ENSIBUUKO: BRIDGING TECH AND AG-FINANCE

 Information and Communication Technology (ICT) plays an important role in enhancing the impact and performance of agricultural production and poverty alleviation by increasing productivity through new credit and financial services.

Ensibuuko, a mobile and web application that helps farmers in accessing financial services is making a huge impact in Uganda as it has enabled saving and credit associations (and other financing organisations) to handle savings and make loans to smallholder farmers.

Ensibuuko was conceived over a cup of coffee between two friends in 2010. Mr. Gerald Otim and Mr. Opio Obwangamoi David shared a similar background as they were both raised in peasant farming communities.

Mr. Otim had attempted to establish a microfinance organisation for farmers, but with a lot of frustration. It is from these frustrations that he and Mr David were moved to establish Ensibuuko.

The solution is targeting farmer’s welfare through Savings and Credit Cooperative Organisations (SACCOs). It allows farmers to register and apply for loans using SMS, save, receive and repay loans using mobile money.

The result is simpler, safer and flexible as it allows more control over one’s savings and credit for farmers, lowers cost and gives greater transparency for savings and credit groups.

Starting Ensibuuko was not easy for the two friends as accessing capital to kick start their innovation proved challenging. Their turning point came in August 2011, when they met an agronomist at the Ministry of Agriculture-Buganda Kingdom who helped them to kick start their innovation.

In 2013, they were named the overall winner of ICT4Ag Hackathon in Kigali, Rwanda. Fast forward to July 14, 2014 and the two are slated to be part of the Plug and Play Day and as highly anticipated speakers during Fin4Ag Conference: revolutionising finance for agri-value chains at the Kenya School of Monetary Studies in Nairobi from 14 – 18 July 2014.

Ensibuuko has leveraged mobile and web technologies to help smallholder farmers access agriculture information and markets so as to attract young people into farming. It has also been addressing lack of finance among smallholder farmers as their productivity has been stifled due to a lack of financial access. Currently it is estimated that smallholder farmers make up more or less 80% of Uganda’s population.

Innovation provides some real opportunities for transforming agriculture and putting farmers in the driving seat. Mobile and web technologies are increasingly becoming important for the adaptation of new opportunities in value chain financing. Ensibuuko has managed to revolutionise this as it has managed to expand the coverage of financial services to smallholder farmers in 35 sub-counties in Uganda.

Ensibuuko recognises the fact that most smallholder farmers are unbanked and deemed lacking of creditworthiness. The innovative system also generates a history of how individual farmers have been saving with their SACCO. This helps the SACCO to know how active the members have been while the farmer can also track his transactions.

This application also enables SACCOs to provide financial services to, hard to reach areas, improve accountability and transparency in the handling of financial transactions by SACCOs and makes it possible for Micro Finance Institutions (MFI) to provide group loans. Through a partnership with Kiva, they have managed to raise $20,000 to provide affordable mobile loans to farmers.

Other value added services Ensibuuko provides include, market information and access to the market for smallholder farmers. Because of the impact the company is making through its service, they have been approached by various institutions such as MFIs for possible partnership and replication of their service.

Currently, Ensibuuko has 1,000 farmers who have registered in the system. Most farmers appreciate the fact that it is convenient as it reduces travelling cost to SACCO’s as all transactions can be done using mobile phones!

See also:

• Integrating SMS and mobile money with Ensibuuko

Blogpost by Simon Wandila and Bob Aston, Social Reporters for the Fin4Ag Conference.

This article was originally posted on https://blogs.cta.int/2014/07/15/ensibuuko-bridging-tech-ag-finance/index.html

The content belongs to the original publisher.

CTA BROADENS SUPPORT FOR YOUNG AGRI-PRENEURS THROUGH AGRIHACK INITIATIVE

 

The Challenge of weak integration of ICT in agriculture

Technology plays a great role in enhancing advisory services, knowledge exchange, data acquisition and access to market and trade in the agricultural sector. As mobile communications technology widens and subscriptions increase at a high rate, the opportunity to leverage the role of ICTs in agriculture for improved and sustainable agricultural development becomes more possible/obvious.

However, despite the tremendous possibilities that exist, technological innovations and applications are still weakly harnessed for agricultural development.

Stakeholders at the national and international levels are calling for increased actions in these areas, as articulated during the 2013 ICT4Ag Conference organised by CTA and its partners.

Youth participation is critical for the development and dispersion of those innovations.

