Entrepreneurial mindset and institutional innovations triggered by rice parboiling video in Benin

To improve rice parboiling in Benin, an improved parboiling process with new equipment is being released. Farmer-to-farmer video (initiated by Africa Rice Center) was used by four local NGOs in the Department of Collines to disseminate the technology. In order to explore changes that have been made in this rural area following the use of this learning approach, 160 women and 17 women’s associations were surveyed in 16 villages where the video was shown. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected using focus groups, semi-structured interviews, participant observations, questionnaires and photographs. The video had not only improved women’s creative spirit, but also their motivation and awareness about the importance of parboiling as a revenue-generating activity. Women have become organized around rice parboiling leading to the creation of associations, more appeals to NGOs for additional training in rice parboiling, improved service delivery and improved packaging and marketing of parboiled rice. Improving women’s entrepreneurial spirit contributed to improving the quality of parboiled rice and therefore to an increase in its price, which increased women’s revenues and strengthened social cohesion. The video favored not only the improvement of extension methods used by facilitators, but also the strengthening of relationships among facilitators, rural communities, women processors, microfinance institutions, and input and output markets. Women had more access to formal credit because of their improved organization. Rice producers who attended the open-air video shows at the same time as the women rice processors became more willing to sell rice on credit to the women. The results of this study have allowed us to understand how video can favor the development of institutional innovations and reinforce relationships between facilitators and rural entrepreneurs.