To achieve the desired goal, Farm Radio partnered with the Oromia Broadcasting Network to reach the full Oromia region, more than 8,000,000 rural people and more than 4,000,000 rural adults. While initially focused on regular cereal crop producers, the radio messages were designed to assist the extension advisory service on many topics, including advising regular cereal crop production, as well as farmers cultivating vegetables. Developed in partnership with the Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture, Farm Radio International designed 16 weeks of e-extension servicxes to address the extension advisory gaps and reach farmers across the Oromia and SNNPR regions with timely and quality information on various agricultural and health-related topics. The “Supporting National Agriculture for Farmers” project was forged in response. As COVID-19 made in-person meeting dangerous, and travel even more so, the Ministry of Agriculture went looking for a remote way of ensuring farmers would get the extension services they needed. In normal times, agriculture extension, or the process of having a trained agriculture expert who works with farmers and ministry officials to bring and teach new and different agriculture techniques to local farmers, is done in person. Stay on the lookout for project updates on CIPE Africa’s Digital Economy regional program.When COVID-19 affected normal face-to-face extension advisory services in Ethiopia, the country’s Ministry of Agriculture took action. Through local research teams and cross-sectoral working groups, CIPE will support the production of policy briefs and sector-specific studies to help guide formal dialogues and streamline collaboration between business and government. To encourage cross-sector collaboration and policy cohesion, CIPE is bringing together representatives from the private sector, civil society, government, and local think tanks in each country. CIPE’s regional Digital Economy pilot program in Africa centers around ensuring the inclusion of private sector voices from Ethiopia and Kenya in national and regional digital economy policy dialogue. Public-private cooperation is essential to implementing solutions that meaningfully support SME resiliency during COVID-19 and an inclusive digital economy. Without dedicated attention to SME participation, there is a risk that the opportunities presented by digital transformation will fail to deliver widespread economic empowerment, inclusion, and development. While many governments indicate their openness to engaging with the private sector on developing the policy frameworks to govern burgeoning digital economies, there are few clear paths to support the inclusion of SMEs in policy conversations or initiatives to shape the digital ecosystem around them. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) make up approximately 90% of firms across sub-Saharan Africa. There is an opportunity for the growth of digital economies – which include electronic and mobile-enabled payments, services, and trade – to strengthen economic inclusion and democratize economic opportunity, particularly for the smallest businesses and entrepreneurs. In the wake of COVID-19, national governments have proposed ambitious digital infrastructure and ecosystem investments. Rapid digital transformation in African markets – from increased access to internet connectivity to a growing adoption of e-commerce – is redefining the rules of the game for doing business.
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