Web based information service for

Ethiopian agricultural development

Project proposer:Students; Gulelat Abebe
Buzusew Negash
Tsegaye Gebre
Desalegn Tigistu
Addis
Address: Adama School of Engineering and
Information Technology,
Informatics Faculty, Department of
Information science.
Adama
PO.BOX:1888.
Duration of the Project: 4 (four) month
Amount Money Required:
a.Software (for web page designing)
5500
b.Pc or Desktops computers
24590(4pcs
c.Storage Medias
7000
Total……………37090.00 birr.
1. Project Background and Justification

As the Internet technologies develops quickly in the world, most of the

countries or some of townships within the provinces now equip with
basic computer and dial-up connection with local country and district
government. It is estimated there have been less than 4 of agriculture-
oriented web sites was established and functioned with users on
agriculture production and marketing information in Ethiopia. However,
few web sites can provide crop management in detail and dynamic ways
for decision support to farmers considering their situation on land, labors
and inputs etc. There is urgent need from the small cooperation group to
use Internet to look for the chance to increase the product technologies
and meanwhile to reduce the external input or to optimize input
considering economic, environment issue with effective technologies
extension and support.
Because most of the countries, townships or villages are almost
agricultural and rural enterprises dominated in Ethiopian province, a few
application of Internet either for local governmental and political
administration or for economic and social development was established
or applied. Although the so-called "e-government" project was launched
in recently; example “wereda network, and others, most counties or
township government agencies face the problems: how to provide,
maintain and guide information on marketing mechanism and
agricultural production and rural areas at the country or township level.
2. PROJECT DELIVERABLE
Now this project tries to give the answers that aims to provide the
dynamic and functional web based crop and vegetable agricultural
market information for farmers and small cooperation agency to provide
information and simulation service for their making decision on the
agriculture production . We will take Ethiopian telecommunication and
Ethiopian ICT institute, as a prototype of country with ICT serving for
agriculture and rural development. Some of rural and small group of
agriculture around Addis Ababa city area are more accessed for
technology like computer and electronics sources these help to provide
information easily agriculture information. We will integrate our web-
based tools into Ethiopian governmental websites and provide value-
added use and more profitable with other ICT tools and methodologies,
to produce dynamic, useful and practical solutions for the above
problems.
3. PROPLEM SPECIFICATION
The most problem may face in using these e-pharm or web based
information, more of Ethiopian farmers are not familiar with computer
usage and the second problem is the distribution of network coverage
around rural area.
4. SOLUTION OUT LINE
The government policy around ICT development is invite more for such
project, in case recently Ethiopian telecommunication launch the broad
band Internet distribution around all over the country
So, these may help us to effective with our E-pharm project. The second
problem question is the usage of computer for Internet, these might be
solved easily by preparing some tutorial in Internet usage for those some
literate who live around farmers, example elementary teachers,
agricultural employees (DA)
To teach the farmers after their course.

