TEDGlobal 2017
Su Kahumbu: How we can help hungry kids, one text at a time
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Su Kahumbu raises badass cows -- healthy, well-fed animals whose protein is key to solving a growing crisis in Africa: childhood nutritional stunting. With iCow, a simple SMS service she developed to support small-scale livestock farmers, the TED Fellow is helping farmers across the continent by texting them tips on caring for and raising animals. Learn more about how this cheap innovation is helping feed hungry kids, one text at a time.
Su Kahumbu - Agriculturalist, social entrepreneur
TED Fellow Su Kahumbu is working to improve farmer livelihoods and contribute to nutritional security and environmental sustainability. Full bio
TED Fellow Su Kahumbu is working to improve farmer livelihoods and contribute to nutritional security and environmental sustainability. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:12
I want to introduce you
to my badass friends.
to my badass friends.
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Meet Thelma and Louise.
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(Laughter)
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I'm passionate about cows.
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And although they've been
getting a lot of crap lately
getting a lot of crap lately
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due to methane emissions
and climate change,
and climate change,
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I hope that I can redeem
their reputation in part
their reputation in part
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by showing you how
incredibly important they are
incredibly important they are
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in solving one of the world's
biggest problems: food security.
biggest problems: food security.
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But more importantly, for Africa --
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it's resultant childhood stunting.
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Nutritional stunting manifests itself
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in a reduction of growth rate
in human development.
in human development.
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And according to UNICEF,
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stunting doesn't come easy.
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It doesn't come quickly.
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It happens over a long period of time
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during which a child endures painful
and debilitating cycles of illness,
and debilitating cycles of illness,
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depressed appetite,
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insufficient nutrition
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and inadequate care.
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And most kids simply
can't endure such rigors.
can't endure such rigors.
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But those that do survive,
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they carry forward
long-term cognitive problems
long-term cognitive problems
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as well as losses of stature.
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The numbers of stunted children
under the age of five,
under the age of five,
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in most regions of the world,
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has been declining.
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And I really hate to say this,
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but the only place where
they haven't been declining is here,
they haven't been declining is here,
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in Africa.
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Here, 59 million children,
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three in 10 in that age group,
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struggle to meet
their genetic potential --
their genetic potential --
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their full genetic potential.
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Protein is one of our most important
dietary requirements,
dietary requirements,
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and evidence shows
that lack of essential amino acids,
that lack of essential amino acids,
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the building blocks of proteins,
in young children's diets,
in young children's diets,
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can result in stunting.
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Essential amino acids are called essential
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because we can't
synthesize them in our bodies.
synthesize them in our bodies.
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We have to get them from our foods
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and the best sources are animal-derived:
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milk, meat and eggs.
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Most protein consumed
on the African continent is crop-based.
on the African continent is crop-based.
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And although we have millions
of smallholder farmers rearing animals,
of smallholder farmers rearing animals,
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livestock production
is not as easy as we think.
is not as easy as we think.
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The big livestock gaps between
rich countries and poor countries
rich countries and poor countries
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are due to poor animal health.
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Endemic livestock diseases,
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some of them transmissible to humans,
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threaten not only livestock producers
in those poor countries,
in those poor countries,
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but all human health across all countries.
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This is a global pathogens network.
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It shows the pathogens
found across the world
found across the world
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according to the Enhanced
Infectious Diseases database.
Infectious Diseases database.
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And it shows those pathogens
that share hosts.
that share hosts.
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In a nutshell,
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we share pathogens, and thus diseases,
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with the species we live closest to:
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our livestock.
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And we call these zoonotic diseases.
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Recent reports show
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that the deadly dozen zoonotic
diseases kill 2.2 million people
diseases kill 2.2 million people
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and sicken 2.4 billion people annually.
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And Jimmy says,
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"The greatest burden of zoonoses
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falls on one billion
poor livestock keepers."
poor livestock keepers."
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We totally underestimate
the importance of our smallholder farmers.
the importance of our smallholder farmers.
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We're beginning to recognize
how important they are
how important they are
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and how they influence our medical health,
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our biosafety
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and more recently,
our cognitive and our physical health.
our cognitive and our physical health.
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They stand at the frontline
of zoonotic epidemics.
of zoonotic epidemics.
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They pretty much underpin our existence.
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And they need to know so much,
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yet most lack knowledge
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on livestock disease
prevention and treatment.
prevention and treatment.
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So how do they learn?
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Apart from shared experiences,
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trial and error,
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conventional farming extension services
are boots on the ground and radio --
are boots on the ground and radio --
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expensive and hard to scale
in the face of population growth.
in the face of population growth.
