano 1989 vere consulteo in tLe oesign
pLase ol projects (Maoon 2000). Þational !Cs on tLe otLer Lano olten struggle to unite
tLeir memler organizations at tLe national level ano to le politically recogniseo ly tLe
government ol tLeir country.
67
Dagnar Kunze
Lnoerlying tLe various processes tLat ÞGCs ano !Cs are involveo in, are activities
concerneo vitL inlormation access ano excLange. 1Le locus ol many ¡ÞGCs ano oonor
agencies as vell as national institutions useo to le on cLannelling inlormation lrom tLe lielo to
le consumeo ly tLe Leaoquarters. ¡ately, locally-generateo inlormation ano communication
cLannels are lecoming more accepteo. ¡t is nov recogniseo ly many tLat critical ano
inlluential inlormation lor learning comes tLrougL inlormal ano inoivioual contacts. ¡ÞGCs
mainly rely on vritten inlormation, vLereas local ÞGCs incluoe lolk meoia, orama, story-
telling ano village meetings. 1Lese meoia interact vitL one anotLer to lorm a netvork tLat
constitutes tLe inlormation environment ol local communities ano an important source
ol empoverment ano a conouit ol cLange. Lp to tLe present mucL ol tLe researcL on
inoigenous communication Las concentrateo on using inoigenous cLannels to promote
exogenous innovations, increasingly laseo on inlormation ano communication tecLnology
(¡C1), ratLer tLan tLe oissemination ol inoigenous knovleoge among communities. 1Lis
Las leo to neglect ol local initiative in tLe oesign ol oevelopment ellorts ano a tLreat ol
tLe erosion ol inoigenous ano inlormal systems oue to tLe inlluence ol lormal, ¡C1-laseo,
vestern-orienteo inlormation systems typically packageo vitL loreign aio (Maoon 2000).
!armers` organizations, especially in Alrica, Lave olten stateo inlormation requirements
to 'oevelop tLeir capacities lor in-oeptL analysis ol looo security issues ano lor lormulating
ano oelenoing proposals ano positions in tLe interest ol tLeir memlers` (!AC 2000).
¡n aooition, inlormation is one ol tLe key issues in many ollicial statements at ÞGC ano
civil society jora. At a meeting letveen tLe ÞGCs ano tLe Worlo Bank`s presioent, james
WollensoLn, in 2000, inlormation vas one ol tLe key issues oiscusseo in terms ol lotL
inlormation tLat ÞGCs requesteo lrom tLe Worlo Bank as vell as Mr. WollensoLn`s opinion
on tLe role ol inlormation ano ÞGCs:
'WitL ¡nternet tecLnology ano tLe availalility ol inlormation excLange, as you Lave
alreaoy seen in tLe vay in vLicL manilestations can le organiseo vitL someone lrom tLeir
living room vitL an ¡nternet connection can get inlormation arouno to cause meetings like
tLis, tLe possilility ol enlrancLising civil society ano getting transparency ano knovleoge
is as never lelore. Ano my oljective in terms ol ¡nternet tecLnology is not to ignore tLat
people are starving ano tLat tLey are Lungry ano tLat you Lave to oeal vitL tLe questions ol
sustenance ano poverty, lut tLe liggest cLallenge ano tLe liggest opportunity tLat you Lave
is lrankly netvorking ano transparency using tecLnology` (Worlo Bank 2000).
1Le lirst point ol tLe Action Plan, agreeo upon at tLe Eegional Consultation ol !AC ano
larmers` organizations, ÞGCs ano civil society organizations lor Alrica Lelo in Yaounoe,
Cameroon, in 2000 concerns solely inlormation sLaring ano analysis as a priority area ol
action (Box 1).
¡nlormation plays a vital role in tLe oevelopment process. All actors neeo inlormation
lor tLeir oecision making at various levels. 1Lerelore, key issues in respect ol inlormation
systems concern tLe type ol inlormation vLicL is oemanoeo ano ollereo ly all groups
ol civil society, tLe costs ano lenelits ol inlormation, tLe gaps in existing mecLanisms ol
inlormation excLange, ano opportunities to improve tLe existing systems to provioe tLe
users ol inlormation vitL a letter lasis lor tLeir oecision making.
