This a summary of an analytical study that can be found on the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) website at this URL. Governmental engagement with citizens on issues that affect their daily lives can be critical for addressing development challenges across sectors. Yet distrust of government and/or the international community and their motives can hamper development efforts. The field of social and behaviour change communication (SBCC) holds lessons for actors seeking to address these challenges. By presenting many of the frequently-used practices from the SBCC field, this study aims to inform and strengthen USAID’s work in Africa across sectors such as health, food security, conflict, economic growth, education, and the environment.
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With the ability to reach many farmers with timely and accessible content, the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) for agriculture (ICT4Ag) has the potential to transform farming and food production, worldwide. ICT4Ag supports new methods in the monitoring and management of soils, plants and livestock (precision agriculture), access to online markets, and improved communication between value chain stakeholders, among others. The services provided are vital in connecting farmers with the information they need to improve their agricultural productivity and reduce poverty. Through case studies and examples of ICT4Ag initiatives from across Asia, the Caribbean and sub-Saharan Africa, the first chapter looks at how ICT4Ag actually works to drive economic development across developing economies.
Innovation involves applying information, imagination and initiative to get greater or different value from resources, and includes all processes by which new ideas are generated and converted into useful processes or products.