Julius Juma Okello
University of Nairobi
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Publication
Featured researches published by Julius Juma Okello.
International Journal of Ict Research and Development in Africa | 2010
Julius Juma Okello; Edith Ofwona-Adera; Oliver L.E. Mbatia; Ruth M. Okello
This article examines an ICT-based intervention (known as the DrumNet project) that has succeeded in integrating smallholder-resource and poor farmers into a higher value agricultural chain. The article assesses the design of the project, and how it resolves the smallholder farmers’ idiosyncratic market failures and examines member-farmers’ marketing margins. The article finds that the design of the DrumNet project resolves smallholder farmers’ credit, insurance and information market failures and enables them to overcome organizational failure. The article concludes that successful ICT-based interventions for integrating farmers into higher value agricultural value chains require an integrated approach to tackling smallholder farmers’ constraints. The findings have implications for the design of future ICT-based interventions in agriculture.
Journal of Development Studies | 2013
Carl Johan Lagerkvist; Sebastian Hess; Julius Juma Okello; Nancy Karanja
Abstract The rapid urban population growth, rising level of urban poverty, and problems with food supply and distribution systems have increased the importance of developing local supplies of perishable produce of safe and good nutritional value in developing countries. This examination of consumer preferences for food safety across major urban fresh vegetable market categories revealed that the explanations behind purchase intentions were market segment-specific. There is a need to target agricultural policies relating to handling practices and for public health policies to be more differentiated in promoting food safety.
International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability | 2014
Julius Juma Okello; Carl-Johan Largerkvist; Marther W. Ngigi; Nancy Karanja
Past studies of the use of soil fertility management strategies by farmers usually model input use decisions based on the neoclassical utility/profit maximization principle in which farmers use soil fertility management inputs primarily to increase revenues and profits. However, there is, to date, no study that explains exactly how this decision-making process occurs and the role which personal values play in driving the choice of soil fertility management inputs. This article systematically maps the relationship between choice of soil fertility management strategy (attributes), its outcomes (consequences) and the personal values that motivate the choice. It specifically uses the means-end chain approach to construct hierarchical value maps that relate the attributes to consequences, and ultimately to the personal values. The study finds that the use of soil fertility management strategies by peri-urban fresh vegetable growers is driven by five personal values, namely happiness, comfortable life, independence, good/healthy life and achievement of life goals. It also finds that while farmers seek to increase profit (hence incomes), profit maximization is not the end driver of the use of soil fertility management inputs. It concludes that a lot more goes into farmers’ decision-making process relating to the use of soil fertility management practices than can be explained by the neoclassical profit/utility maximization principle. The study discusses the policy implications of these findings.
International Journal of Ict Research and Development in Africa | 2010
Blessing M. Maumbe; Julius Juma Okello
This paper presents a framework of the evolution of information and communication technology (ICT) applications in agriculture and rural development based on comparative experiences of South Africa and Kenya. The framework posits that full deployment of ICT in agriculture and rural development will be a culmination of several phases of changes that starts with e-government policy design, development and implementation. The paper argues that ICT use in agriculture and rural development is a powerful instrument for improving agricultural and rural development and standards of living throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. However, success in greater application of ICT in agriculture will require addressing impediments to adoption and diffusion. Such impediments include the lack of awareness, low literacy, infrastructure deficiencies (e.g. lack of electricity to charge electronic gadgets), language and cultural barriers in ICT usage, the low e-inclusivity and the need to cater for the special needs of some users. The paper reviews successful applications of ICT in agriculture and urges greater use of ICT-based interventions in agriculture as a vehicle for spurring rural development in Africa.
International Journal of Ict Research and Development in Africa | 2011
Samson P. Katengeza; Julius Juma Okello; Noel Jambo
The mobile phone technology is an important tool to enhance farmers’ access to better paying agricultural markets. The study reports the results of a household study in Mwanza, Dedza and Mzimba Districts of Malawi. The study assesses drivers of adoption of mobile phone technology for agricultural marketing by smallholder farmers. The study used regression techniques to identify drivers and extent of mobile phone use. Results show that use is positively affected by literacy, distance to local market, land size, current value of assets, crop income, and region variations but negatively influenced by access to electricity. Intensity of use is conditioned by gender, participation in agricultural projects, ownership of a mobile phone, current asset value, distance to nearest public phone services, and region variations. Asset endowment plays a critical role in enhancing adoption of mobile phone technology. Gender disparities significantly affect adoption as most women have limited access to assets. The study suggests the need to improve farmers’ access to mobile phones for agricultural marketing. It recommends that government, in collaboration with mobile network operators, should reduce calling tariffs to enhance use, gender disparities in accessing assets should be minimised, and investment in supporting infrastructure must be enhanced.