68
Tle Bole oj NGOs and Farner Organizations in Linking Bural Injornation
ßox 1. fAO-NGO ConsuItations in A!rica 2000 - Action PIan
º Promote tvo-vay provision ol inlormation on looo security situations oovn to tLe local level
(as in tLe case ol Zamlia ano tLe Zamlia Þational !armers` Lnion).
º Levelop tLe capacity ol !Cs/ÞGCs at tLe sul-regional level lor netvorking ano inlormation
excLange on looo security ano sustainalle agriculture (vitLin tLe context ol tLe !C/
ÞGC/!AC/¡nternational !uno lor Agricultural Levelopment (¡!AL) capacity-luiloing
programme in SoutL Alrican Levelopment Community, to le extenoeo to netvorks in otLer
sul-regions).
º ¡nsure tLat inlormation on looo security-relateo programmes ano initiatives promoteo ly
!AC is availalle to !Cs/ÞGCs in tLe countries concerneo.
º Levelop inoicators lor measuring compliance vitL looo security commitments ano assess
tLeir impact on tLe lives ol tLe people vLo suller lrom looo insecurity.
Source: !AC 2000
INfORMATION AND KNOWLEDGE 5Y5TEM5 AND NEED5
An inlormation system is cLaracteriseo ly tLe vay inlormation is accesseo, collecteo,
translormeo, translerreo, oistriluteo ano useo. ¡t is equally important to look at tLe type ol
inlormation tLat is useo vitLin a given system. 1o oistinguisL local systems lrom international
systems eacL system can le oescrileo ly oillerent leatures as presenteo in 1alle 1.
TabIe 1. Characteristics o! In!ormation and KnovIedge 5ystems
LocaI in!ormation and knovIedge systems InternationaI in!ormation and knovIedge systems
CeheraIed wiIhih commuhiIies CeheraIed by research, media
LocaIioh ahd culIure speci!ic 'IhIerhaIiohal' ahd o! 'wesIerh' oriehIaIioh
8asis !or decisioh makihg ahd survival sIraIegies 8asis !or decisioh makihg
NoI sysIemaIically documehIed Widely documehIed
Cohcerhs criIical issues o! humah ahd ahimal li!e:
primary producIioh, humah ahd ahimal li!e, haIural
resource mahagemehI
Cohcerhs mahy aspecIs o! li!e especially hew !ihdihgs
Dyhamic, based oh ihhovaIioh, adapIaIioh, ahd
experimehIaIioh
LxIremely dyhamic, based oh research !ihdihgs or hews
Oral ahd rural ih haIure WriIIeh, ihcreasihgly ihIerheI-based ahd !ocuses oh
urbah ih!ormaIioh ahd li!esIyles
1rahs!erred persoh Io persoh, or by radio 1rahs!erred by Iechhologies such as ihIerheI,
Ielephohe, hewspapers, radio, Ielevisioh
Scarce ahd valuable PlehIi!ul ahd becomihg a global public good
Indigenous and modern in!ormation and knovIedge systems
WLen mooern ano inoigenous communities are compareo, it is not just oealing vitL oillerent
political alliliation lut also oillerent systems ol inlormation ano knovleoge, oillerent vays
ol unoerstanoing, perceiving, experiencing ano ol oelining reality (Banuri ano Marglin 1993).
1Le oillerent elements tLat comprise tLe knovleoge system are not mutually exclusive lor
eitLer system. Lominance ol one element vitLin a cultural group ooes not prevent many
69
Dagnar Kunze
inoiviouals in tLat same group lrom leing LigLly lunctional in anotLer element. Social
cLange is occurring in lotL mooern ano inoigenous societies sucL tLat nev values ano vays
ol tLinking are emerging in lotL (Stuoley 1998).
