Esoko Ghana has set-up a farmer helpline that allows farmers in Ghana to receive agricultural support from a group of experts in the country
Farmers can dial 1900 at standard rates to access the service to be the first of its kind in the country, Esoko Ghana said.
The company stated that the helpline will be accessible on Vodafone, MTN and Airtel networks as well as Tigo and Glob, which will be added later this year.
The languages that will be made available to customers are Dagbani, Mampruli, Twi, Kusaal, Frafra, Sissali, Dagaari, Wali, Ewe, Ga, Fante and Hausa, Esoko Ghana revealed.
According to Esoko chief executive Officer, Daves Esoko, the farmer helpline was vital to any type of SMS service being offered by Esoko and other service providers.
“There is a lot of hype out there about how smartphones and SMS services can help farmers but really you've got to go back to basics and offer them answers in their own language from dedicated professionals they can trust,” Esoko said.
Esoko's farmer helpline manager, Mary Naah, commented on the pilot programme which was rolled out recently.
“It is really exciting to find during that pilot that some farmers called in to find out whether it will it rain in Tumu on Saturday, and some even asked when they can plant, where they can find pesticides and what do if rains have not fallen,” Naah said.