What does geography have to do with access to information and services? Everything. For people living in rural Ethiopia, distance from both rural and urban centres can mean that advice, animal healthcare, feed, and other inputs arrive late or remain out of reach. For a dairy farmer, this can shape today’s income and the family’s longer-term prospects.  

Take a dairy farmer who notices that their cow is producing less milk. At first, the decline may not seem serious. But, as production continues to fall, their income begins to contract. They follow the feeding and herd-management practices taught by their local extension worker, but circumstances have changed. The dry period has lasted longer, reducing the water and fodder available to their livestock. The decline could also be linked to an animal-health or reproductive problem that requires professional assessment. 

The nearest extension or animal-health worker may be several kilometres away and responsible for several communities. During a drought or disease outbreak, assistance may not always be immediate. An issue that may have been solved with timely support spirals into a problem harder and costlier to address. The household not only loses income but also an important source of nutrition.  

The Ethiopia Dairy Farmers School (EDFS) Telegram Chatbot, launched on 7 July 2026, provides guidance on dairy cattle management to subscribers via mobile phones, such as farmers and extension workers. To date, around 1,000 subscribers are connected to the service free of charge. 

The chatbot was designed to complement push-call audio-based advisories, with a digitised library of cow-centric and cow-signal advisories on a need basis. While it does not fully replace face-to-face advice or professional animal-health services, it can offer trusted, immediate guidance to farmers and practitioners.  

Through the chatbot, dairy farmers access practical advice tailored to their needs, while extension agents and development practitioners receive standardised technical guidance and training materials. Communication, digital extension teams, researchers, and policymakers gain insights into emerging field-level challenges and leverage localised content.  

The service is available in multiple languages and formats—text, audio, and video—to support multiple literacy and learning preferences. It also has a built-in feedback mechanism that gathers service improvements based on user experience.  

The chatbot is part of a bundled service developed through the Dairy Farm School (DFS) and Cow-Centric Dairy Extension Service, which was initiated under the Building Rural Income through inclusive Dairy Business Growth in Ethiopia (BRIDGE+), a project of SNV, Wageningen University and Research, and Agriterra. It sits within Ethiopia’s wider effort to strengthen digital agricultural extension services, led by the Ministry of Agriculture. It was created in partnership with Precision Development (PxD), a global non-profit organisation that leverages technology, data science, and behavioural economics to deliver actionable digital agricultural advice to smallholder farmers.   

Behind the chatbot is a network of people and systems that enables the service to function as intended. As part of a bundled extension service, it draws information from personalised advice, group learning through DFS, voice messaging, and educational videos. To illustrate, extension workers could provide farmers with advice tailored to each cow’s physiological needs, helping them adopt appropriate dairy practices. Farmers are encouraged to participate in group learning sessions through the DFS to exchange real-life experiences and practices and learn from peers. Digital advisory service is available on demand, delivered via voice/IVR, Telegram chatbot, or hybrid channels. And audio advisory messages are sent to individual phone numbers of farmers and extension workers (development agents) in line with group learning schedules. 

Sustaining the chatbot will require locally led, inclusive partnerships and continued investment in the wider dairy extension service of which it forms a part. Its longer-term value will depend on whether it remains connected to farmers’ needs, face-to-face support, and government priorities. Ethiopia’s growing investment in digital agriculture creates a favourable environment. The government’s Digital Agriculture Roadmap 2025–2032 sets out initiatives projected to reach 30 million farmers and increase farmer incomes by 8% after five years.  

The DFS and Cow-Centric Dairy Extension Service also provides a foundation for sustaining the chatbot. What began as a grassroots initiative with 3,000 dairy farmers is now used by more than 80,000. The pilot generated measurable improvements in milk production, calf mortality, and herd fertility, signalling strong potential for wider adoption and scale-up. It was tested, refined, and promoted across six regional states over the last few months. 

Towards the end of July 2026, the SNV office in Ethiopia received an official communication from the Head of the Dairy Resource Development Desk at the Ministry of Agriculture, requesting that the approach be integrated into the country’s livestock extension system. The communication stated: 

"We need to strategically scale up the institutionalization of the DFS and Cow-Centric Dairy Extension approach and integrate best practices in cow comfort into our regular extension services. 

These developments provide a stronger basis for sustaining and scaling the chatbot. As Ethiopia’s digitalisation efforts progress, with the DFS and Cow-Centric Dairy Extension approach being integrated into the national extension system, dairy farmers will gain more consistent access to a broader suite of services, including quality inputs, practical advice, markets, and financial resources. Digital advice can therefore bring extension services closer, but its value will depend on the wider system around it.