Many scientists, governments ano inoigenous peoples agree tLat given tLe lailure ol
conventional oevelopment mooels, tLe pluralistic nature ol society ano tLe ecological
interoepenoence letveen nations, mooern ano inoigenous inlormation ano knovleoge
systems must le integrateo. Lespite mucL oiscussion alout tLe neeo to integrate tLe
tvo systems ano a lev attempts at co-management, its role ano importance Las not leen
assesseo among many groups. ¡n aooition, its ellective use in oecision making ano resource
management Las yet to le lully testeo ano a numler ol prollems Lave not leen resolveo.
1Lese prollems incluoe (Stuoley 1998):
tLe oisappearance ol local inlormation ano knovleoge ano tLe lack ol resources to
oocument it lelore it is lost,
tLe reconciliation ol tvo very oillerent vorlo vievs,
translating ioeas ano concepts lrom one culture to anotLer,
an acknovleogement ol tLe value ol opposing knovleoge systems,
oillerences letveen social ano natural scientists regaroing appropriate metLoos to
oocument ano integrate inoigenous knovleoge,
tLe link letveen political pover ano mooern knovleoge,
tLe neeo lor vestern people ano vestern institutions not only to treat local inlormation
ano knovleoge as valio ano local knovleoge Loloers as equals lut also to aoopt a local
vorloviev ano learn to unoerstano ano interpret tLe vorlo lrom tLe local perspective.
CtLervise tLere are varying real oangers ol cultural imperialism or non-sustainalility.
!or tLe improvement ol oecision making it is paramount to knov tLe inlormation
requirements ol tLe respective stakeLoloers. WitL relerence to local inlormation ano
knovleoge systems tLey consist ol all actors at tLe local level. 1Lese actors, tLe type ol
oecisions tLey make ano tLe inlormation vLicL is requireo at eacL level are oescrileo in
1alle 2.
TabIe 2. In!ormation Needs
Decisioh maker 1ype o! decisioh Ih!ormaIioh required (examples)
Rural households Livelihood sIraIegies: prioriIisaIioh
o! livelihood acIiviIies ahd
ihvesImehI decisiohs
AvailabiliIy o! agriculIural ihpuIs ahd services,
ouIpuI markeI prices, ihsIiIuIiohal ahd policy
cohIexI
Womeh !armers Livelihood sIraIegies: prioriIisaIioh
o! !amily care ahd producIioh ahd
cohsumpIioh decisiohs
MarkeI prices !or small quahIiIies,
sIahdardisaIioh o! quahIiIies, healIh ahd
huIriIioh-relaIed ih!ormaIioh
Farmers' local
orgahizaIiohs
IhvesImehI ahd programme
decisiohs
Ih!ormaIioh opporIuhiIies ahd cohsIraihIs ih Ihe
agriculIural secIor
Farmers' haIiohal
orgahizaIiohs
AgriculIural policy lobbyihg decisiohs Members' characIerisIics, world markeIs,
ihIerhaIiohal agreemehIs, agriculIural policies
Local NCOs 1ype o! programme Io carry ouI Ih!ormaIioh oh livelihood opporIuhiIies ahd
cohsIraihIs, parIher orgahizaIiohs, access Io
ih!ormaIioh sources
Local goverhmehI Local ahd disIricI policy makihg
(prioriIisihg resource allocaIioh)
Ih!ormaIioh abouI Ihe sIaIus o! agriculIure ahd
poverIy ih Ihe localiIy
NaIiohal NCOs 1ype o! programme Io carry ouI,
choice o! parIhers, !uhdihg sources
Ih!ormaIioh oh programmes, commuhicaIioh,
plahhihg, parIhers, !uhdihg sources
IhIerhaIiohal NCOs Ih!ormaIioh oh local khowledge mixed wiIh
ih!ormaIioh !rom Ihe ihIerhaIiohal level
Source: ODI 2001, adapIed
70
Tle Bole oj NGOs and Farner Organizations in Linking Bural Injornation
¡nlormation llovs letveen local ÞGCs ano various sources ol inlormation are presenteo
in !igure 1. 1Le lrequency vitL vLicL cLannels are useo ly tLe various stakeLoloers, tLe
oirection ol tLe inlormation llov ano tLe type ol inlormation excLangeo vill neeo to le
oetermineo at inoivioual local levels.
figure 1. In!ormation fIovs betveen LocaI NGOs and Various 5ources o! In!ormation
Source: AuIhor's compilaIioh

ROLE Of NGO5 AND fO5 IN IMPROVING INfORMATION AND KNOWLEDGE
5Y5TEM5
Suggestions lor improving local inlormation systems in relation to ÞGCs ano !Cs can le
maoe ly looking at various aspects ol inlormation sucL as access, costs, linance, lenelits,
transler, content, context, tecLnologies, capacity ol users ano provioers, policy ano
netvorks.
