Q. Hello Kaba! You were recently promoted from Field Agent to Assistant Supervisor. Congratulations! What new responsibilities do you enjoy?
I really appreciate the myAgro’s system, and that we have a team dedicated to the goal of helping farmers. As Assistant Supervisor, I enjoy working with and training the new agents. It’s useful for me and for them; we both end up learning a lot.
Q. You are now in charge of a team of new field agents. What training’s did you teach during today’s meeting?
Today’s activities included training on how to correctly fill out farmer contracts, and training on sending proper text messages for our savings-layaway system. Normally, I also present the week’s Key Performance Indicators, and review how to explain different activities to farmers.
Q. With your new team, what do you expect for myAgro’s expansion?
I have great confidence in this team and, If God wills it, I hope for great results. During last week’s training in Bamako I observed the new agents so that I am able identify what their strengths and weakness are and know where to focus future training.
Q. How do you motivate and encourage your team of agents?
As far as encouragement, I always tell the agents that during difficult moments you have to think about your motivation for doing this work. Also, we work for a start-up and we are all “starting up” in terms of our professional growth.
Q. Of all the villages working with myAgro, which is your favorite and why?
The village of Sido is far away and a little behind; they don’t even have a market yet. I appreciate the way that they joined myAgro. They came to us, and pushed and fought to join our program. Their way of working with myAgro touches me.
Q. Tell me about a good memory from your work thus far with myAgro.
I have a lot of good memories with myAgro. I remember doing a mobilization in Nianzana, where farmers complained that they were unable to pay for inputs before the cold season and therefore had difficulty farming. They thought the myAgro program was really useful, and wanted to know if I had joined it myself. I realized then that the work I am doing is really important for small-scale farmers.
