The technology link on efficient food systems

Digital technology is the world's solution to efficient agri-food systems, the global food agency has reported.

The Food and Agriculture Organisation Director-General QU Dongyu on Thursday said there is a need for inclusive promotion of innovative techniques and a balanced framework to mitigate risks.

"The digital divide is nowhere more evident than in agriculture," Dongyu said.

He added that the impact of digital technologies on agriculture is vast, affecting on-farm actions, research, markets and the environment.

The panel shone the limelight on smallholder farmers' concerns about data ownership, privacy and liability.

Dongyu and the panel attended the High-Level Dialogue on the Establishment of the International Platform for Digital Food and Agriculture, an online event hosted by FAO.

A study in the 2019 Journal of Development and Agricultural Economics indicates that “ICT plays a significant role in a country’s development and the strategic application of ICT to the agricultural sector … offers the best opportunity for economic growth and poverty alleviation”. 

Mobile phones, for instance, have become an indispensable tool for disseminating information. This has given rise to applications that collect and share agricultural information. 

African governments, seed companies, and regional bodies were in August asked to promote appropriate agricultural technologies and innovations that will help cushion smallholder farmers and agri-businesses against the negative effects of Covid-19 pandemic on agricultural production and markets. 

The call was made by experts speaking during a webinar hosted by the African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF) themed, “Promotion of technologies and innovations for agri-business resilience in Africa in the wake of Covid-19".

The webinar, graced by a panel of renowned agricultural experts, recommended that African governments create an enabling policy environment for commercialisation, support smart agro-input subsidy programmes without distorting market dynamics and promote digital agriculture solutions.

The moderator of the session, Dr. Denis Kyetere, Executive Director of AATF, noted that agri-businesses in Africa remain vulnerable to threats such as climatic change, rapid population growth,  pests, and diseases among others and that the emergence of Covid-19 complicates matters further threatening farmers’ livelihoods.

The agency will set up an International Platform for Digital Food and Agriculture, a flexible, light and consensual coordination mechanism. It will identify ways in which the world's food and agricultural sectors can harness digital tools.

Some of the areas to be explored include blockchain transaction and the use of Artificial Intelligence for improved pest control and crop genetics.

Nikolai Astrup, Norway's Minister of Regional Policies and Modernization, said, "We won't reach the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals without making use of digital technologies."

The Covid-19 pandemic has shown how deeply intertwined the world's societies are today, and how "we need more connectivity, not less," the Director-General said. 

"Let us work hand in hand to ensure that this tremendous digital power is used to transform agri-food systems in order to eliminate hunger and reduce poverty."