Chapter 8. Switching over instead of Switching Off: A Digital Field Research Conducted by Small-scale Farmers in Southern Africa and Indonesia

From April until July 2020, the Seminar für Ländliche Entwicklung (SLE) conducted a digital rapid-response co-research in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Indonesia into the impacts and coping strategies of farmers during the earlier months of the Covid-19 pandemic. This chapter seeks to provide insights on applying a digital survey collection tool, which gains importance particularly in crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Real-time data can contribute to rapid responses for policy actions and decision-making, and moreover, when collected by small-scale farmers can give a voice to the often unheard. The chapter describes the collaborative research and reflects on the benefits and challenges of this type of digital rapid-response research, and reflects on ethical considerations on the participation of partners and the digital team-building process.

Henze, Judith, Nicole Paganini, Silke Stöber