Scientific animations without borders: cell-phone videos for cowpea farmers

Abstract

Over the past several decades, researchers and extension agents have described
methods that cowpea farmers can use to reduce insect damage to the cowpea crop
in the field and in storage. Some of these methods, which are based on both scientific
research and indigenous knowledge, are currently being used in local, regional , national,
and transnational extension programs. Cowpea farmers in Africa and other developing
regions, however, often remain unaware of the methods based on scientific research
because the farmers are low-literate and the information may be available only in a written
form. Farmers also may remain unaware of methods based on indigenous knowledge
because such information usually remains local. These problems are exacerbated by the
limited resources of extension programs. Here we describe how pest control information
in the form of short animations can be transferred to low-literate farmers via cell-phone
technology and through the World Wide Web. Voice overlays in a diversity of languages
can be easily added to these animations so that ideas can be efficiently shared across
cultural groups. The animated videos, which are being developed by the organization
Scientific Animations Without Borders™ (SAWBO), can be viewed on cell phones and can
be transmitted between cell phones using Bluetooth® technology.