How Culture and tradition Hampers the use of ICT in Agriculture

As i was writing this post i couldn't help but reminisce at how my father used to be treated as a king in our house back in the days. His word was the law and everybody had to observe and obey it to the latter or else face his wrath. This has been the case in many households especially in the African context governed by strict traditions where the place and position of a man in the society was highly esteemed. Whilst some people would say this ensured discipline in the house and the society at large in terms of leadership, it also had some aspects of dictatorship which were repugnant since they stifled what i'd call family democracy.
This strong hand of the African man extended as far as his resources stretched. This therefore meant that before any decision was made, the man had to be consulted or else nothing would be done at best or hell would break loose at worst.
Traditionally(and presently as well), African men were not only the custodians of the family names but they also protected all the assets and properties belonging to the family in order to ensure they were effectively passed on from one generation to the next.
The work of the woman therefore has traditionally been reduced to that of a servant whose work is to generate wealth for her family yet she still lacks the powers to make any critical decision regarding the use of the land. Since the husband buys everything including the small radio at home and all electronic gadgets(being also in control of the finances), he gets to decide which channels people would listen to on radio or watch in case they have a Tv set. The only family bank account-if any- is controlled by him which therefore means that he gets to enjoy end  of the year bonuses that accrue from the sale of coffee and other commodities yet chances are that he was merely a spectator when the wife and children were toiling.
Most traditional men would probably listen to the old classical music while women would probably prefer listening to something different. This therefore means, in case there is an educative program running on Tv or radio, the family would definitely miss out on the information being put across since the only channel of communication is jealously controlled. This reminds the old days when the only person allowed to as much as touch the family radio was the father.
Cultural believes and attitudes could also play a significant role in determining the receptivity and adaptability of technology among some communities. To some people within the social structure- especially the elders, technology is perceived as an invasion to their privacy or worse still, a form of corruption into their culture which would spoil the future generations by filling their impressionable minds with foreign ideologies and lifestyle which are at cross purposes with the local culture and norms. Although this is slowly changing in many parts of the world due to the use of the media and other campaigns which have helped in exposing the hitherto very cultural people to different cultures, there still exists a good number of people who would have none of this  at least for now.
Property and asset control has also been a stumbling block towards full utilization of  technology. Traditionally, men being custodians of the resources like land and the title deeds attached to them, their decisions are final regarding what is to be done or the investments to be put on a given farm. This therefore has the negative impact of sidelining women leaving them disenfranchised as it were. This eventually affects the whole family because as much as they lack ownership rights and therefore they don't have a say, they play a significant role in the management of the farm and as such their input cannot be gainsaid. There's therefore a need to bring their issues to the fore by making sure that they are treated as partners especially during the decision making process regarding investments into the farm. Since most of them spend much of their time toiling for the family, they understand better the general trends and status of the farm in terms of the improvements and viable investments that need to be done. Using them as conduits towards the adaption of technology especially among smallholder farmers has a great promise. Most of them by virtue of being social by nature, would probably be more receptive towards the adoption and application of a given technology than their male counterparts.
Societies still clinging to their cultures while condemning modern technology should know that tradition and science can co-exist very well without one compromising the other. The world is changing so fast owing to globalization and issues like global warming and global economic recessions that are affecting all and sundry. This therefore calls for a concerted effort from all quarters in dealing with these issues irrespective of our cultural differences. This can only be achieved in a networked environment with the help of technology and other deliberate efforts like government policies which would help people link up in order to share knowledge and experiences thereby tackling problems that bedevil man in the 21st Century like disease, hunger and food insecurity. These are the same simple steps that would see us achieve the millennium development goals that we all strive for before the 2015 deadline.

Building Linkages between the Markets and Smallholder farmers with ICT .

Photo Courtesy of Picasa.

