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Technology has the potential to address many of the world’s most pressing development challenges. But some of the biggest failures incorporating technology in development contexts result from solutions that don’t fit the target users’ needs and capabilities. In his first regular column on applying technology to solve development problems, Director of TechnoServe Labs Dave Hale discusses the first step for developing technology solutions: understanding the end user.

In Benin, the cashew industry has the potential to help hundreds of thousands of small-scale farmers lift themselves out of poverty. However, poor agricultural practices often limit their productivity and incomes. TechnoServe is using remote sensing and machine learning to map cashew production and target agricultural training to farmers who need it most.

When the COVID-19 crisis hit Mozambique, many women entrepreneurs like Catarina Bié struggled to keep their businesses afloat. Recognizing the importance of continuing to support entrepreneurs during this difficult time, but wanting to do so safely, TechnoServe adapted its usual in-person training program to a digital format using WhatsApp.

Cashew has the potential to transform Benin’s economy – and the lives of the smallholder farmers who grow it. However, many farmers lack the technical knowledge they need to get the best harvest from their cashew orchards. TechnoServe is developing a digital chatbot to help farmer trainers quickly access the information they need, allowing them to effectively support more farmers.

The COVID-19 crisis has impacted farmers and entrepreneurs around the globe and has made it much more difficult for organizations to offer in-person support. How can these organizations provide this critical guidance remotely? TechnoServe identified three key principles for providing effective phone-based support when in-person training is not possible.

Technology can be a powerful tool for improving lives in the developing world – but only if it is deployed in the right way, considering local needs foremost. TechnoServe works with pioneering tech partners to develop and scale up solutions to poverty around the world.

TechnoServe integrates technology into many of our programs to reach more people and scale our impact around the world. Today we are sharing five things you might not know about how technology is fighting poverty.

Dave Hale outlines how technology can be used to make farming more inclusive through three critical factors: setting targets, working with local partners, and keeping the end-user in mind.

"Ask a TechnoServe Expert" is a series where our staff members, who work on a range of important global development issues, answer your questions. In this edition, Dave Hale, director of TechnoServe Labs, answered your questions.