TIDMVOD
Vodafone Group Plc
26 May 2015
26 May 2015
Mobile to enhance the lives and livelihoods of world's poorest
farmers
- Simple mobile services could improve incomes of 70 million
Indian farmers by US$9 billion a year
- Average farming family in India lives on less than US$4 a day
- Vodafone launches 'Farmers Club' service in five countries to
enhance smallholders' productivity
Vodafone today published its Connected Farming in India report*
which concludes that the introduction of six simple mobile services
designed to help small-scale farmers in emerging markets could
boost the farm gate incomes of 70 million Indian farmers by US$9
billion in 2020.
The Vodafone report, based on research commissioned from
Accenture Strategy with support from the Vodafone Foundation, has
found that the mobile services summarised below could enhance
earnings by an average of US$128 a year for almost two-thirds of
Indian farmers, achieving a material positive impact in communities
where the average farming household lives on less than $4 a day and
many farmers struggle to feed and educate their families.
India is one of the world's largest food producers with more
than 200 million people currently estimated to work in agriculture,
around 100 million of them farmers and the remainder working as
agricultural labourers. In India, around 62% of farmers own less
than one hectare of land, significantly increasing their exposure
to the effects of crop failure, pests, disease and volatile market
pricing.
Vodafone and Accenture Strategy have identified six mobile
services with the potential to transform Indian farmers' lives and
livelihoods.
-- Agricultural information services providing early warning of
weather events, information on the best times to harvest and advice
on crop techniques to enhance yields. These services could increase
an estimated 60 million Indian farmers' annual incomes by an
average of US$89 a year in 2020.
-- Receipt services to provide greater transparency in daily
commodity supply chains, allowing farmers to raise their incomes by
improving efficiency and eliminating fraud.
-- Payments and loans enabling farmers to access simple and
secure financial products and services using mobile money payment
systems such as Vodafone's M-Pesa, launched in India in April 2013.
Access to highly cost-effective micro-finance and quick and
transparent electronic payment systems could provide an annual
benefit of US$690 for some farmers in 2020, representing a 39%
increase in their average farming income.
-- Field audit enabling auditors monitoring quality,
sustainability and certification requirements to move away from
paper records and adopt instead electronic reporting via tablets
and mobile data, greatly enhancing efficiency and potentially
increasing annual average income by US$612 for some farmers.
-- Local supply chain enabling small-scale producers to transact
with local co-operatives through simple but robust information
services and mobile money systems. These could boost some farmers'
annual incomes by US$271 in 2020; a 50% increase on current farming
incomes.
-- Smartphone-enabled services to provide deeper functionality
and richer sources of information than is possible using basic SMS
and voicemail services. While smartphone penetration is currently
low in rural areas in emerging market economies, average device
prices continue to fall year-on-year. Advanced and affordable
mobile services could lead to an increase in average annual farming
incomes of US$675 for more than four million farmers in 2020.
Expansion of the Vodafone Farmers' Club
Vodafone also announced today that it is launching its Farmers'
Club initiative in four additional emerging market countries -
India, Ghana, Kenya and Tanzania. The Vodafone Farmers' Club is a
social business model which offers a range of mobile services to
help farmers boost productivity. It was first launched by Vodafone
in Turkey in 2009; around 25 per cent of the Turkish population
work in agriculture and the Farmers' Club programme has benefitted
1.2 million farmers, helping them to enhance crop yields and
increase farm gate incomes.
Specific Farmers' Club services offered in each country will
vary but will include information services, virtual marketplaces in
which farmers can sell their produce and mobile money financial
services and products. Vodafone will also develop a variant of the
Farmers' Club concept for farmers in New Zealand, a country with an
advanced agricultural industry. Vodafone New Zealand is harnessing
the strength of its extensive rural network to connect farms,
agribusinesses and rural communities, helping to drive
productivity, profitability and innovation.
Vodafone Group Regional Chief Executive for the Africa, Middle
East and Asia Pacific region Serpil Timuray, said: "One-third of
humanity relies on food grown by 500 million smallholder farmers
with less than two hectares of land. Mobile has a critically
important role to play in increasing agricultural resilience and
enhancing quality of life for some of the poorest people on earth.
Our experience in Turkey has demonstrated how mobile services can
transform farmers' ability to increase crop yields, improve
efficiency and grow farm gate incomes.
"As the global population continues to expand, farmers have an
urgent need to produce ever-increasing amounts of food without
destroying habitats or depleting resources in a way which is
unsustainable. Smart and forward-looking initiatives such as the
Vodafone Farmers' Club concept can make a real difference in
addressing the global challenge of food production and
security."
For further information:
Vodafone Group Media Relations:
www.vodafone.com/media/contact
Note to editors
Link to Connected Farming in India report:
www.vodafone.com/sustainability/connectedfarming
Link to Connected Farming images:
https://www.flickr.com/gp/vodafonegroup/1883Vj
Link to Connected Farming film: https://youtu.be/BdSBpuiq8eY
About Vodafone
Vodafone is one of the world's largest telecommunications
companies and provides a range of services including voice,
messaging, data and fixed communications. Vodafone has mobile
operations in 26 countries, partners with mobile networks in 55
more, and fixed broadband operations in 17 markets. As of 31 March
2015, Vodafone had 446 million mobile customers and 12 million
fixed broadband customers. For more information, please visit:
www.vodafone.com
About the Vodafone Foundation
The Vodafone Foundation's Mobile for Good programme combines
Vodafone's charitable giving and technology to make a difference in
the world. Globally, the Vodafone Foundation supports projects that
are focused on delivering public benefit through the use of mobile
technology across areas including health, education and disaster
relief. The Vodafone Foundation invests in the communities in which
Vodafone operates and is at the centre of a network of global and
local social investment programmes. The Vodafone Foundation is a UK
registered charity, registered charity number 10989625.
The Connected Farming in India report is part of a series of
reports launched by the Vodafone Foundation looking at the
potential social impact of mobile products and services on the
communities in which Vodafone operates. Vodafone's 2011 Connected
Agriculture report showed that 12 different mobile services could
boost agricultural income in 26 markets by 11% - an estimated $138
billion in 2020.
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
END
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