robert fitzgerald, phd

Today I met with Romdoul Kim and Channe Suy from InSTEDD's innovation Lab in Phnom Penh. InSTEDD (Innovative Support for Emergencies Diseases Disasters) is a NGO that was brought into being by Larry Brilliant (TED Prize 2006 winner) who wanted to build an early-warning system for pandemics and other disasters. Google.org funded InSTEDD to build a rapid-reporting system to help health teams stay connected in emergencies (Just as an aside, Larry Brilliant left Google recently after three years to work with Skoll Urgent Threats Fund setup by Ebay founder, Jeff Skoll).

(From L-R: Tola, Dara, Ratha, Mann, John, Rob, Romdoul, Channe, and Chhovy)

As part of the Knowledge Systems in Rural Areas series, GTZ (Deutsche Gesellschaft for Technische Zusammenarbeit) has recently published a report exploring the potential of Web 2.0 platforms for networking and knowledge exchange in agriculture and rural development. This publication documents latest developments in this area and our project using sms in Cambodia is featured in "Cambodian Farmers Turn to their Phones". Download the full report (pdf).

We are getting quite a bit of interest in our sms work in Cambodia using FrontlineSMS. Ken Banks has written about it in Cambodian farmers turn to their phone, MobileActive.org in Frontline SMS Review and Internet & Democracy Project at Harvard University in Frontline SMS Launches New Version, Continues to Foster Change. In late November 2008 we presented our ideas to the Northwest Agricutural Marketing Association (Battambang, Cambodia) for the development of a sms-based field communications and information system (full presentation). More.

Writing in The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Professor Robert Jensen from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, reports on a project in Southern India where fishermen and wholesalers are using mobile phones to address limitations in the market information system. From his economic analysis of data collected over a five year period he concludes that the use of mobile phones worked to reduce price dispersion and increase fisherman's profits. In his paper he reinforces the idea that access to timely information is vital to the effective operation of markets and the benefits can be seen for both producers and traders. The abstract of "The Digital Provide: Information (Technology), Market Performance, and Welfare in the South Indian Fisheries Sector" follows:

"When information is limited or costly, agents are unable to engage in optimal arbitrage. Excess price dispersion across markets can arise, and goods may not be allocated efficiently. In this setting, information technologies may improve market performance and increase welfare. Between 1997 and 2001, mobile phone service was introduced throughout Kerala, a state in India with a large fishing industry. Using microlevel survey data, we show that the adoption of mobile phones by fishermen and wholesalers was associated with a dramatic reduction in price dispersion, the complete elimination of waste, and near-perfect adherence to the Law of One Price. Both consumer and producer welfare increased."

Here is the current picture of our SMS project in Cambodia.