Exploring youth entrepreneurship opportunities through ICT4Ag

According to ITU (2014) in its report entitled “Digital opportunities: Innovative ICT solutions for youth employment”, agriculture is one of the areas in which ICT applications will be increasingly providing opportunities for youths. Youths are exploring and initiating promising ICT enterprises. However, in their efforts they encounter various challenges hindering their growth.

These challenges include better understanding of the needs and issues of agricultural stakeholders, better understanding of agricultural opportunities for ICT service providers, lack of support to develop proofs of concept or launch new applications, lack of support to test and upscale new applications, weak knowledge of viable ICT4Ag business models, among others. One challenge that cannot be overlooked is the absence of a favourable multi-stakeholder ecosystem in most countries and regions that would support the development of ICT4Ag services.

AgriHack initiative conceived to improve support to young entrepreneurs

In the efforts to provide alternative solutions to these challenges, the AgriHack initiative has been conceived. AgriHack is an initiative within the framework of the ICT4Ag activities and youth activities of CTA. Youth activities at CTA are implemented in the framework of the new CTA Youth Strategy. The strategy is facilitated by the ARDYIS project.

This initiative dates back from the AgriHack Championship, a pilot hackathon focused on the agricultural sector. The finals of the regional tournament took place parallel to the ICT4Ag Conference in Kigali, Rwanda in2013. The objectives of these activities were to showcase the potentials of ICT applications in agriculture at the ICT4Ag conference; and to support the development of ICT innovations and entrepreneurship in agriculture by young people. Since, the overwhelming response the AgriHack Championship has been receiving, CTA has upped their support and is exploring the replication of the AgriHack Championship activities to other regions in ACP countries.

AgriHack learning and follow up workshop at Fin4Ag

Another bold step CTA has taken is to host the AgriHack initiative workshop prior to the international conference Fin4Ag:Revolutionising finance for agricultural value chains, to discuss the results and follow up of previous activities on 11-12 July, 2014, in Nairobi.

It is also important to note that during the Fin4Ag Conference, best applications developed by the young entrepreneurs in previous AgriHack initiative activities will be showcased. The workshop will be attended by various key stakeholders from many ACP countries, such as representatives of ICT and agriculture ministries, representatives of the ICT hubs, teams of young entrepreneurs and mentors involved, as well as other development stakeholders, and those who contributed to the conception of the activity.

The next AgriHack will be held in the Caribbean this year, 2014, and a planning meeting is scheduled for Jamaica, in July 2014.

Consolidating efforts to increase and sustain impact

Following the success and lessons learned from the pilot AgriHack Championship, the AgriHack initiative seeks to replicate these activities. Once fully deployed, it is expected that the initiative will favour the expansion of a culture of entrepreneurship on ICT4Ag among ACP youths, give birth to new companies and innovative applications, consolidate the durability of existing businesses, contribute in portraying a better image of agriculture to young people, improve agricultural productivity and ultimately contribute to food security.

In this vein, youths, start-up incubators and investors, ICT hubs in various regions in ACP countries and various stakeholders are called to consolidate their efforts to support the AgriHack initiative in fulfilling this promising model!

Blogpost by Simon Wandila, Social Reporter for the Fin4Ag Conference

This article was originally posted on https://blogs.cta.int/2014/07/11/cta-broadens-support-young-agri-preneurs-agrihack-initiative/index.html

Content belong to the original publisher.

AGRIHACK INITIATIVE GROOMS ICT4AG YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS

 Young entrepreneurs are already turning the wheels of the agricultural revolution. They are driving the paradigm shift in facilitating access and communication of agricultural information and knowledge.

They are not just creating a buzz in ICT for Agriculture (ICT4Ag) but fervently transforming the practice of agriculture with innovative ICT solutions such as web and mobile applications. With increasing interest and support from various stakeholders in empowering these young ICT4Ag entrepreneurs, the digitisation of agriculture is beating the odds, responding positively to concerns such as sustainability, nature and quality of the information provided and engagement of youth and women.

While the beginning of these initiatives was mainly inclined to the provision of information to support farmers at the production stage, the overwhelming support has so far seen the rebirth of approaches and innovations crossing the borders of provision of information for production only to as far as supporting financial transactions. Behind this success story is a great model: the AgriHack Championship Initiative.

Conceptualised by CTA in 2013, the AgriHack Championship, a model hackathon with a difference has been a learning and entrepreneurial exercise, bringing together young people interested in developing ICT solutions for agriculture. The hackathon and its accompanying activities were spread over the space of a year, with preparation and follow-up activities to support participants.

