MFI's App Provides Ag Advice to Farmers

Opportunities in Cambodia’s horticulture sector have grown in recent years, with increased demand in both domestic and international markets for Cambodia-grown products. Meeting quality and quantity requirements, however, is a challenge for many producers, who lack access to the technical information and quality inputs that they need to improve production practices.

AMK, a local microfinance institution, or MFI, recognized the benefits of building producers’ capacity to improve yields. Many of AMK’s clients are farmers, and by supporting them to improve production, AMK anticipated that they would see a decrease in loan default rates – as well as an increase in business, as more small and medium enterprises (SMEs) take out loans to expand their businesses in a growing sector.  

With support from Feed the Future Cambodia Harvest II, AMK developed the TonleSap App to help horticulture sector actors address these constraints. The app is an online platform designed to increase farmers’ access to the technical, market, and product information that they need to improve production outcomes.

Through AMK's TonleSap App, agriculture cooperatives and farmers are able to
access accurate and up-to-date technical, market, and product information.

Launched in January 2019, the TonleSap App has been continuously updated and expanded to meet users’ needs and respond to feedback. With more than 8,000 current users, more than 1,100 of whom are in the horticulture sector, the app offers 92 technical guides, developed by AMK’s team of technical experts and consultants to address common production concerns. AMK has trained more than 4,000 market actors on how to download and use the app, and developed the Tonlesap App Facebook page to reach a wider audience.

Building on the popularity and potential of the TonleSap App for farmers, AMK developed the complementary TonleSap Seller App, designed to provide an adjacent platform to help sellers and service providers advertise their products, receive orders, and manage sales. More than 100 supply chain actors, including input retailers and dealers, service providers, and buyers have registered with the app, helping further facilitate and expedite market linkages and business communication across the supply chain.

The TonleSap Seller App helps input dealers like Kimsong upload and promote
their products and connect with farmers.

“The TonleSap and TonleSap Seller Apps are very important to me and the farmers,” said Kimsong, an input dealer in Battambang. “I can promote my products and farmers can access technical and market information anywhere with their smartphones.”

Going forward, AMK will continue to expand the functionality of the two apps, with plans to integrate delivery and payment services to facilitate transactions between farmers and product and service providers.

Through their commitment to developing and continuously improving an innovative technology to build the capacity of agriculture sector actors, AMK is investing not only in their business, but in the strength of the market system as a whole.

Keeping Farm Workers Healthy

Longan, a fruit similar to lychee, is a popular fruit for export among Cambodian farmers. Longan is notoriously difficult to grow, and using chemical pesticides and fertilizers can help increase yields. However, chemicals pose risks to the environment and to farm workers’ health if not properly applied.

Yim Bunthoeun, a longan exporter in Battambang province near the Thai border, grew concerned about his workers’ health after observing the negative impacts of spraying chemicals without protective materials. He wanted to provide his workers with personal protective equipment (PPE), materials such as protective clothing, hats, gloves, boots, and respiratory masks that protect wearers against health and safety risks. Bunthoeun, however, wasn’t sure where to find these materials.

Yim Bunthoeun, a longan exporter, has introduced personal protective equipment for his farm workers
to help mitigate the negative health effects associated with improper chemical application.

Harvest II decided to help put a sustainable solution in place. To expand the adoption of PPE among longan farm workers, Feed the Future Cambodia Harvest II hired an expert to train input dealers based in longan-growing regions on the importance of PPE, the safe use of chemicals, and how to improve product placement and air circulation in their shops. The training helped input dealers not only improve their shop conditions, but also build their capacity to provide accurate and appropriate advice to customers on safe chemical use, particularly using PPE.

Phut Borey, an input dealer and longan farm owner in Phnom Prek district, recognized the benefits to farmers of improved PPE use and chemical application methods – as well as the benefits to his business of providing PPE at his shop. Borey, a former farm worker himself, knows firsthand the negative health effects of inadequate protection from chemical pesticides and fertilizers, and was eager to grow his understanding of PPE and improve his shop conditions through the training.

