Joseph G.M. Massaquoi
In rural technology development for off-farm activities, it is usually
assumed that local people have nothing to offer. Thus they are expected to be
passive recipients of technology that is normally handed down to them from various
agencies. This article argues that indigenous technology can sometimes play a key
role in technology development. It can be the source of data on technology software
such as product quality, process steps and raw materials. It can also provide the basis
of design concepts that could easily be adopted and diffused.
Over the last decade several studies have been carried out highlighting the potential of indigenous knowledge in rural development. The emphasis in most cases has been on agriculture, agro-forestry, livestock farming, and ecological and natural resource management. (Warren, 1991; Warren and Rajasekaran, 1993; Rajasekaran et al., 1991 and 1994) Although some of these works have analysed the role of indigenous technical knowledge (Atteh, 1992) particularly in agriculture, not much has been done to identify and utilise indigenous technology in off-farm activities such as food processing, textiles, building materials and energy conversion.
In fact, since the publication of the work by Gamser et al. (1990) there has not been any major report on rural technological innovations in off-farm activities. This lack of interest may not be unconnected with the general perception which equates technology only with hardware such as equipment, tools and instruments. Thus, development workers wonder what resource-poor rural people have to offer in terms of equipment ("technology") in a world dominated by mass-produced equipment.
Technology however is more than just equipment. It is a combination of knowledge, skills and equipment to provide goods and services to a population. In other words the knowledge of processes or steps followed in converting a raw material to useful products is a significant aspect of chemical engineering technology.
In Sierra Leone, for instance, the rural people have for several years employed a production process that extracts salt from salt-bearing silts (Massaquoi, 1990). This is a major innovation considering that the conventional salt production technologies are either based on mining or solar evaporation of sea water. It is likely that other innovative technologies used to process and/or preserve food crops, and to convert forest products into useful products, exist and could benefit from further interactions with modern science. In the case of processing of local foods, it is difficult to imagine a successful technology development process that does not rely on indigenous technology resource components in raw material selection, processing steps and for product quality control. In the first place, there are many local food products which outsiders may not even know about let alone know the steps involved in their processing. Secondly, even where the product is well known, knowledge of technology components such as product quality are related to local perceptions of how it should taste, look and smell. And such product characteristics are intimately linked to the production process and type of raw material selected.
Thus in technology development for local food processing, indigenous technology software (i.e. knowledge about products, process steps and raw materials) can be very helpful. Similarly, in the processing of natural resources such as salt from silts or essential oils from plants, information on processing steps will be required in the design of the plant.
Indigenous innovations in technology are not only restricted to process and production systems. Often the hardware itself can be innovative. In cassava processing in West Africa, for instance, the hardware which is now being produced and disseminated in some West African countries by NGOs, bears a remarkable resemblance to the wooden clamp that has been used for a long time by the local people (Kwatia, 1986; Kreamer, 1986). Basically the traditional press sandwiches a bag of pulp between wooden planks which are tied together with a rope to apply pressure on the pulp. The improved design uses the same design concept but replaces the rope with a long bolt and winged nut. This shows that indigenous technology can sometimes be used to provide the conceptual design to which scientific knowledge is then applied for further improvement.
The above two illustrations suggest that there is potential for the use of indigenous technology which should not be ignored by researchers working on rural technologies for developing countries. No one is suggesting that the rural people should not be exposed to improved technology or, worse still, that they should remain at their present level of technological development. What is being suggested here is that in the process of developing or introducing new technologies we should examine the existing technology in order to identify its weaknesses and strengths so scientific principles can be applied in effective ways to improve it.
The objective therefore is not just to study the technologies but to upgrade them where possible. The evidence from the cassava pulp press technology discussed above, shows that this may already be going on in an ad hoc manner. A scientific analysis of the salt production process reported by Massaquoi (1990) shows that the principles are very sound and similar to those involved in conventional mineral ore extraction. Unfortunately the lack of financial and other technical resources prevents the local producers from further development of their technology.
What is now required is a methodology that will facilitate the use of indigenous
technology as a basis for appropriate technology development. Such a methodology
will begin with the design process in the field rather than in the design room. At the
very start, information will be sought on all aspects of indigenous technology. This
will include information on process steps, product quality, raw material and any
hardware. This information along with socio-economic data on the technology users
and overall design objectives will represent the data input into the design exercise.
The method of obtaining information on the indigenous technology will depend on
the particular technology and could include two or more of the following:
It is hoped that when a methodology is available for the incorporation of some aspects of indigenous technology into engineering science, the design, adoption and diffusion of rural technologies for off-farm activities, particularly income generating ones, will be enhanced.
Joseph G.M. Massaquoi
Visiting Fulbright Scholar
Centre for Indigenous Knowledge for Agriculture and Rural Development
(CIKARD)
Iowa State University
318 Curtiss Hall
Ames, Iowa 50011
USA
and
Faculty of Engineering
Fourah Bay college
University of Sierra Leone
Freetown
Sierra Leone
References
Atteh D.O. (1992) Indigenous local knowledge as a key to local level
development: possibilities, constraints and planning issues. Studies in
Technology and Social Change No. 20. Ames: Iowa State University, Technology and
Social Change Program.
Gamser M., H. Appleton and N. Carter (eds) (1990) Tinker, tiller, technical change. London: Intermediate Technology Publications.
Kreamer, R.G. (1986) Gari processing in Ghana: a study of entrepreneurship and technical change in tropical Africa. Department of Agricultural Economics, Cornell University, A.E. Research 86-30. Ithaca: Cornell University.
Kwatia, J.T. (1986) Report on the existing cassava storage and processing technologies in Southern Nigeria with a view of making recommendations for the establishment of rural cassava processing and utilisation centers. Ibadan: UNICEF and IITA.
Massaquoi, J.G.M. (1990) Salt from silt in Sierra Leone, pp. 48-63 in Gamser, M., H. Appleton and N. Carter (eds) Tinker, tiller, technical change. London: Intermediate Technology Publications.
Rajasekaran, B., D.M. Warren and S.C. Babu (1991) 'Indigenous natural resource management systems for sustainable agricultural development: a global perspective', Journal of International Development 3(4):387-402.
Rajasekaran, B. and D.M. Warren (1994) 'The role of indigenous soil management practices: Evidences from South India', Journal of Soil and Water Conservation (forthcoming).
Warren, D.M. (1991) Using indigenous knowledge in agricultural development. World Bank Discussion Paper No. 127. Washington D.C.: The World Bank.
Warren, D.M. and B. Rajasekaran (1993) 'Putting local knowledge to good use', International Agriculture Development 13(4):8-10.