Some activities included national level competitions, which led to the selection of finalists. The finals were held during CTA’s 2013 ICT4Ag Conference. A clear roadmap was used to strengthen the AgriHack model to produce concrete results with a real impact on young entrepreneurs and small-scale producers. From mentorship to discussions and training, a range of stakeholders had put efforts together. At this event, a range of solutions hacked by young entrepreneurs emerged, and the regional winning innovations were Ensibuuko, AgriVAS and Agrinfo. Some winning innovations have thrived to be model, youth-led enterprises, providing some of the most promising ICT solutions in agriculture.

Taking part in the CTA Agrihack Championship proved to be an opportunity for David Opio and Gerald Otim to develop the Ensibuuko app and galvanise contacts with Kiva, an online crowdfunding platform to which David and his team had turned for capital. When Ensibuuko was named winner of the regional finals, the award brought the team valuable visibility and credibility.

A pilot phase signed with Kiva has enabled Ensibuuko to provide finance to 42 rural smallholder producers, mainly model rural farmers who commit to mentoring other farmers in the community. So far, the six-strong Ensibuuko team has raised more than US$15,000 (€10,800) and is well on its way to its immediate target of raising another $5,000 (€3,600). Ensibuuko is a mobile and web application that integrates automated SMS and mobile money services to enable Saving and Credit Cooperative Societies (SACCOSs) to handle savings and make loans to smallholder farmers.

A Kenyan ICT4Ag application showcased at the regional finals of the CTA Agrihack Championship has proved a winning idea, with commercial potential. Farmdrive, a platform that connects farmers and lenders, has attracted the interest of a Japanese investor, who was present at the hackathon, held in November 2013. He approached the Farmdrive team at the event and indicated he had found the idea interesting. Since then, he has been working with the team to perfect the App, so as to explore the feasibility of applying the same idea in Japan.

The ICT4Ag Agrihack Championship was not an end in itself, rather it was the ignition of successful innovations that would see the paradigm shift in access and communication of agricultural information and knowledge amplified, proving the initial Agrihack concept a success.

This initiative is on the right track to respond to the timely call to a rethink in ICT4Ag applications. It also tackles among others, issues such as sustainability, quality of information, access and usability by youth and women, duplication of applications, helping farmers beyond the production stage, supporting financial transactions, and tracking farmer’s data.

Following the finals of the Agrihack Championship in November 2013, the winners of the competition were incubated for 6 months by different hubs to fine-tune their products. In order to discuss the results of the hackathon and its follow-up, a learning and follow-up workshop is planned to take place on 11 – 12 July 2014 (upon invitation only) in Nairobi, Kenya.

During the Fin4Ag Conference, the best applications developed by young entrepreneurs will be showcased. Stay tuned and follow us on twitter with Hashtag #Fin4Ag14 for updates!

Blogpost by Simon Wandila, Social Reporter for the Fin4Ag Conference.

Originally posted on https://blogs.cta.int/2014/07/06/agrihack-initiative-grooms-ict4ag-young-entrepreneurs/index.html 

Content rights below to the original publisher

Digital penetration and branding of sports betting websites in Zambia

DIGITAL PENETRATION AND BRANDING OF SPORTS BETTING WEBSITES IN ZAMBIA

I noticed a hype about sports betting in Zambia. So I embarked on a quick analysis using some digital marketing method, to assess the website country rank, engagement and traffic sources of sports betting websites in Zambia.

It is interesting to note how BetPawa and BetWay are competing. For example, in February, 2019, BetPawa ranks as number 24 in terms of the most visited website out of all (overall, including non betting websites) websites in Zambia, while BetWay ranks number 8. However, it is interesting to note a sharp and wide gap in terms of engagement. BetWay got 663, 920 visits while BetPawa got a whooping 2,400,000 visits. Users spent about 26 minutes on average, visited 18.9 pages on average, on the BetPawa website while users spent almost 7 minutes and visited 2.8 pages on average, on each visit.


There are other websites such as M-Bet which look visual, have good social media presence and branding/graphics but seem not to have effective email marketing, display advertising, search engine optimisation and Google analytics linkage. Probably as a result, they are losing out on ranking and engagement as well as measuring of digital efforts.

I have gained interest in this sports betting hype and trying to learn more about how people are going about making money and which company pays better, and any other information that makes punters prefer one company to the other.

I am also trying to review their branding and marketing strategies, especially social media presence, display advertising and search engine optimisation and how this contributes to their website ranking, traffic sources and engagement.

Narudi Nyumbani, but I am on a mission

NARUDI NYUMBANI, BUT I AM ON A MISSION

It's 2013, I receive news about the 6th Africa Agriculture Science Week set to take place in Accra, Ghana. I really want to attend this event to learn and network.

