Harnessing the power of innovation in agriculture

21/11/2018

Innovation holds the potential to unlock employment opportunities, empower youth and women to access information, technology and markets, and scale up new solutions to global challenges to food and agriculture.

In conjunction with The International Symposium on agricultural innovation for family farmers (21−23 November, Rome), here is some recommended reading on innovation as a driving force to achieve food security and sustainable agriculture in the context of the 2030 Agenda.

FAO’s work on agricultural innovation
This brochure highlights the importance of innovation as a means to achieve food security and the Sustainable Development Goals. It also calls for a shift from interventions focusing on single components of agricultural innovation towards a system-approach aimed at better responding to smallholder farmers’ needs.

Rural youth aged 15–17: The right season to seed the future
In light of the challenges faced by rural youth, this report proposes policies to increase human capital and channel resources towards youth aged 15–17 to ensure equal access to education and decent jobs.

Youth and agriculture: Key challenges and concrete solutions
This publication shows how tailor-made educational programmes can provide rural youth with the skills and insights needed to engage in farming and adopt environmentally friendly production methods.

Rural migration in Tunisia: Drivers and patterns of rural youth migration and its impact on food security and rural livelihoods in Tunisia
This report calls for a strong political engagement both nationally and internationally to revive rural economies and reverse trends such as low farming productivity and inadequate access to technology and resources.

Hire services as a business enterprise: A training manual for small-scale mechanization service providers
This manual for hire service providers covers machinery operation and maintenance, draught animal care, financial procedures and other topics, organized in 5 modules and 27 sessions.

Innovative markets for sustainable agriculture: How innovations in market institutions encourage sustainable agriculture in developing countries
This publication presents 15 cases from around the world, providing insights into institutional change and how a different type of market incentive contributes to the redefinition and adoption of sustainable practices by farmers.

Success stories on information and communication technologies for agriculture and rural development (second edition)
ICTs can transform lives and improve livelihoods in agriculture by helping to secure savings, find affordable insurance and tools to manage risk, increase access to financial services, and provide business opportunities.

Information and communication technology (ICT) in agriculture
An assessment of platforms promoting ICT for agriculture, food security and nutrition and proposals for improving its usage, such as the creation of the ICT for sustainable agricultural production innovation lab.

Building agricultural market information systems
This publication reviews the features of Market Information Systems (MIS) development for agriculture, focusing on price information and new technologies for price data collection and dissemination.

E-agriculture in action
Case studies on the innovative use of emerging technologies, such as 3D food printing, electronic traceability services, and multiparameter monitors for indoor air quality, to improve the livelihoods of farming communities.

E-agriculture in action: Drones for agriculture
This book promotes replicable ICT solutions for agriculture, focusing on unmanned aerial vehicles, also known as drones, and their usage in crop production, early warning systems, disaster risk reduction, forestry, fisheries, and wildlife conservation.

Status of implementation of e-agriculture in central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia: Insights from selected countries in Europe and Central Asia
Among the topics discussed during the workshop were the role of ICTs in agricultural development in the region and within the different countries, and the need for collaboration and knowledge sharing via online communities, including ESCORENA and AGROWEB.

FAO digital innovation
This flyer presents FAO’s work on digital innovation.

FAO digital services portfolio
A collection of FAO digital innovation projects presented during the conference.

Agricultural services and digital inclusion in Africa

dlocust – The potential of drones for locust early warning and preventive control

Event Mobile Application (EMA-i)

FAMEWS – Fall Armyworm monitoring and early warning system

FAO Agricultural Stress Index System (ASIS)

FAO Survey Technology (FAST) platform

Food Price Monitoring and Analysis (FPMA) tool

Information Network on Post-harvest Operations (INPhO)

Open Foris and SEPAL (System for Earth observation data access, Processing and Analysis for Land monitoring)[DD(2]

Water Productivity through Open access of Remotely sensed derived data portal (WaPOR)

Further reading