We’re very pleased to have Nyiwung Valery Colong, the technical lead of the AMIS Project Cameroon team, join us as a full-time coworker at Limbe Labs. Valery is an articulate and inspirational young software entrepreneur whose passion for technology is superseded only by his desire to improve the lives of others. His particular focus is on smallholder farmers in Cameroon—a group with whom he shares a very personal connection.

African smallholder farmers strive to increase the productivity of their farms and make economic gains for themselves. Unfortunately, despite all their labor inputs, most African farmers end up subsisting on $1 per day while their goods are bought and sold on open markets at many times their wholesale price. Many farmers struggle to provide basic needs for their families and are unable to purchase equipment and supplies to enhance the output of their farms. Other times, following a harvest, market demand falls off and produce is sold at a loss. Combined with poor roads, pests and unpredictable weather, these challenges are often collectively referred to as the “Farmers’ Plight.”

AMIS seeks to empower smallholder farmers in two innovative ways. First, by using mobile phones, AMIS connects farmers and buyers directly with SMS thus bypassing often exploitative middlemen. Both parties benefit from the transaction; the farmers fetch better prices for their goods while buyers enjoy high quality products at reduced costs. At the same time, information about weather forecasts, sustainable farming practices and so on can be easily distributed to stakeholders. Secondly, in conversations with farmers, AMIS found that they are keen to form local associations that are able to pool resources and store their harvests until market conditions are favorable. SMS is an inexpensive, ubiquitous medium to enable this sort of community-building effort.

In May of this year, Valery traveled to San Jose, California to take part in TechSoupGlobal’s N2Y4 Conference to present AMIS as a finalist in the N2Y4 Mobile Challenge. While AMIS did not win the overall competition, Microsoft awarded the project team with an honorary cash prize to recognize their vision. EnvisionGood.tv had a chance to talk with Valery at the conference and learn how mobile phones and SMS are being used in Cameroon to help farmers: