The use of ICTs to facilitate collaboration in a multi-stakeholder Partnership:

A case study of the Mauritius Breadfruit Sector Consortium

By:

Nawsheen Hosenally and Krishan J Bheenick

Third IAALD Africa Chapter Conferencee-Agriculture for improved Livelihoods and Food Security in Africa

21-23 May 2012, Johannesburg, South Africa

Mauritius Country Background 2040 km2

Population: 1,3 million

Mauritius has successfully

shifted from a mono-crop to diversified Economy Tourism Manufacturing Agriculture Financial Services ICTs

ICTs in Mauritius The government recognized the

importance of the ICT sector for development of the country

National ICT Strategic plan prepared to achieve the government’s vision: Contribution of ICT sector to GDP Employ more Mauritians Make available skilled manpower Bring about an increase in the adoption and

use of ICTs in Mauritius Invest in infrastructure and hence become a

Regional Hub

ICTs in Agriculture: e-Agriculture

Agriculture has been and is still an important sector in the economy

The use of ICTs encouraged in Agriculture through different policies Blueprint for a sustainable diversified Agri-food strategy

for Mauritius (2008-2015) Establishment of an Agricultural Information System (AIS)

National ICT Strategic plans (2007-2011 & 2011-2014) Promoting an integrated adoption of ICTs in Agriculture

through collaborative working e-Agriculture Action Plan designed

However, many strategic objectives not yet met

Establishment of multi-stakeholder partnership in the

breadfruit sector Following Global food crisis in 2008, the

government decided to invest in Agriculture through the Food Security Fund

Agri-food strategy developed and breadfruit identified as a potential alternative source of carbohydrates Can be used as substitute to wheat

Hence, the Food and Agricultural Research Council (FARC) established the Mauritius Breadfruit Sector Consortium in 2011 To collaborate on development of breadfruit production

in Mauritius

Establishment of multi-stakeholder partnership in the

breadfruit sector

Challenges

Information Exchange during consortium meetings Needed to be documented and shared for further discussion

Weekly physical meetings were not possible Online collaboration required

Hence, a platform for communication and information sharing among stakeholders required

Choice of Platform Among the different Web 2.0 tools available, the

use of a “wiki” was suggested

The use of a wiki investigated through a review of its functions and practical experiences

It was found that a wiki offered several useful features which correspond to the needs of the consortium

A wiki allows its users to add, modify or delete its content via a web browser, using a simplified markup language or a rich-text editor

Characteristics of a wiki Generally powered by wiki software and usually

created collaboratively by multiple users

Include: community websites, corporate intranets, knowledge management systems and note taking

Common uses: project communication, intranets and documentation

Used by some companies to enhance group learning

A Wiki for the consortium Allow consortium to interact, share and store

knowledge and information Participate in discussions and be an improvement

on traditional approach (e-mails) Enable consortium activities to be transparent to

all partners involved Allow user to edit any page, add content including

files (from Ms Office or other multimedia) Tracking of activities could be simpler when

compared to e-mails/blogs/websites/ Google Documents

It supports other web 2.0 tools which could be used for various purposes

Adoption of a wiki Expected to be adopted in different phases by

stakeholders as the use of a wiki was new to most of them

Throughout its implementation, wiki was closely monitored by the administrators

Wiki administrators assisted users in collaborating on the platform and intervened as and when required to facilitate the process

Wiki of the Mauritius Breadfruit Sector Consortium

Accessible at http://paepardmauritius.pbworks.com

Front Page

Navigator

Sidebar

Pages on the wiki

Pages on the wiki

About PAEPARD

Consortium partners and

roles

Consortium Meetings

Documents or links on Breadfruit

Discussion Forum

Editable map of

Breadfruit trees in

Mauritius

Individual partner pages

Pages on the wiki

Wiki Pages

Wiki interface and use Upon its creation, consortium leaders started to

upload files and share links on breadfruit

Information was very useful in building knowledge base on breadfruit (from origin/germplasm to product development/marketing)

Constraint: Consortium partners had difficulties regarding basic aspects of the wiki (log in, edit and add content etc.)

Assistance required and hence visual tutorial (slides) developed

Wiki interface and use

Content Management and interactions on the wiki

Consortium partners have their own individual page and updated it on the work they are doing on breadfruit

Enabled stakeholders to know who is working on which aspect along the value-chain Duplication of work is avoided All activities of the consortium transparent since all

meetings and workshop proceedings were documented Interactions and discussions initiated and

maintained by administrators, consortium facilitators and leaders Although some partners visited the wiki regularly, they

were not sharing information and engaging in discussions

Information shared were on general work being done

Content Management and interactions on the wiki

Description of work being done by the organization

Content Management and interactions on the wiki

All meetings and workshop proceedings documented

Editable map of breadfruit in Mauritius

Wiki supports other web 2.0 Applications

Google Map added to one of the pages

Tutorial was made on how to add trees onto the map Shared by email to consortium partners and also D-

groups, Facebook and Twitter

Crowd-sourcing through voluntary contribution from members of the public and web enthusiasts Initial response low, but improving gradually More than 60 Trees added

Editable map of breadfruit in Mauritius

Editable map of breadfruit in Mauritius

Discussion Wiki useful to various stakeholders in terms of

transparency, coordination and tracking of the consortium activities and information and knowledge management

However, few challenges faced when it came to collaboration and interaction of consortium partners on the wiki Partly related to the adoption process of new

technologies Other factors include skills and ease of using the

computer as a means of communication

Discussion Effectiveness of wiki is very dependent on the

extent of collaboration by partners

Different institutions and staffs work in different ways and wiki administrator/facilitator has to adapt to the level of their education or ICT skills

Existing perception on ICTs can influence extent and form of collaboration

Use of other wikis demonstrated that such a platform can be effective However, Mauritius breadfruit consortium has not been

able to achieve same level of success

Conclusion Use of a wiki can be beneficial in facilitating

collaboration, but success is dependent on the level of interaction on the platform

To encourage participation from different partners, the administrators has to intervene and assist them

The concept of e-Agriculture has not yet been adopted by professionals and organizations in the Agricultural sector in Mauritius

However, in a short lapse of time, the wiki has been established and useful to partners Good as starting point

Recommendations Challenges can be overcome through

encouragement of the use of Web 2.0 tools and other ICT applications by professionals in Agriculture

After their training on ICTs/Web 2.0 tools, proper tracking and monitoring should be carried out to ensure that they are applying what they have learned

This emphasizes the role of Agricultural institutions to encourage their staffs to adopt these tools in their work