E-agriculture
Encyclopedia
E-agriculture is a relatively recent term in the field of agriculture and rural development practices. Consistency in the use of this term began to materialize with the dissemination of results from a global survey carried out by the United Nations (UN). This survey conducted in late 2006 by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) found that half of those who replied identified “e agriculture” with information dissemination, access and exchange, communication and participation processes improvements around rural development. In contrast, less than a third highlighted the importance of technical hardware and technological tools.
E-agriculture, therefore, describes an emerging field focused on the enhancement of agricultural and rural development through improved information and communication processes. More specifically, e-agriculture involves the conceptualization, design, development, evaluation and application of innovative ways to use information and communication technologies (ICTs) in the rural domain, with a primary focus on agriculture.
The UN states that e-agriculture is a relatively new term and that fully expect its scope to change and evolve as our understanding of the area grows.
), the UK Department for International Development (DFID) and the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO
) joined together in a collaborative research project to look at bringing together livelihoods thinking with concepts from information and communication for development, in order to improve understanding of the role and importance of information and communication in support of rural livelihoods.
The policy recommendations included:
(WSIS). The "Tunis Agenda for the Information Society," published on 18 November 2005, emphasizes the leading facilitating roles that UN agencies need to play in the implementation of the Geneva Plan of Action.
FAO hosted the first e-Agriculture workshop in June 2006, bringing together representatives of leading development organizations involved in agriculture. The meeting served to initiate development of an effective process to engage as wide a range of stakeholders involved in e-Agriculture, and resulted in the formation of an e-Agriculture Community of Practice Founding Group.Members include Members include: Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR); Technical Centre for Agriculture and Rural Development (CTA); UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA); FAO; Gesellschaft fur Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ); Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR); Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA); International Association of Agricultural Information Specialists (IAALD); International Centre for Communication for Development (IICD); International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD); International Telecommunications Union (ITU); World Bank.
E-agriculture, therefore, describes an emerging field focused on the enhancement of agricultural and rural development through improved information and communication processes. More specifically, e-agriculture involves the conceptualization, design, development, evaluation and application of innovative ways to use information and communication technologies (ICTs) in the rural domain, with a primary focus on agriculture.
The UN states that e-agriculture is a relatively new term and that fully expect its scope to change and evolve as our understanding of the area grows.
ICT in Support of Rural Poverty Elimination and Food Security
In August 2003, the Overseas Development Institute (ODIOverseas Development Institute
The Overseas Development Institute is one of the leading independent think tanks on international development and humanitarian issues. Based in London, its mission is "to inspire and inform policy and practice which lead to the reduction of poverty, the alleviation of suffering and the achievement...
), the UK Department for International Development (DFID) and the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO
Fão
Fão is a town in Esposende Municipality in Portugal....
) joined together in a collaborative research project to look at bringing together livelihoods thinking with concepts from information and communication for development, in order to improve understanding of the role and importance of information and communication in support of rural livelihoods.
The policy recommendations included:
- Building on existing systems, while encouraging integration of different technologies and information sharing
- Determining who should pay, through consensus and based on a thorough analysis of the costs
- Ensuring equitable access to marginalised groups and those in the agricultural sector
- Promoting localised content, with decentralised and locally owned processes
- Building capacity, through provision of training packages and maintaining a choice of information sources
- Using realistic technologies, that are suitable within the existing infrastructure
- Building knowledge partnerships to ensure that knowledge gaps are filled and a two-way flow of information allows knowledge to originate from all levels of the network and community.
E-agriculture and the WSIS Process
e-agriculture is one of the action lines identified in the declaration and plan of action (2003) of the World Summit on the Information SocietyWorld Summit on the Information Society
The World Summit on the Information Society was a pair of United Nations-sponsored conferences about information, communication and, in broad terms, the information society that took place in 2003 in Geneva and in 2005 in Tunis...
(WSIS). The "Tunis Agenda for the Information Society," published on 18 November 2005, emphasizes the leading facilitating roles that UN agencies need to play in the implementation of the Geneva Plan of Action.
FAO hosted the first e-Agriculture workshop in June 2006, bringing together representatives of leading development organizations involved in agriculture. The meeting served to initiate development of an effective process to engage as wide a range of stakeholders involved in e-Agriculture, and resulted in the formation of an e-Agriculture Community of Practice Founding Group.Members include Members include: Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR); Technical Centre for Agriculture and Rural Development (CTA); UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA); FAO; Gesellschaft fur Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ); Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR); Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA); International Association of Agricultural Information Specialists (IAALD); International Centre for Communication for Development (IICD); International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD); International Telecommunications Union (ITU); World Bank.