Airtel Kenya has introduced ‘Airtel Kilimo’ which is a farmer’s information system to provide information to Kenyan farmers through its mobile network in the country.
Its main aim is to provide farmers with access to agriculture-related information, advice and research.
Airtel Kenya managing director Shivan Bhargava noted Airtel recognizes the importance of agriculture in the development of the country, explaining that Mobile phones are the success story of bridging the rural digital divide, bringing tangible economic benefits and acting as agents of social mobilization through improved communication, and Airtel is keen on using its quality network and service offerings to make life better for its customers and farmers in Kenya.
“This service is aimed at harnessing farmers’ needs by giving them access to the information they need to improve their farming activities. Gaining access to this information will be of great benefit to the farmers whose livelihoods and those of many Kenyans are dependent on their yield”, said Bhargava.
Airtel Kilimo will focus on Kenyan farmers engaged in maize, banana, mango, rice and beans. Farmers will also benefit from weather updates and marketing pricing information.
In order for the project to reach out to many farmers in the country, Airtel Kenya will work with Mobipay, Kenya Livestock Producers Association, Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux International (CABI), Kilimo Media, Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI), Kenya Meteorological Department (KMD) and Kenya Agricultural Commodity Exchange (KACE) to ensure that farmers get farming information through the platform available on Airtel network.
Airtel Kilimo is available on USSD *760# for free, SMS subscription where a customer is charged Kshs 3.00 per SMS and on Interactive Voice Response (IVR) for Kshs 3.00 per minute.