Digitel Talk
Digitel Talk is a podcast promoting doing good in the mobile, telecoms and related technology industries. The heart of the podcast is about the people, what they have done, how it has affected them, others and the planet and what great things we can expect.
We aim to share the stories of those champions who want to help others and have found a way of using mobile, telecoms and technology to achieve this.
As hosts who work in telecoms, if nothing else, the podcast aims to broaden the audience for these projects with hopes it might resonate with others who will be inspired to do something good themselves.
Digitel Talk
FarmerChat - Channelling AI to Help Agricultural Smallholders Prosper at Scale
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In this episode of Digital Talk, host Ian Ginn sits down with Alex Mwaura, the Kenya Country Director for Digital Green. With over 24 years of experience in the humanitarian and development space, Alex shares the incredible journey of how Digital Green is moving beyond traditional video-based extension services to pioneer FarmerChat—an AI-powered mobile assistant designed to help smallholder farmers thrive in an era of climate uncertainty.
What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
- The Evolution of Extension Services: How Digital Green transitioned from YouTube videos to hyper-localized AI advisory.
- The Power of FarmerChat: A deep dive into the Android-based AI assistant that uses text, voice, and images to diagnose crop pests and diseases.
- Impact by the Numbers: Discover how AI has helped farmers increase the adoption of improved agricultural practices from 7% to 70%.
- Keeping the "Human in the Loop": How Digital Green uses expert agronomists to validate AI-generated advice to ensure accuracy and safety.
- Scaling through Partnerships: Why telecommunications companies are the key to reaching the "last mile" and supporting the 60% of the African workforce employed in agriculture.
Links and resources
Episode sponsored by IFG Consulting Europe– Supporting telcos with tech strategy, digitisation and growth.
Guest Bio:
Alex has worked in the humanitarian and development sector for over two decades, fueled by a passion for sustainable community development and the use of technology as a driver of social impact. From an organizational development standpoint, he is dedicated to building highly functional teams that design and deliver impactful projects and programs.
Currently, Alex serves as the Country Director with Digital Green Kenya. In this role, he oversees the deployment of FarmerChat, an AI assistant that provides localized and timely agricultural advisory for farmers. As of March 2026, this initiative has reached over 1.3 million farmers. Prior to joining Digital Green, Alex spent 23 years leading multisectoral humanitarian and development initiatives across East, Central, and Southern Africa.
Podcast credits:
- Host: Ian Ginn
- Editor: Francis Wright
- Designer: Rebecca Ginn
- Project manager: Ivana Duric
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