Digital Technologies for Agricultural and Rural Development in the Global South

This book shares research and practice on current trends in digital technology for agricultural and rural development in the Global South. Growth of research in this field has been slower than the pace of change for practitioners, particularly in bringing socio-technical views of information technology and agricultural development perspectives together. The contents are therefore structured around three main themes: sharing information and knowledge for agricultural development, information and knowledge intermediaries, and facilitating change in agricultural systems and settings.

The book includes:
- Views from diverse academic disciplines as well as practitioners with experience of implementing mobile applications and agriculture information systems in differing country contexts.
- Case studies from a range of developing countries and information from across the public and private sector.
- A set of practitioner guidelines for successful implementation of digital technologies.

With contributions reaching beyond just a technological perspective, the book also provides a consideration of social and cultural factors and new forms of organization and institutional change in agricultural and rural settings. An invaluable read for researchers in international development, socio-economics and agriculture, it forms a useful resource for practitioners working in the area.

Section A: Creating and Sharing Knowledge
. 1: Mobile Phone Applications for Weather and Climate Information for Small-holder Farmers
. 2: Can Smart Phones Support Monitoring Functions: Experiences from Sweet Potato Vines Distribution in sub-Saharan Africa
. 3: Customised Information Delivery for Dryland Farmers
. 4: Nutrition: Can Mobile Messaging Promote Agricultural and Health Behaviour Change for Improved Nutrition Security?

Section B: Information and Knowledge Intermediaries
. 5: A Technology Stewardship Model to Encourage ICT Adoption in Agricultural Communities of Practice: Reflections on a Canada/Sri Lanka Partnership Project
. 6: Farmforce: Linking Smallholder Farmers in Developing Countries to Formal Markets
. 7: Adoption of ICT Products and Services among Rice Farmers in the Northern Province of Sierra Leone
. 8: The Effect of ICTs on Agricultural Distribution Channels in Mexico

Section C: Facilitating Change in Agricultural Systems
. 9: Theories of Change in ICT for Agricultural and Rural Development
. 10: Transformational vs. Incremental Change Enabled by Mobile for Agriculture (m4Ag) Services: Evidence from East Africa
. 11: Hybridisation of Logics in Rural Agriculture: Shifting Practices amongst Small-holder Farmers in Rural Ghana
. 12: Farmerline: A For-profit Agtech Company with a Social Mission
. 13: Key lessons for Practitioners

Suitable for researchers and students in international development, socio-economics, agriculture.

Richard Duncombe completed a Masters in Economics and Innovation at the Science Policy Research Unit (University of Sussex) where he also worked as a Research Officer. He works at the Centre for Development Informatics (CDI) the largest academic group dedicated to ICT4D work in the UK.