The Foundation received the mbillionth South Asia Award for leveraging technology to enhance lives and livelihoods in rural agricultural communities
Reliance Foundation (RF), RIL’s philanthropic arm, has bagged the prestigious mbillionth South Asia Award 2017 in the Agriculture & Environment category. The Foundation was conferred the award today in recognition of its efforts to leverage mobile technology to enhance lives and livelihoods in rural agricultural communities across India.
The mbillionth Awards recognized organisations from across South Asia which have done exceptional work in the mobile and telecom sector. RF’s mobile advisory initiative – for which it clinched the award – has been instrumental in providing rural and marginal farmers in India with critical information on different aspects of agriculture – sustainable cultivation practices, pest control, crop disease management, animal husbandry, weather forecasts, and even government schemes related to agriculture.
The mobile voice advisories, which farmers receive free of cost, are the innovation of Reliance Foundation Information Services (RFIS). RFIS is a one-of-its-kind initiative that disseminates reliable and robust information tailored to the needs of farmers, fisherfolk, livestock owners and other livelihood seekers, through various information and communication technology platforms, including multi-location audio and video conferences, local cable television, All India Radio, print and electronic media, voice and text messages via Jio Chat and WhatsApp, as well as field-based programmes and trainings.
To ensure that the disseminated information in its advisories and training material is accurate and localised, RFIS sources it from knowledge partners such as Krishi Vigyan Kendras, research institutions, line departments, NGOs and meteorological institutions. The entire system is supported by cloud telephony, with the RF toll-free helpline number (1800-419-8800) playing a critical role in providing necessary clarifications from knowledge providers to knowledge seekers. In this way, the RFIS initiative creates essential linkages between those who curate knowledge and those who seek it, paving the way for income enhancement and empowerment. RFIS has even saved lives, by disseminating advisories with cyclone forecasts, ocean state forecasts, and warnings for adverse weather.