“The training is very important,” Borey said. “I understand better which products are legal and safe to use. I’ve also learned to improve product arrangement. I place chemicals in glass cabinets to prevent them from affecting the air that we breathe.” Borey offers a promotion on respiratory masks to encourage farm workers to adopt PPE, and has also improved his own waste management practices, storing chemical waste in a safe place before burying it in the ground, rather than burning it, to minimize environmental impact.

It was through Borey that Bunthoeun, the longan exporter, was able to provide PPE for his workers – and they have already noticed a marked difference.

Vichet, right, and other workers on a longan farm have started using personal protective equipment
when they spray chemicals on the trees.

“I didn’t use any protective materials before,” said Vichet, a chemical sprayer who works for Bunthoeun. “I had headaches, dizziness, and chest pains.” Vichet used to spend his own money on medicines and treatment to address these issues, but after adopting PPE, his health is improving. “My boss bought these protective materials for all the workers,” he said. “I feel safe and secure. I don’t get sick like before.”

Through collaborative efforts to build understanding of chemical risks and the benefits of PPE, these longan actors are working together to ensure a safer work environment and better health for workers and consumers alike.

Strengthening Markets through Collaboration across Provinces

Vegetable Actors in Pursat and Battambang Conduct Exposure Visit to Exchange Learnings

In recent years, as incomes in Cambodia have grown, so, too, has demand for high-quality, safely-produced vegetables. A majority of the vegetables consumed in Cambodia are imported from neighboring countries – but an increasing number of Cambodian consumers are willing to pay more for locally-grown Cambodian produce.

Many vegetable farmers in Pursat province, however, face challenges capitalizing on these opportunities. To this end, Harvest II worked with Provincial Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (PDAFF) officials in Pursat province to organize a two-day exposure visit for a group of 11 vegetable growers to neighboring Battambang province. There, many farmers practice more modern production methods, and agricultural cooperatives (ACs) work with PDAFF officials support their members to access markets. Pursat PDAFF officials agreed that they, and the farmers they work, would benefit by exchanging learnings with their peers in Battambang.

Through this visit, Battambang PDAFF officials hosted farmers and officials from Pursat to meet with a number of horticulture sector actors in Battambang, including a vegetable-focused AC and an input supply company, to observe improved production methods, learn about improved AC management, and hold discussions around how PDAFF officials can best support farmers.

Battambang PDAFF officials hosted farmers and officials from Pursat to observe improved production methods and hold discussions with market actors in Battambang.  

To further promote vegetable growers’ capacity, Harvest II engaged East-West Seed Co. (EWS), an input supply company, to provide additional trainings and follow-up on-farm coaching for producers. Through this collaboration, farmers received technical support to implement some of the best practices that they had observed from farmers in Battambang, such as improved pest and disease management.

“This visit was very important for our farmers, enabling them to learn from the experience of other farmers in Battambang,” said Chey Channy, a Pursat PDAFF official. “We observed practices such as the use of modern irrigation systems and washing and packaging vegetables, as well as finding markets for farmers’ products.”

Vegetable farmer Lorn Sokha hopes to work with an input supply company to an install sprinkler irrigation system on her farm after observing their use in Battambang. 

Un Leakhena, a vegetable farmer in Kandieng district, agreed. “I saw practices I haven’t seen before,” she said, “especially the sprinkler irrigation system. I think it would be very helpful, and I want to install it on my own farm.” She and her sister Lorn Sokha, who also joined the exposure visit, both want other farmers to join too, so that they can also learn about new technologies and best practices.

Pursat PDAFF officials are currently working with farmers to acquire Cambodia Good Agricultural Practices (CamGAP) certification, which will enable them to label their products and differentiate them from conventionally-grown vegetables. Furthermore, Pursat PDAFF has undertaken a public awareness campaign and event to build local consumers’ understanding of the benefits of eating ‘safe’ vegetables – and connect them with the farmers who grow them.

Going forward, Harvest II will continue to engage input supply companies to support farmers to replicate the improved practices that they observed through the visit, and will work with public and private sector partners to plan similar exchange visits. At the same time, Harvest II will continue to connect farmers to larger and more reliable markets for their produce, such as wholesale markets in the province and modern retail outlets in Phnom Penh – part of Harvest II’s work to support inclusive and sustainable growth in the horticulture sector.