I submit my case study: "Improving access and application of information and knowledge for agriculture by transforming telecentres into agricultural knowledge hubs," to be presented under the information and knowledge for food security in Africa, side event.

My cases study is accepted and I get full sponsorship to attend and present at the one week conference. At the same time, I get support as a youth participant. I am so excited. Thanks to FARA and CTA.

Simon at the 6th Africa Agriculture Science Week 2013

It turns out to be a very successful trip. I return home on South African Airways, connecting from Accra to Nairobi, to Johannesburg, then Bulawayo and finally Lusaka.

Just when we are about to land, a beautiful song plays, it arouses my emotions and I cannot hold my tears... The song is 'Coming Home' by Nameless, a Kenyan pop artist.

I know I have a long way to go. I am reminded I am supposed to do more for my country, in my little way.

Can I do one more thing before I die!

Do Not Wait for a Fatal Incident

Deep in the bush was our camp. A makeshift house made out of a military tent, furnished with camp beds with water flowing beneath following a heavy downpour, gave us a shelter that kept our eyes from glancing at the beautiful night stars of a forestry bush.

He was an old-almost retiring high ranking Paramilitary. Like wine getting better with age, he had grown some admirable tactics and had a lot of wisdom wrapped in his service stories. His machine gun and knife on the side, his eyes popped up, his feet well stamped to the ground, ready to take defense should the bandits, commonly the Nyamulenge on the loose, attempt to attack.

We had just smashed our meal that evening and chipped into a series of conversations. "There was confusion during the construction of the Kariba Dam." He recalled. About 57,000 people were set to be relocated. He went on explaining how dangerous it was for people to settle around that area as any accident that would lead to the breaking of the wall that far constructed would sweep inhabitants away. Interesting to hear was how people rioted as part of their resistance gimmicks-not some good sight unfolding of events at all.

One sad day, in defense, the security forces fired live bullets which resulted into a fatal incident. its only after this incident that residents of this area complied with the order of being relocated.

It does not need to get to that. People should not plan or be incited to rise against actions meant to save them and others. It should never be time for opponents to rise against executing authorities as this may work against them in future. Authorities should also put in place urgent measures to cushion the loss of income citizens are suffering. While solutions to curb problems are identified promptly, it proves that solutions to help citizens recover quickly from their loss should also be identified promptly.

Some of the immediate interventions would be instituting a relief fund to provide food supplies to the worst hit citizens, and there after relocation and small amount for capital.

At the end of the story, I had benefited from a wealthy of experience in tactics to tackle some dangerous situations that would put my life in danger.

(Photo Credit: Anonymous, Kariba Dam Bridge, 21st Century)

Escaping poverty to be subjected to abuse; the ugly face of human trafficking haunting girls and young women in Africa

“I have the best offer for you,” she said. To entice me, she went further promising what she called a better deal for a young man of my looks. “Just a 100 US Dollars and I will unwrap for you some sweet wine,” she said, while tossing a cigarette butt off the edge of the table.

It’s a beautiful country, full of happy people. They have finger-biting food and I move from one restaurant to the other hunting for some of the best traditional dishes and local delicatessen. Being an adventurous lad, the first thing I choose to embrace is the local culture. The language, food, how to conduct myself and get along with the local people, religion, popular places, entertainment activities, local transport, and other key must-know things.

I have an eye on what, to the open eye, seems to be small things; I am a good listener and like paying attention to unsaid words hidden in body expressions. So, with knowledge of very few words I can get an idea about what could be in the conversation. This is one of my strengths on my escapades.

Before I travelled, I had so much in anticipation. As usual, I took time to read about the city I was about to visit, local food, local languages, transport and other few things pertaining to the local culture. 

One of the places rich in culture of any place are religious gathering places, restaurants, open market places and pubs. So, I took time before my trip, to learn more about all this and the routes around these places.

I am just an adventurous lad, remember, and my interest in local culture is nothing but just something I like doing out of personal interest. Maybe, I should call it a hobby.

I took up my flight at night and flew for a good chunk of hours. By the time I arrived at the hotel, it was already late. One evening of my adventure crushed. I could not temper with the day as it was fully reserved for my assignment.

Here came the evening of the second day, I was ready. I quickly swapped SIM cards on one of my gadgets with a local one and loaded it with data bundles to ensure my GPS and navigator were on. I planned my root and logged it in. Few dollars in my ‘Bombasa’, some amount of the local currency in different denominations in my front pocket, no wallet of course, and my passport nicely tacked in.

