FAO Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean

FAO presents new challenges for 1000 Digital Villages in Latin America and the Caribbean

24/10/2022

Octubre 2022, Santiago de Chile - 

On Wednesday, 19 October 2022, the coordinator of the Investment and Development Working Group and of the 1000 Digital Villages in Latin America and the Caribbean initiative, Eduardo Ramírez, participated in the Digital Villages Initiative event, held in the framework of the World Food Forum (WFF) at the FAO headquarters in Rome.

During the event, an investment programme was presented to accelerate digital innovation in four countries of the Central American Dry Corridor: El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua.

"Our model proposes a convergent digital ecosystem, based on the development of connectivity infrastructure, equipment, applications and services at the territorial level to boost agriculture and trade in food systems in the Dry Corridor," said Ramírez.

In addition, the coordinator of 1000 Digital Villages in Latin America and the Caribbean highlighted that, despite the challenges and gaps, digital innovation is taking place in the region, specifically within the 14 countries that are currently part of the initiative, since more than 90 percent of participating small rural businesses already use some form of digital technology.

The participants in this enriching discussion included four other representatives of the initiative from different regional offices: Ken Lohento (FAO Africa), Daniela Di Gianantonio (FAO Europe and Central Asia), Aziz Elbehri (FAO Asia and the Pacific), and Maysoon Alzoubi (FAO Near East and North Africa).

1000 Digital Villages at the Science and Innovation Forum

Another WFF activity, in which representatives of the 1000 Digital Villages initiative were present, was the Digitalization of Agrifood Systems event organized by the Science and Innovation Forum.

In this activity, Agustín Zimmermann, FAO representative in Ecuador, announced that the process of creating digital ecosystems in the country will begin in 2023 through the creation of a territorial hub in the province of Cotopaxi, where the Andean Landscapes project is also being implemented.

"We are committed to promoting the connection between digital development spaces to expand the scope of this initiative in the region," Zimmermann said.

In addition, the FAO representative in Ecuador indicated that FAO plans to promote this initiative during the next four years, until reaching 200 hubs in the region.

About 1000 Digital Villages in Latin America and the Caribbean

In 2020, FAO launched the global initiative 1000 Digital Villages to promote the digitization of services in rural areas.

In Latin America and the Caribbean, the initiative was launched based on existing rural tourism experiences, promoting connectivity, resources and digital solutions for thousands of people to improve their services, employment opportunities and income.

There are currently 14 countries in the region participating in the initiative: Belize, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, Granada, Guatemala, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Peru, the Dominican Republic, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Venezuela.