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Appraisal of the Agro-Tech Smart Extension Model in Ghana, Payment options and Challenges in ICT-enabled extension services delivery

The increasing role of ICT-enabled extension services delivery to enhance agricultural productivity of smallholder farmers is an exciting development. This article assesses the effectiveness of the AgroTech Model piloted by Grameen Foundation in Ghana. AgroTech is a privately led ICT-enabled extension and support service. The study methodology includes a desk review of existing literature and a primary survey of 402 agricultural value chain actors. Study findings show that the farmers interviewed gave AgroTech a high performance rating; more than 33% of the farmers rated its performance as Excellent and 27% rated it as Good. Factors such as timely supply of inputs, cost implications and improvement in crop yields that translate into additional income influenced farmers’ performance ratings. Awareness of AgroTech in the communities surveyed was higher among males than females. Overall, willingness to pay for extension and support services was estimated at 58%. However, willingness to pay for extension and support services was slightly higher among male farmers (59.1%) than female farmers (55.3%).