Tell us something about yourself... what is your background and role in the organization you are working for?

I work for the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute as a System Administrator and offer technical support to the Kenya Agricultural Information Network (KAINet). My background is Information Technology, mainly system administration and development. I have received informal and hands-on training in information management and Library systems. Under both KARI and the KAINet my duties focus especially on issues related to information management sharing and exchange (tools and technologies). In KARI, I worked under the ICMT division to support, develop and manage web and database systems that extensively support the managing and sharing of information. I am also doing research on tools that enable sharing and exchanging of agricultural information.

How did you get in contact with AIMS?

The need to manage, share and exchange agricultural information in Kenya brought me to AIMS. FAO, being a major player in offering technical support in agricultural information management, spearheaded the adoption of some of its tools and services through KAINet partner institutions for which I offer technical support. Being interested in tools like WEBAGRIS, AgriDrupal, AgriOcean DSpace and standards like AGROVOC, it is important to be in contact with AIMS for support and interaction.

What is your opinion on AIMS?

Very useful site that I visit regularly. Up to date news and events that keep users abreast of the happenings in the agricultural management information field. The tools, services, standards and interactions with other agricultural information managers are very useful in my line of work. Of great importance is also the technical support coming from information professionals active in the AIMS community.

According to you, what is the most important benefit that AIMS provides to the agricultural information management community?

AIMS acts as a one stop solution in offering support , since it has various tools, services and standards in management of agricultural information.  Added to this the various specialized interactive communities and the CIARD Ring, a resource in itself, I believe AIMS has positioned itself as a one stop solution for agricultural information management communities.

How do you think that information management standards can contribute to agricultural research for development?

Information is power. Information management standards ensure accessibility, via sharing and exchange, to relevant information for various stakeholders and hence improve agricultural research and development, regardless the source or format of the information/data. Standards act as the platform for interoperability technologies and enable easy exchange and sharing of information and therefore availing quality information to the agricultural research sector.