How the Award-Winning Haller Farmers App is helping smallholder farmers with open access to farming techniques and agricultural information.
The Haller Farmers App is an accessible and intuitive way for smallholder farmers in Kenya and East Africa, to access best practice sustainable farming techniques and a Noticeboard, allowing them to market produce and connect with farmers globally, directly on their mobile phones for FREE.
Launched by The Haller Foundation in 2014, the Haller Farmers web-app was designed to provide rural farming communities with affordable and environmentally friendly farming techniques. Inspired by the work of Dr. Rene Haller, UNEP Global Laureate, who promotes environmental regeneration to bring economic security to poor, smallholder farmers living in inhospitable land in Kenya. However, in 2019, with mobile penetration across the continent rapidly increasing, combined with a growing need for improved food and water security, Haller decided to re-develop the app. In 2020, Haller Farmers was released on the Google Play Store making it widely accessible to remote farming communities across Africa and further afield. Due to widespread demand Haller Farmers was released on the App Store in July 2021.
Inspired by 50+ years of Dr. Hallerโs work teaching proven, pioneering, sustainable farming techniques to smallholder farmers, Haller Farmers was developed to scale and disseminate agricultural best practice. It is unique in that it uses pictures, audio and text in English and Swahili to provide smallholder farmers with proven, curated knowledge with selected information available offline.
How Haller Farmers Makes a Difference
Haller Farmers connects key actors via simple mobile technology throughout the Kenyan Agricultural value chains to increase profitability per smallholder farmer, per year. This is achieved by providing farmers with regenerative techniques to improve soil quality and grow a diverse range of local and indigenous crops and connect them to a global community of farmers.
Haller Farmers addresses the ongoing barriers faced by smallholders through the following objectives:
- Facilitate market access for buying and selling of crops through its โNoticeboardโ section,
- Increase farmer productivity through the dissemination of localized, climate-smart agricultural best practices,
- Growth beyond subsistence farming by continuously tailoring its content to the unique needs to East African farmers.
Haller Farmers
The App is available to download for free on the App and Google Play Stores.
The Haller Foundation have digitized 50+ years of local agricultural knowledge and expertise and made it open access to help build community resilience and boost food security.
Haller Farmers won Best Android App of the Year in the UK App Awards 2020 and was a finalist in the Tech4Good for Africa Award and Tech for Good, Better Society Awards 2021.
If you are a farmer looking to use Haller Farmers, you can download their step-by-step guide in English or Swahili.
If youโd like to find out more about the app, you can get in contact with Hallerโs Community Project Coordinator โ Joseph Baraka via email at [email protected]
You can also download their press release here.
Leave a Reply