International Journal of Ict Research and Development in Africa | 2011
Samson P. Katengeza; Julius H. Mangisoni; Julius Juma Okello
The government of Malawi in 2004 initiated an ICT-based Malawi Agricultural Commodity Exchange (MACE), a market information service project, to improve access by farmers to market information. MACE was intended to improve the efficiency of agricultural markets as part of the strategy to improve food security. This study uses quantitative methods to examine whether MACE has contributed to efficiency of rice markets in Malawi. It especially tests if MACE has contributed to spatial integration of rice markets. As hypothesized, the study finds that the tendency of rice prices to move together in spatially separated markets has significantly increased since the implementation of MACE. It concludes that ICT-based market information services project enhances linkages between markets and can therefore improve the efficiency with which agricultural markets perform. The study discusses implications of this finding for policy.
International Journal of Ict Research and Development in Africa | 2010
Julius Juma Okello; Ramatu M. Al-Hassan; Ruth M. Okello
Lack of agricultural information has been attributed to the inability of smallholder farmers to transition from subsistence to commercial agriculture. Recent efforts to improve smallholder access to agricultural information have seen increased application of ICT technologies in developing agriculture. These efforts use ICT-based market information to reduce transaction costs of smallholder participation in markets, promote commercialization, and improve household food security. Emerging studies document the benefits of such ICT-based applications in agriculture, including increased incomes and improved performance of agricultural markets. Unfortunately these studies have been context specific and the link between provision of ICT-based market information, smallholder commercialization and household security remains unclear. This paper develops a framework that can be used to analyze the link between ICT application in smallholder agriculture, household commercialization, and food security. The paper generates testable hypotheses relating ICT application in agriculture and reduction in transactions costs, smallholder farmer commercialization, and household food security. It then provides illustrative cases where ICT application in agriculture has benefited smallholder production and improved market performance. However, more research must be done to test the generated hypotheses. The paper discusses the implications of the framework for practitioners.
Agricultural and Food Science | 2014
Anne G. Timu; Richard Mulwa; Julius Juma Okello; Mercy W. Kamau
This paper examined the effect of variety attributes on adoption of improved sorghum varieties in Kenya. Using data from a random sample of 140 farmers, a multivariate probit was used to identify variety-specific drivers of adoption. The results on the perception of farmers variety attributes showed that improved varieties had desirable production and marketing attributes while the local varieties were perceived to have the best consumption attributes. Evidence further indicated that the major sorghum variety attributes driving rapid adoption are taste, drought tolerance, yield, ease of cooking, and the variety’s ability to fetch a price premium. Early maturity, a major focus of research was found to have no effect on the adoption decision. The findings of the study implied that, while developing improved seed varieties, breeders should also focus on non-yield attributes like taste and ease of cooking to increase adoption and satisfy the multiple needs of the farmers.
International Journal of Ict Research and Development in Africa | 2011
Julius Juma Okello
Poor access to agricultural market information is a major factor constraining the performance of agricultural markets in developing countries. The search for new strategies for resolving this constraint has led to several ICT-based market information service (MIS) projects in developing countries. At the same time, the rapid penetration of new generation ICT tools (especially mobile phones) has resulted in wider application of these tools in agriculture. This paper examines the use of ICT tools and ICT-based services by rural grain traders in Kenya. It is based on data collected from 204 traders in Western and Rift Valley regions of Kenya. The study finds widespread use of ICT tools by grain traders. It also finds that the tools are used by grain traders to obtain market information, including information on price, volume, and where to source and sell grains, among others. The implications of these findings are that market development agents must focus on removing constraints limiting the use of ICT tools in rural areas. Spurring greater use of ICT tools has the potential to reduce transaction costs and improve the performance of rural agricultural markets.
British Food Journal | 2015
Carl Johan Lagerkvist; Julius Juma Okello; Nancy Karanja
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine consumers’ perception of food safety for vegetables at traditional urban market outlets in a developing country context and test whether curiosity-motivated information acquisition and personal control over choice of stimuli influence consumer involvement, resulting in more differentiated mental models. Design/methodology/approach – The Zaltman Metaphor Elicitation Technique (ZMET) in standard and modified form was used to develop consumers’ mental models for food safety. Findings – The cognitive content and structure of aggregated consumers’ mental models were identified and mapped. The maps included negative and positive meanings, indicating a need to tackle the hygiene problems prevailing in most traditional markets. ZMET generated a more differentiated map when people were empowered with a camera to collect stimuli. Research limitations/implications – Using ZMET to understand food safety perceptions avoids consumers being led in their responses, views ...