Prototypes get tested today
Today, 19 September 2015, the ASHC team will be working with our colleagues at African Fertilizer Agribusiness Partnership to test the prototype materials, developed for use in agordealerships in Tanzania, as part of the Legume Alliance Maharage Bingwa campaign. ASHC team members Abigael Mchana and Harrison Rware will be working with over 20 hub agrodealers in Tanzania to get their input to improve the materials.
The process developed by ASHC to create information materials starts with a technical brief. This document is step by step report covering what farmers need to know in this case to grow common beans. This is based on research and practice. The next step is a write-shop to work out how the technical information can be packaged to meet the needs of farmers – it is also a reality check on all aspects of the technical brief. Here the team places great emphasis on making the information easy to understand and thinking about how farmers overcome limitations – such as not having tape measures or scales.
The ASHC team then develop prototype materials and test them with the intended audiences. The prototype material are refined and made ready for use in a limited pilot exercise – possibly in the minor season. This means that by the major season materials are ready and tested for a scale-up campaign. At both the pilot and the scale-up campaign stages research is undertaken to measure the impact and effectiveness of the campaigns.
This blog will follow this journey and feedback information at all stages.