I jumped into a flexible denim, a dull coloured round neck t-shirt, a dark cap and I was ready to roll down the streets.

I had planned to test the local food the next evening. This one was set for night life experience. One would wonder. Back home, I do not club. But I am carried away by curiosity; my homies understand how eager I am to ford sand rivers for pebbles of diamond. I am out for the night.

Few minutes on the roadside, a motorbike came by. I quickly tuned my ascent and greeted the rider in a local language. Being convinced I am a local; the rider had no chance to ask more questions but quickly asked for my destination. “Where to, man?” He asked. Pub xxx, I responded, and we sped off. 

It’s lit, lights flashing, the irresistible beats enticing patrons to shake their waists, and I knew it would be a great night. “A can of tonic water,” I signaled the bar tender as I placed a local currency note on the counter. “What whisky do you prefer?” He asked, as I interjected I needed tonic water only. The bar tender could not resist wonder wrinkles on his partly covered forehead sending me into defense mode to prepare the next response should he question further. 

I went for an empty clear space, grabbed a chair, stretched myself and started throwing my eyes around making my plan. My idea was to ignite a conversation with a local. By the time I made my second sip, boom, I saw her heading to my space.

A curvy, blonde with steps like that of a model headed towards me, happily engulfed in the smoke of a cigarette between her fancy, glittering rings clad fingers. Immediately, an inner voice questioned whether I was at the right place or not. Then the adventurous persona awakens and whispered a go-get-it man kind of energiser.

As I wondered what language she would be comfortable with, I tossed my dice and went for my official language-English. My ascent swept her feet as she interjected with queries of my origin. After some bit of resistance, I thought of giving her a close but fictitious response. “I am from South Africa, you do not sound a xxxxxx, there is something about your ascent, which country do you come from?” I quickly dashed into the eighteen circle area of her thoughts. 

“What are you going for?” I asked her, hoping to create a better rapport to help me learn from her. Holding her first glass, she sat firm, gave a charming smile and whispered, “You are so nice, and I have the best offer for you.” She is a woman seemingly in her mid 30s, well-built curvy blonde.

Just as my mind guesses, she was a commercial sex worker from a nearby country. “I have beautiful girls in my hotel room, aged 15, 16, 17 and more. You can choose the most fresh or go for the most skilled, the choice is yours. For 100 US Dollars, I will unwrap for you some sweet wine. I can get a young one of your choice and I so we can give you a mind-blowing threesome you will never forget,” she pitched in a whisper as she put the glass on the table hopping to close the sale.

At once, I felt shivers sent across my spine at her words. My mind tormented, I tried to pretend I needed to think about it, yet my heart was bleeding. My thirst to understand the whole circle of this business grew. I took a deep sigh, bent on the side and back again to refocus, and I had a couple of questions for her. I knew this was a dangerous mission I had embarked on, so quickly, I sent a text to the taxi I had saved indicating to him he needed to come over at xxxx in the next few minutes and pick me.

It is a country torn by war, leaving a huge population in abject poverty. Could the only sin girls have committed be being born in this country? No one has a choice either. After years of war, like in other war torn countries, young people strive to pursue other means of survival including migrating to other countries in search for greener pastures.

For girls, war and poverty put them on the slaughter table. They are vulnerable to different illicit businesses. They are defenseless; they are subjected to abuse of the worst kind. Hopeless and helpless their dignity robbed just so they can have a meal and cover their bodies. What a shame to this World, what a shame to this generation.

My guest on the table comes from this war torn country, in search of greener pastures, she set up a business to traffic young girls into a nearby country. Once these girls are successfully trafficked, they work as commercial sex workers. She books for them hotel rooms where clients are taken. She narrates that she has to get a good amount of pay from clients so that she can manage to buy food, good clothing and accommodation for these poor girls turned to objects.

I felt sorry for her, she was in an illicit business, the girls are being abused, but to all of them, this seemed like the easiest way out for them to survive. What a shame to this World. What a shame to this generation. 

By the time I handed a 50 US Dollar to her, the taxi driver had texted. He was by the car park. So, I told her I needed to pick a call and attend to something that came up. I thanked her for being brave, wished the best for her and the girls, and gave her a 50 note for taking a lot her time.

She looked at me with sorrow in her eyes and wondered where this soul came from. She wondered too how she opened up what she had kept as a secret to her prospects and clients. I was up and on the go.

Human trafficking is real. It is happening every minute. The most vulnerable are girls and young women. The World seems to have closed its eyes. One would wonder if girls and young women especially those living in conflict zones are practically considered valuable.

Let us fight Human Trafficking.

Written by Simon Wandila