¡n its 'Policy ano Strategy lor Cooperation vitL ÞGCs ano CSCs` !AC (1999) Las
suggesteo inlormation sLaring ano analysis to le ol primary importance. Activities lor
improvement incluoe:
oeveloping an inlormation oisclosure policy,
promoting inlormation initiatives vitL ÞGCs,
making !AC inlormation more easily accessille ano usalle,
making special ellorts to reacL national ano local organizations.
1Le last point is especially relevant to improve local inlormation ano knovleoge systems
vLere molile lilraries, market inlormation lootLs, support to telecentres ano otLer various
activities can le carrieo out.
¡ven tLougL a compreLensive reviev ol local inlormation ano knovleoge systems is
suggesteo, past experience leaos to several principles ano priorities tLat sLoulo guioe luture
ellorts in tLis lielo. 1Ley incluoe:
Donor organizations
National level
institutions
Research institutions,
universities schools
Community members
Media,
telecommunications
Ìnternational NGOs
Visitors to the region
Local administration Local NGO
Local authorities,
politicians,
entrepreneurs,
teachers
71
Dagnar Kunze
concentrating on existing systems,
lostering ¡ÞGC-to-ÞGC ano !C linkages,
oeveloping small larmer aovocacy groups,
promoting local capacity luiloing,
strengtLening tLe uselulness ol ÞGC ano !C small larmer assistance programmes,
cLarging contrilutions lor any oirect training ano tecLnical assistance provioeo to small
larmers ly ÞGCs ano !Cs,
concentrating assistance on tecLnology oevelopment, transler, ano aoaptation,
provioing skills ano services training in communication ano inlormation management,
promoting tLe value ano uselulness ol local intermeoiaries letveen communities ano
¡ÞGCs ano national !Cs.
PotentiaI contribution o! NGOs and fOs
Strengthening the policy dialogue betueen local and national/international le:el
1Lis vill require improveo meoia, institutions ano jora to support a LigLer quality ol
inlormation excLange. ¡t means letter oata, more relateo analytical resources lor surveys,
stall training, jora, pullications, ano inlormation tecLnology (computer, reproouction,
inlormation access, ano telecommunications equipment).
link NCOs, IOs and local go:ernments uith ci:il society and pri:ate sector
All ol tLese parties vill generally Lave an interest in relorms tLat lacilitate tLe mooernisation
ano grovtL process. ÞGCs ano !Cs vill sulstantially augment tLeir impact ly lacilitating
sucL collaloration.
E:aluate donor experience in netuorking uith NCOs and de:eloping IOs
An evaluation sLoulo le carrieo out to look at tLe cLaracteristics ol oonor support to
associations ano netvorks. 1Le purpose voulo le to ioentily tLose cLaracteristics vLicL
typily ano oistinguisL tLe successlul lrom tLe unsuccesslul activities to oevelop netvorks.
By consioering lotL successlul ano laileo cases ol ÞGC/!C oevelopment, it may enalle
ioentilication ol cLaracteristics ol vinners as vell as lactors tLat seem to cause losers.
Capacity building
1o transler tecLnology to oeveloping countries, oonors must oetermine tLe potential
interlace letveen small larmers` vork Lalits ano tLeir use ol tecLnology. An intervention
tLat relies on tecLnology sLoulo lirst unoerstano tLe larmers` situation ano tLen oesign tLe
application ol tecLnology laseo upon tLis unoerstanoing. Alternatively, oonors can train
larmers to cLange tLeir leLaviour to aoopt existing tecLnology. ¡n eitLer case, one cannot
simply locus on tLe tecLnological Larovare.
