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Mobile Phones Catalyst Agricultural Growth India
1. Mobile Phones Catalyst to Agricultural Growth
in India
Surabhi Mittal and Gaurav Tripathi
Presented at ICTs and Development: An International
Workshop for Theory, Practice, & Policy at IIT Delhi
11 March 2010
2. Indian Agriculture
Productivity hampered by
Positive and • deficits in physical
Farmers face infrastructure
accelerating TFP
threat of • shortcomings in
growths of 70s
economic availability of necessary
and 80s turned
viability and products and services
stagnant or
sustainability in • lack of information
decelerated
crop production about techniques and
since early 90s inputs
3. Literature
Precision Agriculture
• Information-based, decision-making agricultural system is designed to maximise agricultural
production and is often described as the next great evolution in agriculture.
Michael, 2008
• The combination of GPS and mobile mapping are supposed to provide the farmers with the
information for implementation of decision-based Precision Agriculture
Jensen, 2007; Abraham, 2007
• Found that introduction of mobile phones to Kerala fishermen decreased price dispersion and
wastage by facilitating the spread of information which made the markets more efficient of markets
by decreasing risk and uncertainty
Sources of growth in productivity
• Research, extension, literacy and infrastructure
• Development of markets improves input-output market interface and it is of crucial importance for
growth in productivity.
Present Advantage
• Increasing penetration of mobile networks and handsets presents an opportunity to make useful
information more widely available to farmers.
4. Hypothesis
Mobile phones would help to reduce the
existing information asymmetry and help in
improving farm profitability and productivity
• by reduction in - transaction costs, search costs, travel
cost.
The crucial idea- Information received
through mobile phones could play a
complementary role to extension activities
• would have a better impact than the other one-way
information technologies (e.g. radio, television,
newspapers etc.)
5. Study sought answers
Are mobile phones used for
agricultural purposes? If so how?
Have mobile phones helped drive
agricultural productivity?
Which agricultural information is
most valuable?
What are the constraints to
improve agricultural productivity
through mobiles?
6. Methodology and Data
• IFFCO Kisan Sanchar
Limited (IKSL)
• Reuters Market Light
Case studies (RML)
• Fisher Friend (FF)
Individual
Interviews
17 Focus groups -
• 46 in-depth using the standard
interviews mobile phones as
well as those with
• Over 200 people agricultural
interviewed, of information
whom 80% were service on mobile
small farmers/
fishermen
7. Interview and research locations
District Village
Allahabad Saidabad, Bijhayan, Malak
Harhar, Vardaha, Panwar
Agra Medhapur, Mania
Mathura Usfar, Lalpur
Alwar Khairtal
*Dausa Khanvaas
*Bhilwara Lesua
*Baran Himoniya
*Jaipur Murali Papmaanbali
Satara Arphal, Bharatgaon, Indoli
Pune Kumbhar
Pondicherry Veerampattinam, Ponnithittu
8. Mobile information services for farmers
IFFCO – IKSL Reuters – RML
Began Service June 2007 October 2007 (pilot in January 2007)
Locations of Survey Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu Maharashtra
Cost Free Voice messages Rs. 175 for three months, Rs. 350 for six months
Helpline service at a cost of Rs. 1/min Rs. 650 for an year
Nature of Delivery Voice message (non-customized) SMS-text message for two crops as subscribed
# of Daily Messages 5 4
Information Provided • Weather • Weather
• Crop/animal husbandry advisory • Crop-advisory (one crop)
• Market Prices • Market Price (for 2 crops and 3 markets each)
• Fertilizer availability • News (commodity specific and general)
• Electricity timings
• Government Schemes
Subscribers (at time of • Uttar Pradesh: 200,000 • 82,000 (India-wide); 77,000 in Maharashtra
investigation) • Rajasthan: 65,000
Comments • If message not immediately received by • Message will be retrieved/saved if farmer’s
farmer it can listened to by dialing a phone is on within 24 hours of message
number at a cost of Rs1/ min. delivery
• Messages delivered at unpredictable • Messages delivered at preset times of day
times of day • Subscription is only revenue source
• Revenues are made from the sale of cards
9. Mobile information service for fishermen
FISHER FRIEND
Launch date December 2007 (pilot – still in pilot phase)
Cost Free (handsets and service)
Nature of Delivery Menu-based access (text)
Information Provided • Weather (wave height, wind speed)
• Market Prices
• Optimal Fishing Zone (longitude and latitude)
• Rural Yellow Pages
• Government Schemes
Comments • Estimated range of service at sea is 5 nautical
miles
• Availability of information has been sporadic –
at time of investigation service had not been
functioning every day
12. What Interviews revealed?
Small farmers
prioritized the most
Other requirements
important
information
13. Use of mobile phone
Primarily for social purposes but use it for at least
some agricultural activity also.
Traders and commission use it daily in assessing
commodity demand/supply situation by contacting
farmers and various markets
Maharashtra farmers reported greater use of their
mobile phones to access information and also
greater use of the mobile-enabled information
services.
Wealthier farmers reported fewer challenges with
infrastructure gaps, access to credit or other
potential limitations on leveraging information
14. Impacts on productivity
Improved
Adjusting
yields
supply to
market
demand
Access to
better
quality Timely
availability
Fishermen derived safety as well
as economic benefits (decreased
potential losses, increased catch)
Access to from the ability to communicate
and access information while at
information sea using their mobile phone.
15. Drivers of mobile impacts
• 5-25% increase in earnings, mainly attributable to the adoption of better
planting techniques
easy access to
customized • Weather forecast prevent losses
content
• describe plant diseases from the field to experts
• Better coordination with their hired laborers
• traders and commission agents- ability to shift supply to markets in response
Mobility to changing market conditions
• avoiding local travel saves Rs. 100-200 per trip
time savings • better decisions in choosing market to sell output
or
convenience
16. But there are binding constraints
Credit
constraint- Ability to
‘Bondedne trust the Market
ss’ information inefficiency
Lack of Physical
skill and Infrastruct
risk ure
taking
capacity
17. Encouragingly the research suggests
Extension services and
Social networks - capacity-building efforts
role in building the can complement
trust to influence the mobile based
adoption of new information
mindsets and actions dissemination to
by small farmers accelerate the adoption
of new techniques.
Policy changes needed to Public and private
encourage better investment- necessary
access to high-quality to resolve critical
inputs and credit for small infrastructure
farmers gaps
18. Key Takeaways
Mobile phones and mobile enabled information services can
act as catalyst in removing existing information asymmetry
Bridge the gap between the availability and delivery of
inputs and infrastructure
Magnitude of economic benefits depends on quality,
timeliness and trustworthiness of the information
Fishermen- safety benefits, decreased isolation and
vulnerability
Small farmers/ fishermen are not able to leverage the
benefits as efficiently as the large farmers
