Don’t idolise DPI. Enable countries to build national data exchange infrastructure that makes data exchange DPIs useful. Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) has become one of the most influential ideas in digital development. Digital identity, payments and data exchange are increasingly described as the foundational “rails” upon which countries can build digital services. The metaphor is…
Category: Sub-Saharan Africa
How Local Farmers Innovate!
Originally written by Benjamin Addom in 2010. I conducted a study recently in over 50 rural communities from three regions in Ghana to understand how local farmer innovate. Below is the process that I have identified through interviews and focus group discussions. The local farmers usually make attempts to address their problems when faced with…
Digital agriculture to help Africa through coronavirus
Originally written by Benjamin Addom and Sabdiyo Dido, and published by CTA on Tuesday, 28 April 2020 As COVID-19 continues to devastate lives all over the world, agriculture and food systems come under critical strain. Recessions, food shortages, hunger and malnutrition are feared to be likely, with grave impact on vulnerable communities in developing regions…
Another App for Smallholder Farmers: M-Farm
Photo Credit: M-Farm M-Farm is an award winning mobile solution for agribusinesses and farmers currently being piloted in Kenya. It is an SMS and web-based application focused on improving weaknesses in the value chain. It is a transparency tool for Kenyan farmers to get information pertaining to the retail price of their products, buy their…
Africa Monitoring System (AMS) for Sustainable Food Security
Photo Credit: TV Pro Gear An initiative being co-led by Conservation International (CI), the Council for Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR), South Africa and the Earth Institute (EI), Columbia University, has been launched with a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The Africa Monitoring System (AMS) tool will track, monitor and diagnose agricultural…