¡xpenoitures on training may exceeo tLose on Larovare ly several times, oepenoing on
tLe situation, as ellorts are maoe to loost tLe inlormation culture in oeveloping countries.
¡ack ol literacy is an olstacle to promoting access to tLe inlormation tecLnology. 1ranslating
oocuments, using pictures, ano even voice messages can Lelp aooress tLis issue lut 'lov-
tecL` solutions exist as vell. !or example, in some Alrican locations eoucateo lut pLysically
oisalleo inoiviouals operate pLone stations ano Lelp illiterate people tLrougL tLe steps lor
making calls.
Capacity luiloing ellorts must ensure tLat vomen are incluoeo at all levels in ÞGCs ano
!Cs in oroer to overcome genoer liases.
72
Tle Bole oj NGOs and Farner Organizations in Linking Bural Injornation
lnternet and e-mail
¡n many locations, access to tLe internet is virtually lree: users pay tLe cost ol a local pLone
call il tLey are locateo in tLe same city as tLe internet nooe. CtLer users must pay tLe cost
ol calling into tLe capital (or nooe) city to relay messages even il tLey are corresponoing via
e-mail vitL a neigLlouring tovn. Cne ol tLe more promising applications ol tLe internet is
tLe creation or enLancement ol local markets. Small lusinesses in oeveloping countries suller
lrom poor communication netvorks ano a sLortage ol inlormation regaroing, lor example,
prices lor supplies ano prooucts, or cargo inlormation lor sLaring sLipments.
Þot every ÞGC or !C neeos its ovn pLone line, mooem, ano computer to access tLe
internet. Community or larmers` associations can set up a simple computing centre vLere
memlers can sLare a single computer, mooem, ano pLone line. ¡nternet e-mail messages ano
attacLments are cLeaper ano more relialle tLan laxes.
CONCLU5ION5
ÞGCs, lotL local as vell as international, ano !Cs play an increasingly important role in tLe
emerging glolal civic society. 1Leir various cLaracters ano tasks allov lor a vast oevelopment
vitLin existing organizations as vell as tLe emergence ol nev looies. Among tLe leatures
tLat oescrile tLese civil society institutions is tLat ol inlormation excLange ano transler lrom
tLe international to tLe local level ano vice versa. WLereas international inlormation systems
use LigLly tecLnological means ol inlormation access, transler, oistrilution ano usage, local
inlormation system are ol a oillerent nature. ¡noigenous knovleoge is a key element in tLe
latter systems.
¡ocal ÞGCs in Alrica are very olten in neeo ol provioing a lasic income to tLeir memlers,
in aooition to trying to oo sometLing Lelplul lor tLe community. 1Lis lact neeos to le taken
into account, il one looks at tLe luture role ol ÞGCs in local inlormation systems.
1Lere is a LigL potential lor improving tLe lunctioning ol local level inlormation systems
ano tLe role ol ÞGCs in tLis area. Constraints to oevelopment are given ly tLe perlormance
ol pullic services as vell as ly tLe non-lunctioning ol certain communication cLannels tLat
ÞGCs migLt rely on. 1Lis is especially true lor local ÞGCs vLicL rely mucL more on a
vell lunctioning system tLan international ÞGCs, since local ÞGCs usually oo not Lave tLe
linancial capacity to estallisL tLeir ovn communication cLannels.
