Project title:
Promoting the cultivation of healthy vegetables by farmers: a gender approach to using information and communication technologies
Brief description:
The purpose of the project is to empower women farmers broaden their economic opportunities and reduce their vulnerability to diseases and hunger through the use of ICTs (internet, radio cum telephone (digital radio), market information centres, audiocassettes and video cassettes) to access information on healthy vegetable production.
The specific objectives of the project are to:
Sensitise and support MOFA and the CRI to use the internet to access and communicate information on healthy vegetable production and marketing.
Understand gender differences in the use of ICT (internet, radio cum telephone (digital radio), market information centres, audiocassettes and video cassettes) to access information on healthy vegetable production
Improve women vegetable farmers access to ICTs (digital radio, market information centres, audiocassettes and video cassettes)
Improve the skills and capacities of women in using ICT (internet, radio cum telephone (digital radio), market information centres, audiocassettes and video cassettes ) to access information on healthy vegetable production and marketing.
Country:
Ghana
Issue Category:
Agricultural production;Access to market information;Gender roles
Media/ICT Category:
ICTs;Radio
Activity Category:
Agricultural production;Computer training;Internet training;Training
Beneficiary Category:
Women farmers;Rural women
Organisation:
CRI - Crops Research Institute
Contact Person:
Collins Osei
Address:
CRI-Crops Research Institute
P.O. Box 3783
Kumasi
Share a brief background to your project and the motivation for wanting to implement it.
Studies showed that women play an important role in vegetable production and marketing in the Techiman Metropolis of Ghana and they contribute to the household food self security programme. But this women have not benefiited from face-to-face technology dissemination activities because of household chores. Radio penetraton is high.
Tell us something about the people involved in implementing the project and about the project team.
1) Project coordinator - coordinate and reports on all project activities;
2) Metropolitan Director - supervise sfield activities at Techiman Metropolis;
3) Head of Women in Agriculture Development (WIAD) - liaises between 3 identified women-dominated farmer groups and the Project;
4)Programme officer for agricultural and educational programmes – lserves as the ink between the CLASSIC FM Radio Station and the project;
5) 5 Representatives of 3 farmer groups - liaise between identified groups and head of WIAD
Who are the beneficiaries of the project? Give us some detail and background of the beneficiaries and their socio-political and economic context. In particular, give us an idea of the role and situation of women.
Three women-dominated farmer groups of 70 women and 25 men;
They are rural farmers who are into vegetable production as cash crop. During the off season, they process cassava into gari.
They have not benefited fully from existing channels for technology dissemination particularly when access to these channels conflict with their household responsibilities
What did you want and/or expect to learn through the implementation of the project?
a) The gender difference in the use of relevant ICT (radio, telephone, market information centers and recorded tapes) to access farm and market information
b) Do small farmers particularly women farmer groups have access to farm information from sources other than extension?
c) How can women farmer-groups be assisted to improve their access to farm and market information using information communication technologies?
What did you want to achieve through the implementation of the project?
a) To facilitate access to improved technologies and market information by women farmer-groups through relevant ICTs;
b) To link women farmer-groups in the project to relevant agricultural institutions and FM radio broadcast on agricultural programmes;
c) To promote the production of healthy vegetables among women farmers through multiple sources of information.
Share with us some of the lessons you and your team learned.
a) The involvement of muli-stakeholders in the project provided a learning experience for all.
For example:
-----Women farmers in particular broadened their sources of farm and market information to include use of telephone, radio and the agricultural market information centre
-----Extension Agents gained skills in radio information delivery
b) The use of ICTs such as telephones, radio, internet and market information centres prior to the project was low and unreliable.
For example:
----The use of mobile phones by individual farmers was limited to social calls to relatives inside and outside Ghana with few farmers using it to source for farm and market information
----Internet use was uncommon with extension agents and farmers apparently due to the absence of internet connectivity in the metropolis.
----FM Radio as a source of farm information was irregular
Where there any unexpected outcomes/benefits from the implementation of the project?
a) The project facilitated the purchase of 3 radio cassette players by 3 farmer-groups. (The project paid for 2/3 of the total cost whiles farmer-groups contributed 1/3 of the total cost)
b) Cost of some of the project activities was higher than anticipated. For example, the cost of radio programmes was partly covered by a Commonwealth of Learning (COL) sponsored project on healthy vegetable production.
c- One of the farmer-groups in the project won an award for its involvement in agricultural radio programmes in the metropolis
Are you planning or would you like to implement followup activities? What are the next steps?
Yes.
a) To secure further funding to assist women farmers make commercially useful decisions on their vegetables produced under minimum spray of pesticides.
b) To make the above possible by linking up the local FM and community radios to market information centers of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture.
What would you identify as some of the policy learings from your project?
a) Multiplicity of local languages
b) High illiteracy rate among women farmers
What would you suggest to policy makers to improve the position of women and ICTs in agriculture?
a) Review existing best practices in ICTs for rural development that exist in other develop countries through literature review and visits
b) Encourage networking of bodies involved in ICTs for rural development
c) -Establish and implement legal framework in ICT for rural development to facilitate activities of government and non-government institutions #
