Aukrit Unahalekhaka
Nov 13, 2018
Social enterprise Ricult uses digital tools to empower rural farmers in developing countries.
More than half of the world’s poorest people live on small farms in rural areas of developing countries, accounting for over 2 billion people living on around two dollars a day.
Many of the hardships of smallholder farmers are the result of a long list of systemic issues spanning the agricultural supply chain. First, farmers cannot secure loans from the bank, forcing them to rely on loan sharks with high lending prices. Once they’ve received the necessary capital, farmers lack information on things like weather forecasts, pest attacks, optimal nutrient application, and current market prices. Finally, during the small window of time they have to sell crops before spoilage, farmers often lack direct access to buyers, forcing them to go through the same exploitive intermediaries who gave them the loan to begin with.
For the last two years, the social enterprise Ricult has been empowering these farmers with an accessible platform that gives them the tools and insights they need to improve their lives.
Read more at https://news.mit.edu/2018/ricult-thailand-pakistan-farmers-1115