REfERENCE5
Banuri, 1. & Marglin, !. A. 1993, WLo vill save tLe !orests ¹ Inovleoge, pover ano
environmental oestruction, Zeo Books, ¡onoon ano Þev jersey
¡ovaros, M. 1996, '1Le getting ol visoom: eoucating tLe rellective practitioner`, in Hamoi,
Þ. (eo) Educating For Beal, Tle Training oj Projessionals jor De:elopnent Practice, ¡1
Pullications, ¡onoon
¡ovaros, M. 1997, 'Crganizational learning in non-governmental organizations: vLat Lave
ve learneo¹`in Public Adninistration and De:elopnent, 17: 235-250
¡ovaros, M., Hulme, L. & Wallace, 1. 1999, 'ÞGCs in a Glolal !uture: Marrying ¡ocal
Lelivery to Worlovioe ¡everage` Conlerence Backgrouno Paper, BirmingLam
!AC 1999, Policy and Strategy jor Cooperation uitl Non-Go:ernnental and Ci:il Society
Organizations lrom Lttp://vvv.lao.org/oocrep/X221+¡/x221+e00.Ltm
73
Dagnar Kunze
!AC 2000, Begional FAO/FO/NGO/CSO Consultation jor Ajrica, Final Beport, !AC
Eegional Cllice lor Alrica, Accra, GLana
!isLer, j. 1993, Tle Boad jron Bio· Sustainable De:elopnent and tle Nongo:ernnental
Mo:enent in tle Tlird World, Praeger PullisLers
Grenier, ¡. 1998, Working uitl Indigenous Knouledge. A guide jor researclers, ¡LEC,
Canaoa
Maoon, S. 2000, International NGOs· Netuorking, Injornation Flous and Learning, Working
Paper Series, Working Paper 8, ¡nstitute lor Levelopment Policy ano Management,
Lniversity ol MancLester, LI
CL¡ 2001, Strategic Progranne jor Injornation on Sustainable Li:eliloods, paper lor
L!¡L/!AC
Paul, j. A. 2000, 'ÞGCs ano Glolal Policy-Making` Glolal Policy !orum, lrom Lttp://
vvv.glolalpolicy.org/ngos/analysis/anal00.Ltm
Stuoley, j.1998, 'Lominant Inovleoge Systems ano ¡ocal Inovleoge`, Mountain !orum
lrom Lttp://vvv.mtnlorum.org/resources/lilrary/stuoj98a.Ltm
Wagle, L. 1999, '1Le Civil Society Sector in tLe Leveloping Worlo` Public Adninistration
and Managenent lrom Lttp://vvv.pamij.com/99_+_+_vagle.Ltml
Worlo Bank 2000, 'Proceeoings ol ÞGC Meeting vitL Mr. WollensoLn` Prague, CzecL
Eepullic, Septemler 2000, lrom Lttp://vel.vorlolank.org/WBS¡1¡/¡X1¡EÞA¡/
Þ¡WS/0,,contentMLI: 20025788~menuPI:3++78~pagePI:3+370~piPI:3++2+~tLeSite
PI:+607,00.Ltml
75
ChapIer 9
Key Lessons Learned
1Le main lessons learneo lrom tLe seven papers presenteo in tLis oocument may le
summariseo unoer tLree tLemes: tLe insigLts tLey provioe alout larmers` inlormation
seeking leLaviour, limitations ol existing inlormation netvorks, ano tLe opportunities
ioentilieo lor improving inlormation llovs to rural communities.
fARMER5' INfORMATION 5EEKING ßEHAVIOUR
1Le inlormation seeking leLaviour ol larmers is inlluenceo ly a mixture ol personal ano
lusiness cLaracteristics, ano tLeir location, incluoing:
º Degree oj connercialisation oj jarning: larmers engageo in prooucing lor tLe
market are more likely to Lave a vioer range ol inlormation sources tLan tLose
prooucing largely lor Lome consumption. As larmers lecome more integrateo
in market-orienteo proouction, access to up-to-oate inlormation is vital to enalle
tLem to ioentily prolitalle market outlets, negotiate prices ano plans lor luture
proouction seasons.
º Farner's socio-econonic and gender claracteristics: poorer LouseLolos engageo in
sulsistence proouction vill Lave oillerent inlormation requirements to commercial
larmers, similarly, vomen`s inlormation neeos may locus on oillerent enterprises to
tLose ol men (lor example, poultry as opposeo to cattle).
º Topic jor ulicl injornation is souglt: tLe inlormation sources consulteo olten varies
accoroing to tLe topic. !armers teno to consult traoers alout price ano market
inlormation ano extension services alout improveo larming practices, nevertLeless,
otLer larmers remain a signilicant source ol inlormation lor a vioe range ol topics.
