Farmers in Africa are using mobile phones to better their lives and business careers. The phones allow them to gain direct access to their respective markets and keep informed about global trends about their industry.

“One of Mashva’s neighbors said he had quadrupled his monthly income since using the phone, as he was now able to cut out a middle man who paid him far less than the market price for his cotton crop.

“Last year was really a disaster, I made around 800 rand ($120) a month and was having trouble feeding my family,” Jeremiah Chauke told reporters. “But last month I made around 4,000 rand — that’s a lot of bucks.”

Chauke has invested some of that extra cash into growing vegetables on a small plot of land near his house, which he also sells using his phone”