Information technology and agriculture

As we get ready for the Asean Economic Integration that starts next year, it is critical that we make full use of information technology to promote agriculture development.

Since my doctorate was on technology transfer, I have been following closely the way in which electronic media have been used to achieve this objective.

I will review here some of the ICT gains in agriculture and make three recommendations to build on these gains.

Models

Knowing that most poor farmers do not have the money for computers but instead use mobile phones, the PhilRice Text Center (PTC) conveys technology tips to farmers by text. It also uses this mechanism to find out their problems. It asks: “How are your rice plants?

In Northern Luzon, 213 out of 540 farmers reported problems. They were mostly on pest management, nutrient deficiency, and water availability. Using this information, PTC texted back suggestions to address them.

Dulcie Cruz from Sultan Kudarat texted: “Information we get through this service guides us in deciding what to plant this season.” Federico Billares from South Cotabato reported: “I received a reply only after a few seconds.”

There are other agriculture ICT mechanisms.

There are websites that contain valuable information such as www.palay.aralan.com. YouTube tutorials, such as on how to develop a honeybee livelihood enterprise, are available. Electronic centers (E-centers) are established in other parts of the country, such as the Albay E-center that was recently cited for its assistance to barangay communities.

Of special mention is the Open Academy for Philippine Agriculture (Opapa). It won an AGFUND International prize for pioneering human development. More specifically, Opapa’s entry “highlighted its various ICT interventions that connect lowly rice farmers to reliable sources of information and encouraged collaborative learning among rice scientists, extension workers, farmers, and other concerned organizations.”

To read more, Information technology and agriculture

Adapted from INQUIRER.NET