Challenge
Assumption and prototyping testing of Maano-VFM began in October 2016 with a group of 20 smallholder farmers and traders from three rural farming districts and four market towns from across Zambia. By the end of a four-day training camp, this first group of 20 participants (average age of 56 years and with a majority of whom had never before held a smartphone) learned how to use WhatsApp, Google Maps, and Airtel Money on smartphones, and to combine key functionalities of these apps to trade food.
Description
Virtual Farmers Market is an app-based e-commerce platform where farmers’ surplus and buyers’ demand for crops are advertised and traded. The platform provides a transparent, open and trustworthy space for smallholder farmers and buyers to negotiate fair prices and deals. The VFM platform supports smallholder farmers organized by lead farmers (VFM Ambassadors), to estimate their community’s production and selling price, and advertise this information on the online market.
Outcomes
In Zambia in 2017, Maano aims to engage 50 lead farmers (Maano Ambassadors), who will aggregate and sell produce for at least 50 of their community members, serving approx. 2,550 smallholders in total. The platform will facilitate transactions between farmers and approximately 100 Zambian and international buyers.
