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How Mobile Phones Contribute to Growth of Small Farmers? Evidence from India

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  • Mittal, Surabhi
  • Mehar, Mamta

Abstract

Rapid growth of mobile telephony and the introduction of mobile-enabled information services provide ways to improve information dissemination to the knowledge intensive agriculture sector and also helps to overcome information asymmetry existing among the group of farmers. It also helps, at least partially, to bridge the gap between the availability and delivery of agricultural inputs and agriculture infrastructure. This paper explores further on this topic and provides evidence to show how mobile phones and mobile-enabled agricultural services have impacted the farmers. As mobile penetration continues to increase among farming communities and information services and to adapt and proliferate, the scope exists for a much greater rural productivity impact in the future. To leverage the full potential of information dissemination enabled by mobile telephony along with supporting infrastructure and capacity building amongst farmers it is essential to ensure the quality of information, its timeliness and trustworthiness.

Suggested Citation

  • Mittal, Surabhi & Mehar, Mamta, 2012. "How Mobile Phones Contribute to Growth of Small Farmers? Evidence from India," Quarterly Journal of International Agriculture, Humboldt-Universitaat zu Berlin, vol. 51(3), pages 1-18, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:qjiage:155478
    DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.155478
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    5. Tang, Christopher S. & Sodhi, ManMohan S. & Formentini, Marco, 2016. "An analysis of partially-guaranteed-price contracts between farmers and agri-food companies," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 254(3), pages 1063-1073.
    6. Cieslik, Katarzyna & Cecchi, Francesco & Assefa Damtew, Elias & Tafesse, Shiferaw & Struik, Paul C. & Lemaga, Berga & Leeuwis, Cees, 2021. "The role of ICT in collective management of public bads: The case of potato late blight in Ethiopia," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    7. Joseph I. Uduji & Elda N. Okolo-Obasi & Simplice A. Asongu, 2018. "The impact of e-wallet on informal farm entrepreneurship development in rural Nigeria," AFEA Working Papers 18/040, African Finance and Economic Association (AFEA).
    8. Joseph I. Uduji & Elda N. Okolo-Obasi, 2018. "Young Rural Women Participation in the E-Wallet Programme and Usage Intensity of Modern Agricultural Inputs in Nigeria," Working Papers of the African Governance and Development Institute. 18/062, African Governance and Development Institute..
    9. Md. Mamun-ur-Rashid & Md. Masud Karim & Md. Muzahidul Islam & Md. Soad Bin Mobarak, 2019. "The usefulness of cell phones for crop farmers in selected regions of Bangladesh," Asian Journal of Agriculture and rural Development, Asian Economic and Social Society, vol. 9(2), pages 298-312, December.
    10. Min, Shi & Liu, Min & Huang, Jikun, 2020. "Does the application of ICTs facilitate rural economic transformation in China? Empirical evidence from the use of smartphones among farmers," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    11. Salami, A. & Kounagbe Lokonon, B.O., 2018. "Entrepreneurship and Farm Profit in Rural Niger," 2018 Conference, July 28-August 2, 2018, Vancouver, British Columbia 277015, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    12. Janusz Wielki, 2012. "An analysis of the challenges connected with management of the electronic space by contemporary business organizations (Analiza wyzwan zwiazanych z zarzadzaniem przestrzenia elektroniczna przez wspolc," Problemy Zarzadzania, University of Warsaw, Faculty of Management, vol. 10(38), pages 54-66.
    13. Joseph I. Uduji & Elda N. Okolo-Obasi, 2018. "Young Rural Women Participation in the E-Wallet Programme and Usage Intensity of Modern Agricultural Inputs in Nigeria," Research Africa Network Working Papers 18/061, Research Africa Network (RAN).
    14. Opolot, H.N. & Obaa, B.B. & Isubikalu, P. & Ebanyat, P. & Okello, D., 2016. "Quality and dissemination of information for strengthening University-farming community engagement in northern Uganda," African Journal of Rural Development (AFJRD), AFrican Journal of Rural Development (AFJRD), vol. 1(1), June.
    15. Emileva, Begaiym & Kuhn, Lena & Bobojonov, Ihtiyor & Glauben, Thomas, 2023. "The role of smartphone-based weather information acquisition on climate change perception accuracy: Cross-country evidence from Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia and Uzbekistan," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 41, pages 1-1.
    16. Ghosh, A. & Huda, S. & Chakraborty, T.R., 2020. "Scope of using ICT for knowledge management on adaptation to climate change in agriculture," International Journal of Agricultural Research, Innovation and Technology (IJARIT), IJARIT Research Foundation, vol. 10(2), December.
    17. Mittal, Surabhi, 2015. "Mobile phones based agro-advisories role in gender empowerment," 2015 Conference, August 9-14, 2015, Milan, Italy 212467, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    18. Alex Barimah Owusu & Paul W. K. Yankson & Stephen Frimpong, 2018. "Smallholder farmers’ knowledge of mobile telephone use: Gender perspectives and implications for agricultural market development," Progress in Development Studies, , vol. 18(1), pages 36-51, January.
    19. Terese E. Venus & Stephanie Bilgram & Johannes Sauer & Arun Khatri-Chettri, 2022. "Livelihood vulnerability and climate change: a comparative analysis of smallholders in the Indo-Gangetic plains," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(2), pages 1981-2009, February.

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