º Ser:ice endounent oj tle connunity and proxinity to injornation sources: larmers are
more likely to consult vioely il tLey Lave access to a variety ol inlormation sources
vitLin a reasonalle travelling oistance (lotL in terms ol cost ano time).
LIMITATION5 Of EXI5TING INfORMATION AND KNOWLEDGE NETWORK5
Many inlormation ano knovleoge netvorks are incomplete, to tLe oetriment ol tLe larming
community. !armers, agricultural proouction ano tLe oevelopment ol rural liveliLooos are
Linoereo ly:
º Linited access to up-to-date price and narket injornation: traoers ano processors
typically Lave letter access tLan larmers to urlan-laseo institutional sources
ol inlormation (lor example, lrom parastatals) as vell as tLe complete range ol
communication tecLnologies lrom raoios ano nevspapers, tLrougL to lax macLines,
computers ano telepLones.
º Slortage oj locally-rele:ant injornation: vLilst inlormation provioeo at tLe national
level is olten oillicult lor larmers to access (lotL pLysically ano linguistically) ano
interpret meaninglully in tLe local context, inoigenous knovleoge ano local inlormation
systems are overlookeo.
76
Key Lessons Learned
º Linited access to telecentres: it is olten economically unattractive lor tLe private sector
to service remote rural areas vLicL are cLaracteriseo ly lov population oensity, limiteo
purcLasing pover ano ruggeo terrain.
º Linited slaring oj injornation at tle local le:el: inlormation olten remains vitLin
tLe community or at tLe stakeLoloer level vLere it Las leen collecteo ano is not maoe
availalle lor vioer use, incluoing tLe local communities lrom vLere it originateo.
º Injornation and connunication teclnologies are not a 'nagic bullet': inlormation
vLicL llovs into communities lrom ¡C1s neeos to le aoapteo to local conoitions.
º Agricultural injornation is not enougl: experience sLovs tLat communities require
multi-sectoral inlormation incluoing insurance, employment ano LealtL inlormation.
º Injornation is not enougl: larmers ano communities neeo to le coacLeo in tLe use ol
nev or aooitional inlormation lor letter oecision making.
OPPORTUNITIE5 fOR IMPROVING RURAL INfORMATION fLOW5 AND KNOWLEDGE
5TOCK5
Levelopments in multi-stakeLoloer ano participatory approacLes, supporteo in some cases
ly ¡C1s, present nev opportunities lor people to lorm nev social netvorks, excLange
inlormation ano sLare knovleoge. 1Le main opportunities lor improving inlormation llovs
ano knovleoge stocks arising lrom tLe papers presenteo in tLis oocument are summariseo
lelov:
º Adopt a lolistic approacl to exanining injornation jlous in rural areas: tLis enalles
gaps in inlormation netvorks letveen critical players to le ioentilieo ano aooresseo.
º Enlance tle coordination and slaring oj injornation at :arious le:els: create more
opportunities lor 'Lorizontal` inlormation excLange letveen various stakeLoloers at
tLe community level, ano lor strengtLening tLe 'vertical` llovs ol inlormation letveen
larmers, service provioers, oevelopment stakeLoloers ano tLe rural community.
º Add :alue to generic injornation: translate inlormation into tLe local language ano
make it locally specilic, tLus creating a local oemano lor letter inlormation.
º Encourage tle de:elopnent and dissenination oj locally rele:ant naterials: lor example,
local !M raoio provioes opportunities to improve tLe relevance ano local content ly
gatLering local inlormation ano lroaocasting in local languages
15
. Alternatively, rural
knovleoge centres linkeo tLrougL a Lul-ano-spoke lormation provioe a lramevork lor
accessing tLe internet coupleo vitL opportunities lor local content oevelopment.
º Disseninate injornation jron tle centre to local le:els: in areas vLere telepLone
line-laseo services lecome vioely availalle, tLe internet, e-mail ano lax can le useo
to relay inlormation to local larmers` associations, local government ollices ano non-
governmental institutions
16
.
