VU Amsterdam Professor Hans Akkermans awarded a goat in Northern Ghana

Researchers from VU University Amsterdam, together with partners from World Wide Web Foundation and Sahel Eco - Mali travelled sixteen days through the Sahel, exploring local information needs in remote rural areas. The outcomes will be used for development of innovative web services based on voice technologies.

The tour starts in Dakar, capital of Senegal, next to Bamako, capital of Mali, descending the Niger river towards Segou, then via Tominian, Bandiagara, in the direction of Bankass downhill the Dogon valley. Next, crossing the border to Burkina Faso, heading for Ouahigouya, and Gourcy and subsequently Ouagadougou, capital of Burkina Faso. A final trip is made to the Upper-East region of Ghana for a visit to the countryside near Tamale and Bolgatanga.


Throughout the journey we meet farmers and herders in the field, visit small local radio stations and talk with farmer organisations. Community radio and mobile telephone, apart from word of mouth, are the only sources of information in these remote villages, devoid of electricity, TV or Internet. Radio programs are created in local studios, and continuously broadcasted in various African languages. Radio listeners often travel from a distant village, and bring a handwritten message, to have it broadcasted for their friends and family. They are ready to pay the radio a fee of 500 francs CFA (less then one euro), a considerable amount in this region. Is the desire to Twitter a universal human trait?




We ask farmers, herders and radio people to give us their thoughts on innovative voice-based information services. The answer is a vivid discussion and many original ideas for voice-based services. One farmer envisions some sort of directory service, which can provide contact details of an expert who will give him tips on how to grow shea trees.



In Ghana we visit two small villages, Yameriga and Tongo-Beo. In Yameriga we are generously welcomed by singing and dancing women, and by the village chief and all villagers in a circle. We exchange ideas about their regreening initiatives, about mobile telephony and the goals of our project. In Tongo-Beo, as a sign of friendship and appreciation, the chief of this village kindly offers a goat to prof. Hans Akkermans, leader of our W4RA team, who gratefully accepts this valuable and remarkable gift.



Voice-based services may bring new opportunities for people to exchange information about regreening activities, or about prices on the local market, about health or legal issues, about relegion, about music and entertainment, about local news or anything you can imagine…just think!