The agricultural sector in the world and Sub-Saharan Africa faces the pressing challenge of meeting the growing food demand driven by the exponential population growth. With smallholder poultry farming playing a critical role in food and nutritional security, this systematic review synthesizes literature from the past two decades to assess the adoption of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) among smallholder poultry farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The review focuses on the benefits and barriers impacting this adoption. Following the PRISMA methodology, 19 peer-reviewed studies were analyzed to explore how ICT facilitates market participation, enhances information exchange, and improves producer livelihoods. The included studies in this review were sourced from four major academic databases: Science Direct, Web of Science, Wiley online library, and EBSCOhost. The findings reveal that ICT adoption significantly reduces information asymmetry, enables farmers to access market and production knowledge, and thus improves their profitability and inclusion in informal and formal market platforms. The review underscores the potential of targeted policy interventions and digital platforms to empower smallholder poultry farmers, enhance their commercialization, and contribute towards agricultural sustainability in the region. This study highlights the critical need for increased ICT accessibility, capacity building, and infrastructural improvements to support the digital transformation of smallholder poultry farming in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Smallholder poultry farming contributes enormously to rural livelihoods, food security, and nutrition in South Africa, yet the poultry industry remains constrained by limited participation and low ICT utilisation. This study investigated the socioeconomic and demographic factors influencing decisions and choices of smallholder poultry farmers towards the adoption of ICT and market engagement in Jozini Local Municipality, KwaZulu-Natal. A cross-sectional research design was used to collect primary data from respondents. Data were collected through face-to-face surveys from 162 participants, who were randomly selected. Descriptive statistics were employed to profile the use and extent of ICT, while the multivariate probit model was used to analyse the determinants of ICT adoption and market engagement. The findings revealed that most farmers own ICT tools such as mobile phones (98.15%), which they mainly use for communication purposes (98.77%) rather than for accessing production and market related information. Smallholder characteristics like age, faming experience, marital status, and household size significantly influenced farmers decisions and choices to adopt ICT and participate in markets. The study recommends improving the traditional extension through digital integration and farmer support by means of training on ICT and formal market linkages. These interventions can significantly market participation and profitability in smallholder poultry farming, stabilising rural economic development.