In sub-Saharan Africa, smallholder farmers are vulnerable to risks associated with changing weather patterns. In Uganda, the SUM-Africa project provides satellite based drought Index Insurance to protect farmers. The SUM-Africa project is supported by the G4AW program of Netherlands Space Office (NSO) and recently a Dutch Company (EARS) signed a long term contract with Uganda Agro Insurance Consortium (AIC) to continue this service. What are agricultural index insurance? Agricultural index insurance products are linked to an index, such as temperature, rainfall, crop yield or...
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) have recently published a title called, ‘ Blockchain for Agriculture, Opportunities and Challenges ’ as part of the E-Agriculture in Action series publications. This is part of the collaboration of working together of the two UN Agencies to work together to promote the use of sustainable information and communication technologies (ICTs) in agriculture. The focus of the publication is on blockchain technology in agriculture. The aim of the book is to demystify the technology,...
You might be wondering, What is E-KOKARI? E-KOKARI is an interactive voice responsive (IVR) platform developed in Niger and it allows farmers, breeders and buyers to access information, advice, warnings and market prices in the field of agriculture and livestock. E-KOKARI allows farming communities in Niger to access timely and accurate information they need on the farm. In Niger, like in many parts of Africa, the use of mobile phones have increased and while French is a common language – not every farmer prefers it. Hence, E-KOKARI was developed to help farmers to access needed information...
The agricultural ministers of 74 nations who attended the just ended the 11th Berlin Agriculture Ministers’ Conference, held during the Global Forum for Food and Agriculture issued a communique that affirms support to farmers through digital innovation. The statement acknowledge the projected increase in world’s population amidst the current hunger level of, over 821 million 9 people in the world who are suffering from hunger. The ministers called for digitalization in agriculture, innovation and smart solutions in increasing agricultural production and commitment to the goals of the 2030...
The Global Open Data for Agriculture and Nutrition (GODAN), invites interested person to join the webinar on 23rd January 2019. They published the following details To register Click this link https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4323913435173576193 About the webinar Blockchain has the potential to provide answers to a number of issues in agriculture, from farmer IDs to smart contracts, from traceability and improving certification, digital payments, insurance, consumer feedback and improved logistics. For example, to improve traceability in agriculture value chains, a decentralized...
The Global Forum for Food and Agriculture (GFFA) is organized by the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (Germany) and is hosted by the European Commission and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The theme of GFFA 2019 is “ Agriculture Goes Digital – Smart...
The EIP-AGRI seminar “ Multi-level strategies for digitising agriculture and rural areas ” roared into life today and seeks to provide a platform that will stimulate debate on digitisation of agriculture and rural areas – combining European, national, regional and local levels. This event is organised by the EIP-AGRI network with the contribution of the European Network for Rural Development and of the Broadband Competencies Offices Network and is supported by the Flemish Rural Network . The seminar is held in Antwerp, Belgium starting today, Wednesday 12th of December and concluded on the...
“Multi-level strategies for digitising agriculture and rural areas”. This seminar will provide a platform for a stimulating debate on the importance of strategic planning to steer the digitisation of agriculture and rural areas, combining European, national, regional and local levels. The event...
Perhaps the name sounds negative, but not until you dig deeper. The rate of technology change has affected many people, processes and sectors. With regards to agriculture, our colleagues published an article, ' digital disruption in agriculture ’. They premise that, the pace of digital disruption over the last two decades has been breathtaking, transforming every sector of the global economy, including agriculture. By using diverse technologies – smartphones, GPS, satellite imagery, big data, artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things – farmers can optimize crop growth and farm...
Serge Auguste Zaonogo from Burkina Faso won the Radio France Internationale (RFI) Challenge App Africa for his invention ‘Saagga’ - an electronic mapping system that optimizes irrigation in the agricultural sector, permitting management while on-the-move. In a recent article , FAO noted that in addition to the prize, Serge Auguste Zaonogo will be offered an Internship with FAO in one of its innovation units. The RFI Challenge App Africa aims to support and promote the integration of new, innovative technologies in the field of sustainable development in Francophone Africa. Read this news here...
The Global Forum for Food and Agriculture (GFFA) is organized by the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (Germany) and is hosted by the European Commission and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The theme of GFFA 2019 is “ Agriculture Goes Digital – Smart...
“Multi-level strategies for digitising agriculture and rural areas”. This seminar will provide a platform for a stimulating debate on the importance of strategic planning to steer the digitisation of agriculture and rural areas, combining European, national, regional and local levels. The event...
