Uzbek village becomes digital
Digital Villages Initiative transforms farming in greenhouses for better livelihoods
Shaodatkhon Oripova is participating in the FAO Smart Farming for the Future Generations project and the Digital Villages Initiative that aims to transform at least 1 000 villages around the world into digital hubs.
©FAO/Daniil Dolidze
Sitting in a field in the heart of Uzbekistan’s Fergana Valley, Shaodatkhon Oripova’s greenhouse isn’t just the simple structure it used to be. It’s now alive with digital sensors connected to the internet, through which the 62-year-old farmer can control the temperature, humidity, light and soil moisture.
“In the past,” she said, “a lot of my earnings would disappear into paying for utility bills and buying fertilizers,” says the mother of three, whose farm produces herbs, tomatoes, lemons, corn and clover.
Now, Shaodatkhon can better regulate these inputs through the sensors. If anything needs to be adjusted in the greenhouse, her mobile phone buzzes to alert her.