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Results

At baseline, knowledge questions were correctly answered by on average 36% of respondents. After the training, the proportion of questions answered correctly in the comparison villages was 71%, while the proportion of correct answers was 78% in the tablet group. While the test in the comparison villages was done immediately after the training, the test in the tablet villages took place 3-4 months after the farmers last accessed the course, indicating that knowledge was indeed being retained.

 Before joining the project, about a third of farmers interviewed knew that different seed varieties had different characteristics, and only half thought the crop should be planted in rows (as opposed to broadcasting seeds). The majority of farmers responded incorrectly to technical questions regarding seed spacing; plant management; and storage of the crop after harvesting. After taking the tablet course, 71% recognised that different sesame varieties had different resistances to disease, and 86% identified the correct planting methods.[1]  A summary of the tablet group’s performance in three of the main production stages is shown in Figure 1, with baseline performance for comparison.[2]

After the tablet training, the proportion of correct answers increased and the majority of questions were answered correctly by over 70% of respondents. Improvements were seen to varying degrees, providing important information about the topics that require more emphasis or a different learning approach in the course. Three quarters of the farmers accessed the course at least twice, and just under a quarter accessed the course more than four times. The questionnaire also confirmed that the use of the tablets was mostly a communal experience, with around half taking the course with other farmers. 

The farmers interviewed were overwhelmingly positive about using the tablets (see Figure 2).[3] Reasons quoted by farmers for preferring the tablet course to demo plots included: being able to access the course at a time that suited them and in their own home and being able to view the modules multiple times. An additional advantage mentioned by respondents was that information is available in enough time to change production practices in the same season. Demonstration plots often only show the effects of modified practices after it is too late for farmers to implement the changes. Conversely, reasons cited by farmers for preferring demos over tablets included being able to see the plots first hand and being able to ask questions. The learning application used supports student feedback and tutorial functions, and we will consider incorporating these functions in future versions.

Nearly all farmers interviewed (96%) introduced changes to their farming practices after viewing the tablet course, however most changes were confined to the land preparation and planting stages.  76% of respondents believed this change led to an increase in their income from sesame farming. On a scale of 1 to 5 (with 5 best), 69% rated the overall experience of the tablet module 4 or 5, and all respondents agreed or strongly agreed with the statement, “taking the course was a good use of my time”.

As well as gathering data on knowledge gains, the evaluation also increased our understanding of the potential for ICT to deliver high quality, timely information and advice to remote smallholder farmers. Through in-depth discussion with those participating, a number of important lessons for improving the sustainability of this approach have emerged. These will shape how we design and implement similar projects in the future. These include:

  • Regardless of the quality of the learning platform, identifying and supporting a network of strong-performing CFs is critical to achieving desired results. This applies to the conventional and ICT-based approaches, but simply adopting ICT is not sufficient to ensure all target farmers receive the desired quality of service. Mobile devices can help ensure that farmers ‘reached’ are receiving high quality information, but it still requires a motivated CF to ensure those farmers are reached in the first place.
  • The pilot project managed to secure the support of the whole community. This buy-in is essential particularly in societies where there are cultural barriers for members of the youth teaching elders, or for women teaching.
  • It is important to establish a clear remuneration system for CFs, and be transparent about expectations from the outset. During the pilot, the reward system was adjusted from a fixed monthly fee to a payment structure based on number of farmers reached, when it became clear that some CFs were performing much more strongly than others.
  • Wifi only devices were used to keep costs down, but this made it more challenging to download new content and upload data from the field. In future, 3g devices or smart phones may be more appropriate to allow two way information exchange.

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