A new publication by FAO that maps the adoption and use of digital innovations and technologies in agriculture has been published. The full report can be downloaded in the following links The full status report in English, link http://www.fao.org/3/ca4985en/ca4985en.pdf , The briefing paper in six UN languages through links below: http://www.fao.org/3/ca4887zh/ca4887zh.pdf (Chinese): http://www.fao.org/3/ca4887es/ca4887es.pdf (Spanish): http://www.fao.org/3/ca4887ru/ca4887ru.pdf (Russian) http://www.fao.org/3/ca4887fr/ca4887fr.pdf (French) http://www.fao.org/3/ca4887ar/ca4887ar.pdf (Arabic)...
The Technical Centre for Agriculture and Rural Cooperation (CTA) has published the digitalisation of African Agriculture Report . The report advocates for the digital agricultural transformation that can feed Africa. In his launch statement, the CTA Director, Michael Hailu stated, “at CTA, we know and understand the power to digitalise African agriculture. But we also understand that the evidence that will attract targeted investments to further develop D4Ag on the continent is lacking”. The emphasis towards digitalisation for agriculture (D4Ag) has been growing over the last decade. For...
FAO welcomes the 3rd AU-EU Agriculture Ministerial Conference in FAO HQ, Rome on the 21st of June 2019. The conference is co-hosted by the African Union Commission and the European Commission. The AU Commissioner for Agriculture and rural economy, Ms Josefa Sacko and her counterpart the EU Commissioner for Agriculture and rural development, Mr. Phil Hogan are expected to attend. The African Union (AU) – European Union (EU) ministerial meetings take place on an ad hoc basis to monitor the progress achieved between summits, and to advance cooperation between both continents in certain fields...
FAO develops livestock-tracking system to help pig farmers expand their markets In Papua New Guinea, no celebration is complete without a pig roast. As one of the few mammals living on the island, pigs play an important role in the country’s culture and economy. Traditionally, smallholder farmers—who raise the vast majority of pigs—have sold their livestock locally, but a rise in global demand for pork means new opportunities to access international markets. Consequently, farmers are looking for a way to prove that their livestock meets international standards—and are now turning to...
The curtain came down for the FAO Digital Agriculture Transformation Semina r on the 13th of June at FAO headquarters. The seminar was attended by several hundred participants and included government ministers, representatives of civil society and the private sector, non-governmental organizations and others. The FAO Director General had the pleasure to invite Mr. Chang-Gyu Hwang, CEO, Korea Telecom (KT) who opened the seminar with an impressive summary of the possibilities that digital technologies have for agriculture, and what KT has done and is doing. The two day event saw the first day...
The African Development Bank and its partners on the 13th of June, 2019 launched the Africa Digital Financial Inclusion Facility (ADFI) , designed to aid safety and expansion of digital financial transactions in Africa. The Fund, launched at the Bank’s Annual Meetings in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) and the Government of Luxembourg, as initial contributors. The fund will deploy $100 million in grants and $300 million in the form of debt from the Bank’s ordinary capital resources by 2030, to...
The FAO Digital Services Portfolio is a project that was started in November 2016 in Rulindo, Rwanda and Tambacounda, Senegal.The project included the development and distribution of 4 mobile applications to smallholder farmers. This project comes as a realisation that digital services are changing how farmers work and also from the understanding that ICTs can maximise various social support services for farmers – such services include rural advisory services, financial services and social protection programmes, access to market information and disease control. The four apps were the Cure and...
Not so long ago the UN Secretary General instituted The High-level Panel on Digital Cooperation in July 2018 to identify good examples and propose modalities for working cooperatively across sectors, disciplines and borders to address challenges in the digital age. On the 10th of June 2019, the Panel launched its report, The Age of Digital Interdependence and presented it to the UN Secretary-General António Guterres. The report describes a world more deeply interconnected than ever before as a result of digital technology, yet struggling to manage the economic, social, cultural and political...
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and partners will hold the Digital Agriculture Transformation Seminar: The challenges to be addressed . The seminar will be held in Rome, Italy on the 12th and 13th of June, 2019. The seminar aims to foster an exchange among stakeholders(...
The GSMA has announced GSMA Innovation Fund for eight grants of £220,000 each to support projects for 24 months duration. The GSMA Innovation Fund for Digitisation of Agricultural Value Chains aims to scale digital solutions for the agricultural last mile and improve smallholders’ financial inclusion, livelihood and climate resilience. Grants are available across two categories of application Applications for funding across both categories are assessed through a two-stage application process. Concept Note: The first step will be to submit a Concept Note, which outlines the project objectives...
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and partners will hold the Digital Agriculture Transformation Seminar: The challenges to be addressed . The seminar will be held in Rome, Italy on the 12th and 13th of June, 2019. The seminar aims to foster an exchange among stakeholders(...