Mobile tech
Yebo !
Farming mobile solution
With an estimated combined investment of around R21 million over three years , the Connected Farmer platform , a cloud-based web and mobile software solution recently launched by Vodacom , will link thousands of smallholder farmers to the agriculture value chain , enabling access to information , services and markets .
Food security in South Africa remains a challenge , with just 30 000 commercial farmers producing most of the country ’ s food . Over 200 000 smallholder farmers and an estimated two million subsistence farmers have an important role to play in food security and poverty reduction , yet their access to markets , information and finance is limited or non-existent . There is also a lack of available data on smallholder farmers and their supply chains , which is a barrier to informed decisionmaking by agribusinesses and policy makers .
Connected Farmer
Vodacom ’ s Connected Farmer aims to assist in providing farmers with the services they need through the promotion of sustainable agricultural practices , enhanced productivity and , most importantly , risk reduction .
Sourcing from smallholder farmers as a result becomes more realistic and executable for food manufacturers and retail businesses , increasing the number of smallholders and subsistence farmers in commercial agricultural value chains . This has been proven in the deployment of the Connected Farmer platform in East Africa .
Says Vuyani Jarana , chief officer for Vodacom Business : “ Digitising the agricultural value chain means that smallholder farmers will benefit from access to information and markets . Vodacom ’ s ICT services enable enterprises to have real-time visibility of their supply chains , as well as the ability to engage and communicate with smallholders directly .”
The Connected Farmer platform is aimed at connecting enterprises , small and commercial agribusinesses , NGOs and farmer associations .
Tons of valuable info
A farmer can use any mobile device on any network to access the Connected Farmer ’ s platform and , through SMS , receive valuable information , including weather forecasts and market prices . Farmers with smartphones can access the same platform with increased capability to access additional content .
Through the partnership with Manstrat Agricultural Intelligence Solutions , a local developer of Agricultural Decision Support Systems for the past 25 years , Vodacom will provide farmers and enterprise users with access to a broad and deep reservoir of relevant and expert content .
Agribusinesses pay a monthly service fee per farmer and per mobile enterprise user , who are provided with the requisite hardware , software , training and support as a managed service .
SABI | FEBRUARY / MARCH 2017 15
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