Based on theories of learning that suggest that repetition is important for knowledge retention and application, this article hypothesized that sending farmers reminders about cereal management information received during face-to-face training has impact on the adoption of recommended practices and related agricultural outcomes over and above what could be realized after receiving training alone. We provide a test of this hypothesis using a randomized controlled trial in Sikasso, Mali. Farmers in 99 villages received face-to-face training, after which 44 villages received mobile phone voice messages that reinforced the training recommendations. This setup allowed us to evaluate the impact of the voice SMS reminders on selected indicators. Our results show that the reminders significantly induced timely harvesting, reduced on-farm cereal losses, increased uptake of improved grain storage technology, and increased the likelihood of pre-harvest sales contracting. However, we found no overwhelming evidence that the reminders increased yields, and no evidence of impact on revenues were detected. We draw lessons for development policy and practice.

中文翻译：

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手机语音留言提醒对马里农业成果的影响

基于表明重复对于知识保留和应用很重要的学习理论，本文假设向农民发送在面对面培训期间收到的有关谷物管理信息的提醒会影响推荐做法的采用和相关农业成果。以上是单独接受培训后可以实现的。我们使用马里锡卡索的随机对照试验对这一假设进行了检验。99 个村的农民接受了面对面培训，之后 44 个村收到了强化培训建议的手机语音信息。这种设置使我们能够评估语音短信提醒对选定指标的影响。我们的结果表明，提醒显着促进了及时收获，减少了农场谷物损失，增加对改进谷物储存技术的采用，并增加了收获前销售合同的可能性。然而，我们没有发现压倒性的证据表明提醒增加了产量，也没有发现对收入产生影响的证据。我们从发展政策和实践中吸取教训。