Effectiveness of mobile agri-advisory service extension model: Evidence from Direct2Farm program in India

Abstract

This study examines the effectiveness of mobile as a novel approach for providing targeted and equitable agri-advisory services to farmers at scale. A cross-sectional survey of farmers registered on CABI's Direct2Farm (D2F) user database was undertaken using a combination of telephone interviews, household survey and focus group discussions covering six states in India. Results indicate that majority of farmers receive information from various sources, notably fellow farmers (73%) and government extension (58%). Mobile service was ranked 5th as a source of information out of seven identified. Nonetheless, there was evidence that CABI-D2F mobile services reached a large number of farmers in a short time compared to what could be achieved by traditional extension approaches, and the services significantly influenced farmers to take up new agricultural practices (p < 0.01). At least 40% of the initial 400,000 registered farmers became active users of the service, regarding it as a valuable and credible source of agricultural information. Small-scale farmers, women, and elderly people were less likely to use mobile service with preference for traditional extension approaches. This digital divide may be attributed to low literacy levels, and/or ownership or control of mobile phones. Results raise two issues; firstly how mobile services can be designed to best fit differences in gender and social realities; and secondly, how mobile services can be effectively monitored to ensure messages are being received by targeted users.