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Digital Information Provision and Farmer Behavior: Lessons from Six Experiments in East Africa
We present causal evidence on the effects of six different text message-based agricultural information programs implemented in Kenya and Rwanda. All programs shared similar objectives, but were implemented by three different organizations and varied in terms of content, design, and target population, which allows us to learn about the extent of impact heterogeneity.
External Link(s)
Citation
Fabregas, Raissa et al. 2020. "Digital Information Provision and Farmer Behavior: Lessons from Six Experiments in East Africa." AEA RCT Registry. December 01. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.6837-1.0.
This project examines the impact of mobile-based agricultural extension messages on farmer behavior change. The evidence we present is drawn from six different programs: a program implemented by the Kenya Agriculture and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO), a Kenyan public organization; two programs implemented by One Acre Fund (OAF), a social enterprise; and two programs implemented by a partnership between Precision Agriculture for Development (PAD) and Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA), both non-profit organizations. All programs were delivered via text-messages and encouraged farmers in areas with acidic soils to experiment with agricultural lime, an input used to increase soil pH. Four programs also sent messages about relatively unknown chemical fertilizers. Despite sharing similar objectives, programs varied in terms of farmer recruitment, message content and design, agricultural seasons, and complimentary services.
Intervention Start Date
2014-12-01
Intervention End Date
2018-06-30
Primary Outcomes (end points)
purchase of recommended agricultural inputs (as measured by administrative and survey data)
Primary Outcomes (explanation)
Secondary Outcomes (end points)
use of non-recommended inputs
knowledge about agricultural lime
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)
Experimental Design
In each one of the trials, farmers were randomly assigned to a control group (did not receive messages) or treatment groups. We summarize main treatment arms below:
(1) KALRO project: 834 farmers divided into a treatment or a control group (2) IPA/PAD1-K: 1,897 farmers randomized into two treatment arms (general SMS or specific SMS) or a control group
(3) IPA/PAD2-K: 5,890 farmers randomized into three different treatment arms (SMS only, SMS and phone call, SMS and phone call offer) or a control group
(5) OAF1-K: 4,884 farmers randomized into two treatment arms (broad SMS or detailed SMS) or a control group
(4) OAF2-K: 32,572 farmers randomized into two arms (Lime messages or Lime and fertilizer messages) or a control group. Message framing, number of repetitions, and frequency was cross-randomized. (4) OAF3-R: 110,400 farmers randomized into two arms (Same messages or Different messages) or a control group. Message framing, number of repetitions, and frequency was cross-randomized. Randomization was conducted at the group level.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
Randomization done in an office by a computer.
Randomization Unit
For all experiments except OAF3-R randomization was done at the individual level. For OAF3-R the unit of randomization was the farmer group.