Winnie Makario

Kenyan tech entrepreneur who developed Africa's first agricultural SMS platform

Winnie Makario (b. 1981) disrupted Kenya's agricultural sector with her M-Farm SMS platform launched in 2010. This innovation allowed 500,000+ smallholder farmers to access real-time market prices and weather updates via basic mobile phones - a breakthrough in a region where 80% of farmers lacked internet. Her system reduced post-harvest losses by 40% and increased farmer incomes by an average of 25%. Makario's 2015 TED Talk "Connecting Farmers, Connecting Futures" highlighted her vision of tech-driven rural development. In 2018, she expanded the platform to include crop insurance via SMS, protecting 200,000 households against climate risks. Her book 《Connecting the Unconnected》 (2020) details her approach to bridging digital divides in agriculture. Makario's initiatives have inspired similar platforms in Uganda and Tanzania, and her work was featured in Forbes Africa's 2021 "Top 30 Innovators" list. She currently leads the African AgriTech Alliance, advocating for policy frameworks to support rural digital infrastructure.