5. Project Objectives
5.1. General Objective
To create a Web based e-farm site to promote dynamic and functional
simulation tools as a useful, friendly and economic technical way for
farmers on Internet, improving small farm production and providing
agriculture decision maker with efficient and economic on line services.
5.2. Specific Objectives
To give a functional demonstration web sites and web tool using
simulation at county level for agriculture and rural development with
visible advancement by Internet. Establishing a pilot web based
simulator for agriculture production technologies extension.
To establish Internet based computer program for uploading and
downloading the data and information while using the simulation and
modeling tools.
To establish an Internet/intranet platform to help township and county
government staff and technicians to transfer the technologies and tools
for widely and useful adoption and extension with transparent
formulation of agricultural economic policy, marketing information,
public assessment of rural development plan, and other activities related
to regulation of agro-economic composition, marketing of goods and
services in rural areas and poverty reduction.
6. Project Beneficiaries
The e-farm web based application tools developed in this project will
become a key component of country e-government facility and
agricultural information.
Farmers: the simulation model on crop and vegetable considering
fertilizer, weather and soil situation will advise them to make right
decisions on crop planting, growing harvesting and business strategies;
the Ethiopian agricultural development (rural development) resulted
from this project will help farmers and investors around agro-industry,to
optimize their decision making capacity and make money greatly.
Small Farm or Companies holder: The”e-farm“system toolkit that will
be developed in this project will provide them the functional balance in
their farm input and output activities and improve their benefits with
modern management ideology and methodology.
Marketers: provide a platform for farmers and buyers to establish
relationship on products. The project will assist them in finding more
opportunities to sell their goods and services.
7. TECHNICAL PLAN
There are some programs and projects have been conducted at country
level to build infrastructure and information service system to meet the
economic and social development needs, to provide technologies and
information for farmers, farm or company holders for their production.
There are also little web sites in our country which service of
information on agricultural technologies. But it is textual service and
lack of the digital and mutual dynamic service on crop and vegetables
growth and regulation with external inputs. According to the world ICT
development planning in. The advanced networking applications, based
on technologies in communication, can be established for agricultural
technologies and extension at any country or township level . So we
believe that the web based crop and vegetables growth simulator and
decision support system toolkits will be linked with other web sites or
incorporated into web site to cover rural districts and towns, and be
accessible to numerous Internet applications for Ethiopian rural
development, as well as using firewall technology for security.
Key farmers and rural farming enterprises will be the main users on this
function and will access to this site by broad band or dial up for getting
information on their situation production planning and input suggestion,
nutrient balance and pest control manners even on economic and
marketing information. It will be sustained by local government support
on agriculture and user’s support on detail information paying services
when it is actual useful and profitable for producers.
8. Project Methodology
Project methodology: state clearly, in the methodology how the general
and specific project objectives will be achieved.
Review the existing web site and services for the further improvements
and farmer’s requirement on Internet service with low price and easy
going ways. Reviewing the existing methods which are adopted to
develop the similar content within Ethiopian rural and agricultural
development.
Contact with some experienced experts and works conducted with
Ethiopian agricultural institute and other provinces and compare the
different experiences which the problems they encountered in the
activities.
9. DESCRIPTION OF THECHNOLOGY
9.1. Software’s
Using the software for the sketch of the whole web and branch of the e-
farm structure. Design and develop the software packages for crop
production, Technology and economic decision making manners.
Software and sub-module will be developed for online consultation
through web modeling. The data, questions and decision will be given
on line service for different situations. The email message will be used
automatically uploaded information and description on farmer’s
production.
Design and develop training module for users on first hand and given
tutorial on the web modeling, decision and environmental advise on crop
and vegetables production. This project will be conducted as a
participatory module to the development strategy of information service.
Experts, technicians and all stakeholders will be mobilized to contribute
their efforts or knowledge into the web construction. State broadcasting
and blackboard, field training courses, researches and distance learning
will be incorporated into the project functions for database construction
and modeling instruction.
9.2 Web based simulator and Model construction
The crop growth simulator and vegetables model will be incorporated
into the web site being adapted into the real situation with modification
on the different function modules inside. All these modules will include
the crop development stages, photosynthesis, respiration and leaf area
expansion, nitrogen modeling and water simulation model, economic
and yield assessment modules etc. The original models was written in
VB and it will converted into VB script (ASP developed language) and
other computer languages.. We had developed the crop (rice, corn, berly,
teff, oil crops, Enset and wheat) model and water balance module in
paddy field and well drainage soil conditions.
10. Project Timeline
The suggested web based information for Ethiopian agricultural
development project will be conducted for one year with the following
timetable on a month-base and with the corresponding major tasks in
charge of the team members.
The first month
 Draft an operational plan of the project together with the co partners
and local rural government agencies.
Make a decision on key farmer, demonstration village and rural area
selection and model and section selection for this web model.
The next 3 (three) month
Connection with database and web simulator for actual running and
results assessment. Summer action of the all-round information service
in villages and markets selected through statistics bureau (rural and
agricultural development) and local staff.
.
11. MANEGEMENT PLAN
Project monitoring will be followed by agricultural experts and
evaluation processes are being proposed. For doing better in future
conduction of the proposed project, it is necessary to give a self-critical
comment on project monitoring and evaluation processes.
This project will be reviewed by Local County and township
government, farmers to determine its usefulness and effectiveness in
their production and information support and services. It is also can be
monitored based on the final output and target specified in the time line
and activities report of our project progress timely on a semiannual basis
and keep in touch with governmental agencies. Final evaluation will be
conducted throughout the project questionnaire as a report submitted to
the Donor.
12. COST ESTIMATES
The modern technology are widely available in market but here we need
to consider the
Efficiency and cost effectiveness, in case a total of 37090.00 birr is
required.
For the web page designing and Internet software 5500 birr, for the pc
or computer buying
24590 birr is required to have 4 p cs of computer and for storage
Media’s amount of 7000 birr is required.
7. Conclusion
Project outputs state what the project will produce and in what form it
will be delivered and disseminated.
 The E-crop information service will become a key component of the
rural development at field level and also partially function as e-extension
of agricultural science and technologies in Ethiopia.