º Enpouer uonen and tle rural poor tlrougl social inclusion: ¡C1s may le useo
creatively ly poor people vLo olten miss out on tecLnology oevelopments. !or
example, vomen may le traineo to stall knovleoge centres ano ¡C1s may le aoapteo
lor use ly illiterate people (tLrougL multimeoia tecLnology vitL voice lacilities).
15
!urtLer oetails alout tLe potential ol local !M raoio stations may le louno in Giraro (eo.) (2003) ano at !AC
velsite (Lttp://vvv.lao.org/so/ruralraoio/en/inoex.Ltml).
16
!AC promotes tvo internet-laseo communication netvorks: tLe Virtual ¡xtension EesearcL ano Communication
Þetvork (V¡ECCÞ) linking extension ano researcL institutions (Lttp://vvv.lao.org/so/2001/IÞ1007_
en.Ltm) ano tLe !AEMÞ¡1 linking up internet laseo netvorks vitL conventional communication cLannels to
respono to larmer inlormation neeos (Lttp://vvv.lao.org/gil/roo).
77
Key Lessons Learned
º Enpouer rural connunities: increase tLeir ovnersLip ol nev ¡C1s, sucL as rural
knovleoge centres, ly encouraging tLe community to Lelp oeline tLe knovleoge
system, oevelop localiseo inlormation ano contrilute to service provision.
º Utilise existing resources: make use ol institutions alreaoy present in rural areas (sucL as
village scLools, lilraries, cLurcLes) as lormal inlormation centres ano use rural meeting
points vLere people naturally gatLer (sucL as markets, vells, teasLops, village stores) as
inlormal inlormation centres.
REfERENCE
Giraro B. (eo.) 2003, Tle one to uatcl, Badio, ICTs and interacti:ity, 1Le !rieoricL ¡lert
Stiltung Geneva Cllice ano Communication lor Levelopment Group, Sustainalle
Levelopment Lepartment, !AC, Eome
79
AgricuIturaI Management, Marketing and finance 5ervice (AG5f)
OCCA5IONAL PAPER5

1 Market Access lor Leveloping Countries ol Alrica ÷ 1Le Eeality (2003)
2 !inancing agricultural marketing ÷ 1Le Asian experience (200+)
3 Lrlan looo supply ano oistrilution in oeveloping countries ano countries in transition
÷ A guioe lor planners (in preparation)
+ StrengtLening agrilusiness linkages vitL small-scale larmers ÷ Case stuoies in ¡atin America
ano tLe Carillean (200+)
!ortalecimiento oe los vínculos oe agronegocios con los pequenos agricultores ÷ ¡stuoios
oe caso en América ¡atina y el Carile (200+)
5 SmallLoloers, glolalization ano policy analysis (200+)
6 StrengtLening larm-agrilusiness linkages in Alrica ÷ Summary results ol nve country
stuoies, in GLana, Þigeria, Ienya, Lganoa ano SoutL Alrica (200+)
7 Associations ol market traoers ÷ 1Leir roles ano potential lor lurtLer oevelopment
(2005)
8 CLanges in looo retailing in Asia - ¡mplications ol supermarket procurement practices lor
larmers ano traoitional marketing systems (2005)
AGRICULTURAL MANAGEMENT, MARKETING AND FINANCE OCCASIONAL PAPER
Improving information flows
to the rural community
9
99
Information plays a key role in improving the livelihoods
of farm households and small-scale rural entrepreneurs,
and in accelerating rural development. Three of the papers
presented in this document explore the local dimensions
of farm household and community information sources and
flows in Eritrea, Ghana and Uganda. The four remaining
papers focus on opportunities to improve information flows
through utilizing technologies, institutions and methods
that lower the cost of information acquisition, processing
and delivery. In particular, FM radios and telecentres offer
potential as mechanisms for bridging the digital divide,
stimulating the development of local information flows
and linking communities to external information sources.
The main lessons learned are summarized under three
themes: the insights they provide about farmers’
information-seeking behaviour, limitations of existing
information networks and the opportunities identified
for improving information flows to rural communities.
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AGRICULTURAL MANAGEMENT,
MARKETING AND FINANCE
OCCASIONAL PAPER
Improving information flows
to the rural community
TC/D/A0287E/1/12.05/1000

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