Research and evaluation partner, UK Digital Access Programme
Digital tools only count if farmers actually use them.
eLearning Innovations Limited designs, evaluates and scales digital agriculture and skills programmes across all 47 Kenyan counties and Eastern Uganda. We have served as research and M&E lead on five FCDO-funded programmes, working with ACWICT, KALRO and KICTANet.
Registry extract
- Legal entity
- eLearning Innovations Limited, incorporated under the Companies Act (Cap. 486)
- Certificate of incorporation
- CPR/2012/89965 — 29 November 2012
- KRA taxpayer PIN
- P0514070821
- Geographic coverage
- Kenya, all 47 counties · Uganda, Eastern Region
- Managing director
- Prof. Jimmy K. N. Macharia
Funders and implementing partners
UK FCDO UK Digital Access Programme ACWICT KALRO KICTANetWhat we are hired to do
Four areas of work, each grounded in fieldwork with smallholders rather than desk review.
Evaluate AgTech that is already in farmers' hands
We apply Design Science Research and behavioural science models to test the usability, adoption and real impact of digital agricultural tools — SMS services, mobile apps and web portals alike.
Get climate advisories to the last mile
Working through platforms such as the Kenya Agricultural Observatory Platform, we help deliver localised weather advisories, agronomic practice and adaptation strategies to smallholders who need them within the season.
Measure results to donor standard
Baseline, midline and endline studies, Theory of Change frameworks and hypothesis testing built to satisfy grant reporting requirements from the first design meeting, not retrofitted at close-out.
Turn findings into policy
Field evidence becomes peer-reviewed publications, policy briefs, position papers and national stakeholder webinars — so results shape regulation rather than sit in a final report.
Five FCDO-funded programmes, delivered
Every engagement below was carried out as technical research or M&E lead, with deliverables accepted by the funding partner.
| Programme | Funder and lead partners | Scope | Our role and deliverables |
|---|---|---|---|
| Digital Services in Agriculture for climate change mitigation and adaptation | FCDO / UK DAP, via ACWICT and KALRO | Kenya, all 47 counties | National research on user needs, barriers and critical success factors for digital climate-adaptation services delivered through KAOP. Built the M&E tools and the resulting policy products. |
| Digital Services in Agriculture, Phase III | FCDO / UK DAP, via ACWICT | Laikipia, Busia and Kilifi counties, Kenya | Technical research lead evaluating demand-side and supply-side effects on farmer empowerment, social inclusion and productivity across more than 10,000 targeted farmers. |
| Strengthening Digital Communities: agripreneurship and the digital divide | FCDO / UK DAP, via KICTANet | Mandera (ASAL) and Busia, Kenya | M&E lead. Built the evaluation frameworks and technical papers covering basic digital skills, agripreneurship and tool adoption among household heads, women and youth. |
| Enhancing digital business opportunities in agriculture and the gig economy | FCDO / UK DAP, via ACWICT | Eastern Uganda — Tororo, Busia, Bugiri, Namayingo | Regional research lead evaluating training-of-trainers models, agripreneurship skilling and digital job creation for more than 800 rural women, youth and people with disabilities along the agricultural value chain. |
| Skills for Prosperity Kenya and digital employability | FCDO, via ACWICT | Turkana county and urban informal settlements, Kenya | Developed the conceptual frameworks, data tools and variable models for basic and intermediate ICT skills, solar technology installation and financial literacy. |
Where we work
National research coverage in Kenya, with field deployments concentrated in arid, food-insecure and hard-to-reach counties. Marked sites are where we have run fieldwork.
Kenya
- Laikipia
- Busia
- Kilifi
- Mandera
- Turkana
- Nairobi
- + 41 further counties
Research coverage extends to all 47 counties. Deployments have prioritised arid and semi-arid lands, food-insecure counties and urban informal settlements, in coordination with KALRO and county agricultural offices.
Uganda, Eastern Region
- Tororo
- Busia
- Bugiri
- Namayingo
Cross-border work on agripreneurship skilling and digital job creation, run through training-of-trainers models designed to keep capacity in the districts after the programme closes.
How we work
Three strands run through every engagement, from inception workshop to endline.
Digital agriculture and AgTech integration
- Platform evaluation. Assessment of content relevance, accessibility and interface design across SMS services, mobile applications and web portals used for digital extension.
- Ecosystem coordination. Convening government bodies such as KALRO, private AgTech providers, cooperatives and NGOs so that a pilot has somewhere to go once funding ends.
Research and impact evaluation
- Hypothesis testing. Quantitative and qualitative instruments designed to validate project assumptions about technology adoption, gender empowerment and income change.
- Principles for Digital Development. Interventions built to the international standards — open data, user-centred design, ecosystem sustainability and data privacy.
Grant management and reporting
- Milestone-based accountable grants. Experience managing disbursement against milestones under FCDO Eligible Cost Guidance and Non-Project Attributable Costs standards.
- Knowledge transfer. Peer-reviewed journal articles, policy briefs and national stakeholder webinars produced as contracted deliverables rather than by-products.
What due diligence will find
The obligations a funder has to verify before contracting, and where we stand on each.
Financial oversight
Milestone-based accountable grants managed in line with FCDO Eligible Cost Guidance and NPAC standards, with transparent reporting against each disbursement.
Data protection
Full compliance with the Kenya Data Protection Act (2019) and with GDPR requirements for all beneficiary data collected in the field.
Safeguarding
Zero-tolerance operational adherence to Protection from Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment protocols and the IASC Core Principles.
Legal standing
Incorporated in Kenya since 2012 under certificate CPR/2012/89965, tax-registered under PIN P0514070821, and audited against donor requirements.
Prof. Jimmy K. N. Macharia
Managing director and lead consultant
Prof. Macharia leads the technical research function across all EIL engagements, from instrument design through to the peer-reviewed publications and policy briefs that close out each programme. He is the point of contact for capability enquiries, consortium invitations and due diligence.
Start a conversation
Tell us the programme, the geography and the evaluation questions you need answered. We will come back with a scope, a team and a budget.
- Machariajimmy@gmail.com
- Postal address
- P.O. Box 4788-00200
Nairobi, Kenya - Office
- Nairobi City, Kenya
- Operating in
- Kenya and Uganda