Digital technologies in african agriculture

The inability of African states to provide sufficient food to their populations is due to low levels of agricultural productivity. To achieve food security, it is necessary to carry out agricultural transformation, i.e. a structural reform of the agricultural sector, which entails a widespread introduction and use of innovations. In some African countries, digital technologies are already being introduced, such as mobile information services for farmers, early warning systems for hunger or disasters, warehouse receipt systems, etc. The main reasons for the lack of implementation of agricultural innovations in Africa include scarce funding, the low educational level of producers, underdeveloped infrastructure, limited access to information about new technologies, etc.

How Do Mobile Information Services Improve Quality of Life? The Case of Japanese Students

Every technology should be geared to improve the quality of users’ lives. Our study aims to understand how mobile information services (MIS) contribute to quality of life (QoL) for young mobile users. This paper attempts to provide a comprehensive analysis of relationship between two variables: the contribution of MIS in 15 specific life domains and the contribution of MIS to overall quality of life (QoL). We examined bottom-up spillover theory with original and our additional life domains. Eleven life domains derived from previous research include: leisure life, family life, friend life, cultural life, work life, community life, consumer life, financial life, health life, safety life, and self-life. Our proposed four life domains are: home-healthcare life, informational life, educational life and trustworthy life. Questionnaire surveys were conducted in Japan among young mobile users. We analyzed the data of 189 effective respondents. Results from this study clearly indicate that two variables (individual contribution and overall contribution) are valid and reliable to analyze. Contribution to the informational life has the highest influence on the overall contribution for Japanese young, followed by culture life, friend life, leisure life, educational life and work life.

Research on user needs for mobile information services in Chinese university libraries

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the service demand of existing users and potential users for mobile information services provided by university libraries in China. The primary objective is to explore the impact of user experience on user needs, which is conducted by a comparison between two user groups over their needs from three aspects – service function, service mode and information content. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected from 353 library users from ten Chinese universities via questionnaires. Based on the user needs model, three dimensions of user needs were established for mobile information services and 26 measurement items were generated through a review of the literature. Furthermore, based on frequency analysis, independent samples t-test and the calculation of need rate, the demand differences in mobile information services between existing and potential users were explored. Findings Significant differences existed in the needs for service functions and service modes of mobile information services between existing users and potential users. Existing users cared more about such characteristics as intelligence, personalization and the variety of mobile services. Potential users, in contrast, concerned themselves more with the usability of mobile services and similarity to traditional information services. These two user groups showed little difference in the needs for information content, as they both have strict requirements for specialty, richness in and quality of information resources in mobile network environments. Originality/value Previous research on user needs for mobile libraries services has been primarily conducted from the perspectives of existing users. This study, however, compared the needs of existing and potential users based on their previous experiences, which can help libraries to know better what their users need and improve the quality of mobile information services to meet those needs. This can also make existing users more willing to use the services and cultivate the usage habits of potential users at the same time.