Improving Farmer Comprehension of Soil Health Cards

Key highlights

• An impact evaluation showed that the redesigned Soil Health Card (SHC) improved farmers’ comprehension of fertiliser recommendations 65 times, from 0.5% to 33%.
• For every 1,000 spent on printing cards, 1 farmer is able to understand the recommendations on the old card, while 71 farmers are able to understand the recommendations on the new card1.
• The new Soil Health Card contains major changes to the macronutrient and micronutrient tables, with recommended quantities and crop names.
• Potential reasons the old card wasn’t effective include: farmers were previously confused about the land unit conversion, were not literate, and/or had a lack of awareness of the Soil Health Card scheme.
• Peer learning and improved awareness of the scheme can increase farmers’ comprehension, indicating that the long-term effects of the redesigned card may be greater than those currently estimated.
• Automated voice calls and text mess