A lot of the debate on the future of agriculture has been focusing mainly on large scale farmers since their production both at the global and domestic markets is considered sustainable, profitable and of course huge. Very little research has been conducted on the potential of the smallholder farmers at their detriment although i'd dare say that the future of food security in many parts of the world, more so the developing world, lies in harnessing the untapped potential of smallholder farming. With the looming dangers of climate change and global warming which would immensely affect food production levels as a result of the expected erratic weather patterns and the prolonged droughts, an increasing number of people are going to be food insecure in the coming years. The situation is made even worse looking at the recent statistics of global population growth which has hit the seventh billion mark and which therefore means that there'll be more mouths to feed in the coming years yet the amount of food produced globally doesn't tally with this increase. This reality therefore calls for a paradigm shift and a change of focus and tact, from focusing just on the revenue base coming from the large scale agriculture, to building a solid foundation that would cushion many people from hunger.


On the technology front, much of the innovation has been on green technology and ways of enhancing and developing drought resistant gene varieties while building their resilience to pests and diseases. These developments although commendable, are mostly targeted at large scale farmers who have the capital to afford this technologies. The genetically modified organisms popularly known as the GMOs, have received varying reactions in different spheres with some terming them as poisons because of the nature of their production which involves gene manipulation whereas other people think they represent the future of food production that will bolster global food security.
Many smallholder farmers have traditionally been producing their output for domestic and subsistence usage owing to a combination of factors like lack of modern technology, the unsustainable small parcels of land and lack of information on sound agricultural practices to mention but a few. The traditional culture of many African societies hasn't helped the situation either. The subdivision of land into very unsustainable small parcels which get even smaller in each successive generation as the original land is inherited and sub-divided amongst the growing number of family members, means that the portion of the land which was originally set aside for food production will probably give way to other competitive land usage like a  house or something else. The net effect therefore is that the former food secure and independent people are now dependent and food insecure.


During my previous work in consultancies, i have seen quite a number of organizations like the FAO gaining much interest in smallholder production. Unlike their large scale counterparts who probably have complicated management structures and a longer hierarchical order with a stringent budget thus slowing down the decision making process as far as adapting innovation is concerned,  smallholder farmers can benefit immensely from a myriad of technological innovations because of their simple nature and structure. 
The increasing growth in the ICT sector including the growing influence of the social media, presents huge opportunities in  areas of research, branding, market expansion through marketing and advertisement. Google for instance, has developed a simple tool that would enable SMEs put their products and services out there for access by the wider market with very simple steps to follow when populating their websites. The initiative dubbed "Putting Businesses Online", enables entrepreneurs to leverage on the power of a simple website to advertise their products and services in order to reach out to a wider market. This will cut down operational costs like advertisement which normally discourage many budding entrepreneurs from establishing their businesses. For a smallholder farmer dealing with perishable products like milk and vegetable, the prospects are greater from the exposure one would get through free advertisements. This could provide them with a ready market which will ensure a steady flow of the goods while cutting down losses associated with such goods.


Developing a platform like a website specifically for smallholder farmers with portals containing materials touching on various topics like farm management, crop varieties, treatment of pests and diseases, value addition etc would open up a new channel of communication and knowledge exchange that will go a long way in boosting that sector. A mobile phone, being the most accessible communication gadget, can transform the life of a smallholder farmer. People can trade and bid on whatever item on sale while all the benefits go straight to the farmer without involving the middlemen.
The same platform would  also act as a forum where farmers ask different questions about the best farming methods or seed varieties and people with the necessary knowledge or expertise  would act as resource persons thereby creating a lasting network for knowledge and information exchange. With a simple platform like a blog, a facebook page or even a twitter account, they can set up forums where one asks questions and receive answers from a wide variety of audiences with experience on that particular subject. Much of these is basically going to be spearheaded by the youth; one because they represent the future in terms of its opportunities or lack of it. The other reason is because, most software and technology developers are young people and as such, they are able to communicate in their "tech lingua franca" effectively in an attempt to provide solutions to the problems affecting the society. The youth are also the majority occupants of these small parcels of land which makes them the right candidates and implementers of this initiative that aims at turning the fortunes of smallholder farmers from mere subsistence to small-scale commercial farmers thus improving their living standards. This also has the power to build their resilience towards the impacts of climate change whose negative impacts is expected to hit the smallholder farmers the hardest.