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Sounds pretty gloomy, doesn't it?
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But we're at an interesting
point in Africa.
point in Africa.
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We're changing that narrative
using innovative solutions,
using innovative solutions,
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riding across scalable technologies.
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Knowledge doesn't have to be expensive.
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My company developed
an agricultural platform called iCow.
an agricultural platform called iCow.
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We teach farmers
best livestock practices using SMS
best livestock practices using SMS
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over simple, low-end phones.
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Farmers receive three SMSs a week
on best livestock practices,
on best livestock practices,
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and those that execute the messages
go on to see increases in productivity
go on to see increases in productivity
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within as short a time as three months.
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The first increases in productivity,
of course, are improved animal health.
of course, are improved animal health.
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We use SMS because it is retentive.
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Farmers store their messages,
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they write them down in books,
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and in effect,
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we're drip-feeding
agricultural manuals into the fields.
agricultural manuals into the fields.
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We recognize that we are all
part of the global food network:
part of the global food network:
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producers and consumers,
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you and me, and every farmer.
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We're focusing now on trying
to bring together producers and consumers
to bring together producers and consumers
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to take action and take responsibility
for not only food security,
for not only food security,
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but for food safety.
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This beautiful animal is an African-Asian
Sahiwal crossed with a Dutch Fleckvieh.
Sahiwal crossed with a Dutch Fleckvieh.
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She's milkier than her Sahiwal mom,
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and she's sturdier and more resistant
to disease than her Fleckvieh father.
to disease than her Fleckvieh father.
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In Ethiopia and Tanzania,
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the African Dairy Genetic Gains program
is using SMS and cutting-edge genomics
is using SMS and cutting-edge genomics
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and pioneering Africa's first
tropically adapted dairy breeding centers
tropically adapted dairy breeding centers
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and dairy performance recording centers.
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Farmers contribute
their production data --
their production data --
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milking records,
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breeding records and feeding records --
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to the ADGG platform.
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This stage is synthesized
through algorithms
through algorithms
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from some of the top
livestock institutions in the world
livestock institutions in the world
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before it lands back in the farmers' hands
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in actionable SMSs.
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Customized data,
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customized responses
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all aimed at increasing productivity
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based on the potential on the ground.
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We're at a very interesting place
in agriculture in Africa.
in agriculture in Africa.
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By the end of this year,
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we'll have almost one billion
mobile phone subscriptions.
mobile phone subscriptions.
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We have the power in our hands
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to ensure that livestock production
systems are not only healthy,
systems are not only healthy,
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productive and profitable,
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but that farmers are knowledgeable,
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and more importantly,
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that our farmers are safe.
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Working with smallholder farmers
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is one of the best ways
to guarantee food security.
to guarantee food security.
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Working with smallholder farmers
is one of the best ways
is one of the best ways
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to guarantee each and every child
their full opportunity
their full opportunity
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and ability to reach
their full genetic potential.
their full genetic potential.
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And harnessing the power
of millions of smallholder farmers
of millions of smallholder farmers
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and their badass cows like mine,
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we should be able to bring
a halt to stunting in Africa.
a halt to stunting in Africa.
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Thank you.
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(Applause)
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Thank you.
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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Su Kahumbu - Agriculturalist, social entrepreneurTED Fellow Su Kahumbu is working to improve farmer livelihoods and contribute to nutritional security and environmental sustainability.
Why you should listen
Su Kahumbu creates cool mobile phone agriculture solutions for small holder farmers in Africa. Her solutions target improved climate resilient production methods that deliver on sustainable human, animal, crop and ecosystem health.
Kahumbu latest baby is her award winning app, iCow, which is a comprehensive mobile phone based agricultural platform that provides farmers easy access to cutting edge sustainable agricultural knowledge, markets and experts. iCow is designed for low-end feature phones, helping users that aren't connected to the internet access to a database of rich offline content which they receive in SMS, 24/7 in languages of their choice. It comprises comprehensive content on livestock, crops, soils, pollinators, insects and more and is currently used by thousands of small holder farmers in Kenya, Tanzania and Ethiopia in five local languages.
Kahumbu is a passionate social entrepreneur with 21 years experience of working with small holder farmers and organic farming systems in Kenya. Her goal is to inspire, enable and support farming communities across Africa by making farming sexy.
Kahumbu is based in Nairobi, Kenya where she heads Green Dreams Tech Ltd as the CEO. She is a TED Global Fellow, an advisory board member for Changing Course in Global Agriculture and the agricultural governor of the Mpesa Foundation Academy.
Su Kahumbu | Speaker | TED.com