The Road to Durban: Climate Change and Adaptation

Map courtesy of Google Earth 2011.

As delegates gather in the sea side city of Durban, South Africa, am pretty sure what's going on in the minds of many is how to enhance the post-Kyoto Protocol agreement while drawing lessons from the past mistakes. A lot is riding on this and am also sure the agenda must be packed up, but this notwithstanding, all and sundry have to boldly and openly examine the achievements and gains or lack of it, that have been made so far since the Kyoto protocol came into force back in 2005.
Many countries especially in the west, are yet to meet their set out targets pertaining to carbon reduction emissions  as agreed . Other countries like China which never ratified the protocol in the first place and thus were not obliged to reduce their emissions, ought to be encouraged to join other nations in good faith in order to save our planet from the looming catastrophic effects of climate change and global warming. China itself being one of the largest polluters, certainly has to commit to some degree to cut down its carbon emissions in the post-Kyoto treaty through massive investments in green technology and other efficient and clean energy sources. The Kyoto protocol had also established market based mechanism through which countries could adopt in meeting meeting their targets  i.e. the emissions trading, joint implementation and the clean development mechanism.
The existing members who have been party to the Kyoto protocol, need to step up their efforts and campaign even after the expiration of the protocol period come 2012.
Emerging economic giants like Brazil and India, need to be encouraged to focus their energy and development efforts along the green path by putting more resources in areas like wind and solar energy which have been found to be effective sources of energy to power industrialization.
The developing countries are also required to chip in as well in this initiative. Much of the negative impacts of climate change through studies and research have clearly shown that these countries stand to suffer a great deal from the negative impacts of climate change through prolonged droughts, floods- which are currently being experienced in various parts of many countries, and disease incidents to mention but a few.
The role of indigenous communities in the post-Kyoto protocol also needs to be enhanced to ensure that there is a win-win situation even as conservationists continue to invest their resources and energy in rallying people behind the banner of climate change and global warming. Their roles, responsibilities and benefits ought to be clearly defined and given priority in the discussions to avert a scenario where government apply an iron rule while implementing noble projects like the REDD+ initiative. This is especially so considering that most of them are still domiciled in the remotest areas in the country side; their economy and traditions in general, hinges on the provisions of nature which makes them quite vulnerable on the impacts of climate change and global warmoing. In the same breadth, more research still needs to be conducted on adaptation and resilience especially among the most vulnerable groups in the community. Governments need to be encouraged to include and factor in issues relating to the vulnerable groups in their annual budgets  and development plans in order to cushion such groups at least in the short run. An the global scale, delegates need to discuss the possibility of setting up a global fund solely aimed at equipping these groups with the necessary wherewithal and technology that'll boost their chances of survival and adaptation.
The role of gender and the youth hasn't really received much attention in the climate debate. Gender here refers mainly to the role of women in combating climate change. Women represent a unique constituency as far as adaptation and resilience is concerned mostly in traditional economies where the role of every individual is still uniquely defined. Women are the ones mostly left home to cater for the homesteads in traditional communities which makes them the best targets in efforts geared towards conservation. Unlike their male counterparts who are mostly mobile, moving from city to city in search of employment and a living, women are static and therefore the right people to receive empowerment and training in adaptation. They also suffer the most since very few if any in many traditional societies, have access to land rights and entitlements which would bolster their investment in green technologies.
The youth are also equally important. These are the same folks who are expected to take over the leadership mantle and and provide solutions to the present and the future generation and as such they need thorough preparation and training in conservation and climate science. These are the same people who are informed in modern technology and science that would probably define and shape the future of adaptation in the face of climate change. The existing groups and voices within the climate debate-which have hitherto been low, need a jolt in order to bring their issues, roles and responsibility strongly to the fore in the post-Kyoto agreement. An all inclusive framework therefore ought to be developed that would set out measurable goals with a credible followup mechanism both at country level and also within the overall UNFCCC.